New Audi A6 value upped

Value is the buzzword at Audi as the German car-maker rolls out its all-new Audi A6 large sedan and wagon range and prepares for an Australian showroom push in 2020.

It began the dollar-driven approach with the Audi A5 and Q3 earlier this year and is getting serious with the new A6 family, right up to the RS 6 Avant that will land in the back half of next year.

The most basic 2019 Audi A6 presents a $17,000 bonus for customers compared to the superseded model, as a $4000 price cut is boosted by a claimed $13,000 of added value in extra equipment and new technology.

As we reported in July, the new starting point is $95,500 for the 180kW four-cylinder turbo-petrol Audi A6 45 TFSI quattro sedan, while the S line version is set at $105,200 and the 250kW turbo V6-powered 55 TFSI quattro S line sedan costs $116,000.

The value pattern will be repeated throughout the new A6 rollout, even if the bottom line moves up slightly on its predecessor to $85,500 when the front-wheel drive 45 TFSI model arrives, followed by the A6 45 TDI Allroad quattro wagon that will be priced at $109,500.

The new Audi S6 sports sedan is set at $154,900 but Audi is not ready to reveal Australian specifications for it nor the ballistic new RS 6 Avant — the only other wagon version of the new A6 to be sold here besides the allroad.

Audi is not making any announcement yet on the local price of its latest hyper-wagon, beyond hinting that it will be cheaper than the outgoing car, but the new RS 6 Avant and RS 7 Sportback will arrive in the middle of the year, with the RS Q8 to follow in the third quarter.

The value push by Audi comes against the background of a significant sales slump this year that has not been helped by the age of some key models in Audi showrooms.

Audi sales dropped by 25.6 per cent through the first 10 months of 2020, from 16,360 in 2018 down to 12,168 in 2019, despite significant head-office changes in staffing, models and pricing.

“We’ve been building a value message for quite some time. It’s all happened since mid-year,” said Peter Strudwicke, product planning manager at Audi Australia.

“With the new Q3 we put in a lot of extra value, and we’re following that up.

“It’s about looking at where the market sits, where the opportunity exists,” Strudwicke told carsales.

“The benefit to the customer is what we’re always looking at. In some cases that has meant a price realignment, and in some that means slight increases.

“In some cases it’s been range simplification, too. And packaging things together, with things like the Premium packages which bundle the most popular options together.”

Strudwicke says the weakness of the Australian dollar has not impacted pricing as yet, as the company takes a longer-term value view.

“It’s not a discussion around currency, and in any case we don’t look from one day to the next.”

In the case of the A6 range, he says the emphasis is also changing.

“We’re really keen for customers to get into the quattro models. In A6 we saw a big opportunity to build the 45 TFSI and the 55 TFSI. The 40 TFSI which is coming next year has had a price increase, but has a lot more value.”

He also says the packaging of popular options, a long-term policy at Mercedes-Benz that has also been rolled-out at BMW, is also helping at Audi.

“It’s a lot simpler for the customers to understand. It also definitely helps at resale time. If it’s better value for the new-car buyer and it’s better value for the second owner as well.”

How much does the 2019 Audi A6 cost?
45 TFSI sedan – $85,500
45 TFSI quattro sedan – $95,500
45 TFSI quattro S line sedan – $105,200
55 TFSI quattro S line sedan – $116,000
45 TDI allroad quattro wagon – $109,500
S6 sedan – $154,900
RS 6 Avant – TBC
* Prices exclude on-road costs

Read the new Audi A6 2019 review