Audi A6 line-up hits the ground running

When people say a car is a base model or an entry level model, the first thing that springs to mind is a car with steel wheels, no electric windows, a puny engine and a price tag to match. But when you are shopping somewhat higher up the car food chain, the entry level model in a range can come with just about every piece of tech and luxury you could want and a price tag to match. Well relatively speaking.

The car I am referring to here is Audi’s new A6 40 TDI, the gateway into the A6 segment at a cost of R919 500, which is some R500k less than the S6 model. With our test days being cut down because of the Covid-19 pandemic, getting to try and figure out all the tech on a car like the A6 is impossible.

The A6 features a new smartphone-like display and MMI touch operating system. Two large displays replace most of the buttons and controls of the predecessor model. In the top display, the buttons for all functions can be placed freely, like the user experience with smartphone apps. In the bottom display, the user can create up to 27 individual shortcuts for key vehicle functions and favourites such as phone numbers, radio stations or navigation destinations.

I can honestly report that I managed to sync my phone, change the aircon settings and that was about it. It is not the car’s fault. If you were to buy one, you would be given a comprehensive handover by the sales person and you would have all the time in the world to set your car up and make the best use of this technology.

What I did get to use was the frugal 2.0 TDI that produces 140 kW of power and 400 Nm of torque running through a seven-speed S tronic gearbox to the front wheels. I had to run up and down from the East to the West and this was the perfect car for eating up mind numbing kilometres of tar, while using less than 7.0 litres per 100 km of diesel. The interior space, tech, comfort, and fuel consumption impresses us, but this model is nonetheless like the vanilla flavour on the menu, with the S line package providing some sprinkles.

The A6 40 TDI does exactly what it says on the box, but I can’t help but think most people looking to spend almost R1-million on a car would probably opt for an SUV

Did you know?
– The Audi A6 is the successor to the Audi 100
– The Audi A6 was introduced in 1994
– The first Audi RS 6 hit the road in 2002
– The Audi A6 allroad quattro appeared in 2006
– The Audi A6 hybrid was introduced in 2012
– Audi sold 1 845 550 cars worldwide in 2019

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