Audi A6 sedan 2019 Review – Australia

The handover process for the new Audi A6 55 TFSI is quite unlike other models.

With its underlying quattro all-wheel drive system, 250kW turbo-petrol V6 and optional rear-wheel steering, you’d be forgiven for expecting a cursory look over the engine bay, underbody or its Bridgestone Turanza tyres before being flung the keys.

But instead, Audi Australia officials hone in on its interior during a recent preview with carsales.com.au: specifically, the contents of the 2019 A6’s dual centre screens (8.6-inch and 10.1-inch).

As the first member of the new Audi A6 family in Australia, the 55 TFSI debuts the updated Audi Connect Plus equipment suite. Making use of an internet connection, the system’s major talking point is its ability to connect the A6 with the outside world.

It is now possible, for instance, to monitor real-time traffic information, check petrol station live prices, availability of parking spaces in nearby stations, or read reviews for nearby restaurants. Or, using a smartphone app, you can set a geofence on the vehicle, impose valet user settings or a speed-limiter, or lock and unlock the car remotely.

In the increasingly tech-savvy prestige market, the new technology is Audi’s latest trump card as the updated A6 resumes the fight with the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and BMW 5 Series.

Priced from $116,000 plus on-road costs, the 55 TFSI is the first of numerous Audi A6 variants. It will soon be joined by a 45 TFSI entry model, which will pare the entry price back to under $100K, and others including the 800Nm Audi RS 6 Avant.

All Audi A6 models come standard with LED headlights, heated front seats, 19-inch alloy wheels, wireless phone charging, navigation and Audi’s virtual cockpit digital instrument cluster.

S-Line variants, like that tested here, add an exterior package, adaptive suspension, leather sports seat trim, a head-up display and 20-inch alloy wheels in V-spoke design.

All variants will also be fitted standard with Audi’s full safety suite which includes autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist, front and rear parking sensors, lane assist, rear cross traffic alert, 360-degree camera and more.

You’d expect as much from a vehicle boasting five radars, 12 ultrasonic sensors, five camera, single lidar and a night vision camera.

The Audi A6 is equipped with a space-saver spare tyre, which sits below its 530-litre boot. It is backed by Audi’s three-year/100,000km factory warranty, while a genuine care service plan brings a three-year servicing package (12-month, 15,000km intervals) for $1700.

On the Audi Connect Plus software, the car’s purchase price includes a three-year subscription. Costs are rated at $300 annually thereafter.

It would be easy to dismiss the Audi Connect system as pure marketing hyperbole, but this tester can vouch that it works. In fact, it spared an awkward phone call explaining that I’d missed an early morning flight.

On a recent Thursday morning red-eye adventure (read: misadventure) to Sydney airport along Sydney’s notorious M5, hopes of making my 7:00am flight looked to be dashed when, 3km from the M5/M7 junction, traffic came at a standstill.

Sydney’s booming western suburbs constituent looked to have congregated en masse for its daily 5.30am ritual; tradies, trucks, busy office workers and more crawling intermittently along the four-lane section of highway.

Desperate to make the 6.40am flight cut-off, the destination was punched into Audi’s navigation system. It swiftly took me off the main road and through the backblocks of another bourgeoning housing sub-division, before spitting back onto the M5, which at this point had escalated to a more acceptable 90km/h stream of chaos.

The point is, the real-world functionality of the Audi Connect system was proven yet again during our three-day loan. Petrol stations with live pricing, how many parks are available at a nearby station; these are all handy up-to-the-minute functions that tend to streamline a busy day.

Seat time is accompanied by the world’s music courtesy of an online radio system embedded into the software. On vehicles fitted with a SIM card with a data plan, it is possible to listen to hip hop live from the US, or the BBC’s analysis on Britain’s latest news (usually something to do with Brexit).

The infotainment system bolsters strong surroundings inside. Comfortable bucket seats up front team with quality materials (timber inlays, brushed aluminium) adorning the door sleeves and contact points, while rear seat space lends the A6 enough room to carry four adults in relative comfort, the 530-litre boot providing adequate space for their bags.

Everything is user-friendly and easy to navigate, including our tester’s 12.3-inch virtual cockpit display – the digital instrument cluster that still remains the envy of most marques – and head-up display.

Audi’s much-vaunted haptic buttons work fairly well in practice; there are a couple of occasions where you need to press a little harder than usual to elicit a reaction, but this is likely a case of adjusting to the system’s idiosyncrasies.

Otherwise, our biggest complaint centres on the front middle cup-holders: they’re medium latte size at best… too small for a drink bottle or a reuseable coffee cup.

Marketing rhetoric aside, the defining feature of the A6 remains its ride and handling mix on Australian roads.

Riding on optional $2000 air suspension, adaptive dampers and 21-inch wheels, the A6 55 TFSI has an innate ability to follow the curvature of the road, reflecting desired levels of feel and feedback while also taking the edge off bumps.

There’s an inherent sportiness to the way the Audi A6 55 TFSI does business, too. That dynamic trait is largely owed to the 55 TFSI’s engine and drivetrain: a 3.0-litre turbo-petrol V6 offering 250kW and 500Nm, sending drive to all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

Then there’s the lighter weight composite steel and aluminium body panels draped over A6’s frame, the exterior bringing a slightly more aggressive look. All told, nought to 100 takes 5.1 seconds, a number that assures brisk progress on the road.

The caveat here, however, surrounds the 55 TFSI’s mild-hybrid 48-volt electric system. Designed to provide additional forward momentum from low speeds, the system also boasts the ability to switch of the engine for short periods of time to spare fuel.

It all sounds fantastic on paper – more forward urge and less fuel – but our test car was hampered by considerable hesitation and at times a shudder at low speeds and during initial throttle tip-in. It felt like a symptom of the electric system, dual-clutch automatic and turbos holding a meeting and deciding how they want to proceed.

The physical delay is probably a second, but in a rush and during roll-on acceleration it feels like an eternity. It’s an oversight that cannot be mistaken, as our test vehicle kept exhibiting the same traits.

By the same token, the 55 TFSI’s real-world efficiency is credible at 8.2L/100km in a mix of conditions -- just above the claimed figure.

The hesitation marginally detracts from a polished driving experience: the new Audi A6 is whisper quiet on the road, feels surefooted and refined. Outward vision is excellent, and the car’s plethora of safety systems, cameras and driver-assist functions are first-rate.

What’s more, this 4.9-metre long, 2.0-tonne luxury sedan is prodigiously quick on a backroad. With the aforementioned ride and handling mix to consider, and its quick-thinking all-wheel drive system, the A6 makes incredibly light work of underlying mid-corner bumps and elevation changes, clawing its way through corners and leaving an indelible smile.

The car feels smaller than its physical footprint; there are times where you could mistake the A6 for an A4, such is its lightness during changes in direction.

Steering weighting and feel is improved over previous A6 offerings, and the optional rear-wheel steering system makes small inputs to accentuate the car’s agility.

In-car infotainment might be the major talking point here, but it’s the driving experience that cements our final impression upon tossing the A6’s keys back.

Unapologetically Teutonic, deceptively quick and very smart, the new Audi A6 appears to have made key ground on BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

How much is the 2019 Audi A6 55 TFSI S line?
Price: $116,000 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 3.0-litre turbo-petrol V6
Output: 250kW/500Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel: 7.2L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 167g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP