Test drive Audi A6 2005 - 2008 sedan

Avant, also Avant

New station wagon from Audi - Business Class Rest
There are cars that always cause envy. And not only because they are a kind of symbol of prosperity and success. This is in some way the standard, which ultimately all the others are equal - harmony outside, maximum comfort inside, plus excellent running qualities and high culture of performance. Despite all the wealth of choice, there are few such cars, however, their ranks are periodically replenished. The new Audi A6 Avant is one of the last revenues.
Everything in this world is relative, and the above can be disputed. Although it is unlikely that anyone will argue with the fact that A6 Avant has been a success to engineers and designers. A easily recognizable body profile with the front -linked roof with the front racks and a sloping trunk, which makes it look like a hatchback, a high shoulder line, a barely noticeable longitudinal rib, stamping above the thresholds ... He is beautiful, in his appearance you feel lightness, swiftness, swiftness, swiftness, swiftness, swiftness, swiftness Aggressiveness - that are only the rear lights framed by a ring of bright red LEDs, but at the same time it is a solid, adult car with decent dimensions.
Nevertheless, the new Avant does not amaze with its appearance, at least on the street they do not look back at it. Yes, it is representative, dynamic, but in its exterior there are practically no individual traits. Similar family genes that have passed from the Nuvolari Quattro concept, the current Audi chief designer has already awarded not only the main donor, but also the rest of his models. However, maybe this is for the better - a station wagon, originally with a lighter, sports appearance, is not inferior in solidity, it looks equally harmonious in nature, and in the city, and on the country, and on the parking of a large company. It is not shameful to come in such a car for a serious business meeting.
You are again convinced of this by being in the cabin. From the inside, Avant is no different from the sedan - the same layout, the same expensive finishing materials, the same exceptional quality of performance. Thanks to excellently thought out ergonomics, the driver and passengers will be able to travel with the maximum possible comfort, and there is nothing more to say - there is a lot of everything, and at the same time everything is in their places: the armrest is under the elbow, the dummier is at hand ... The station wagon is also equipped at a very high level (However, if you take into account its cost - more than $ 83,000 ...). In addition to six airbags, ESP 8.0 course stability systems, combining ABS, EBV, ASR and EDS, as well as emergency braking systems and automatic brake disk cleaning systems, for the services of separate climate control with quality and humidity sensors and air. Additional deflectors for rear passengers, a complete electric package, hatch, radio with a digital sound processing system DSP, a dozen speakers and a six-shot CD changer. And especially for the driver-bi-ksenon headlights and active cruise control with radar, activating at speeds above 30 km/h and automatically maintaining the distance to the walking car.
It is also worth mentioning the branded MMI Plus (Multi Media Interface, in which in our case an optional navigation system with a DVD) with a 7-inch color monitor was also integrated. MMI deserves special attention. The one who is driving a new A6 for the first time is likely experiencing a slight shock - many electronics, buttons, displays, scales ... And after all, all this must be controlled. In fact, all electronic systems are combined in one multimedia interface. It is easy to handle, but before setting off, it is still worthwhile to spend a couple of minutes studying it. After practical classes with the management of the system, even the child will cope, and it will stop distracting the driver from the road. In general, the universal salon is a triumph of modern technologies, multiplied by comfort, luxury and excellent ergonomics, of course, adjusted for the specifics of the car.
The interior of the A6 sedan did not describe only the lazy, so it is worth dwelling in more detail at the luggage compartment of Avant, especially since the engineers from Ingolstadt worked for conscience. Maybe they were not able to achieve impressive indicators in capacity - 565 liters (1660 liters with folded seats), but the guys clearly succeeded in the organization of space. The main advantages of the cargo department are functionality and practicality. The first thing you pay attention to is longitudinal guides with four fixing rings for fastening the grid. By the way, in the test Avant there was only a net, but as options you can additionally order a telescopic aluminum partition, coils with a stretch tape or a closed plastic box. In short, there will definitely be no problems with the placement and consolidation of baggage. The gender of the station wagon imitates a multi -layered sandwich. If there is a need to load dirty or dirty objects, the top cover can be folded or completely removed from the compartment, under it is an easily washing plastic pallet. The same cover, by the way, can also be used as a vertical barrier. The spare tire, a set of keys, a jack and a battery were placed already under the pallet.
In Europe, the station wagon is equipped with five different power units - three gasoline and two turbodiesels. Old light will give preference to the latter, but in our country, the most popular will be the gasoline motors. As before, the base engine will be a 2.4-liter V-shaped six with a capacity of 177 hp, at the other pole-a 335-horsepower V8 with a volume of 4.2 liters. Golden mean-3.2-liter 255-horsepower 6-cylinder FSI motor, however, due to problems with the quality of fuel, this engine still does not come to us, so an old acquaintance is placed under the hood of test Avant-3-liter 218- Strong gasoline V6, aggregated with a proprietary unaccountable Multitronic automatic machine and equipped with the legendary QUATTRO system.
What to expect from this car is probably clear - a good dynamics with an acceptable fuel consumption. Of course, this is not a 335-horsepower V8, accelerating the 1740-kilogram Avant to hundreds in 7.3 seconds, but acceleration is impressive, especially when you switch the transmission into a sports regime or manually control it using a selector or petals on the steering wheel. By the way, the first option, according to your correspondent, is more acceptable. Automation itself chooses the moment of transition to the next gear, so acceleration is dynamic, but at the same time very smooth, without noticeable shocks. While to achieve such smoothness manually turns out to be far from always, at least without practice. It is worth noting magnificent sound insulation. The voice of the engine and street noises are almost completely damped, and regardless of speed and speed, so you can talk in the cabin almost in a whisper. Nevertheless, not everyone will like D Multitronic in the usual mode, especially if a person prefers a sports driving style - he is very calm, one might even say, lazy. The car responds to an accelerator with a slight delay, which is not always convenient, especially in a decent traffic jam, when even a split second play an important role. It would seem that you can go to the sports regime, but then Avant shoots much more frequent, what the situation requires. However, again, we repeat ourselves, it all depends on the preferences and skills of a particular driver.
The completely independent universal suspension is very comfortable - minimal rolls, excellent stability, while it successfully absorbs most road flaws. However, it would be strange to expect anything else. The four -lever design in front and self -tightening on the trapezoidal levers - the chassis was completely borrowed from the A6 sedan. The front wheels go behind the rear trail; Given the presence of many modern security systems, a perfectly configured steering steering Servotronic and all -wheel drive, the suspension allows you to control the car in any situation. Nevertheless, in terms of comfort, it could have been even better - as an option you can order adaptive air suspension with an automatic damping system that previously installed on the A8 flagship. Its governing bodies are integrated into MMI, so within a few seconds the driver can easily choose any of the three pre -installed modes - automatic, comfortable or dynamic. In the first version, the car itself is adjusted to the style of human driving and under the quality of the road surface - at speeds above 120 km/h, it squats by 15 mm and returns to its original position, when the speedometer arrow drops below the mark 70. In a comfortable mode, the automation emphasizes the settings In the direction of the most relaxed, and in the dynamic, on the contrary, it clamps the suspension to achieve maximum stability and controllability. The engineers also provided for the elevator mode, which increases the road clearance by 15 mm, a very useful option, given that the air suspension compared to the usual spring initially precipitates the body by 13 mm down.
Text: Vladimir Zhidkov

Source: Mkobil magazine