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  #1  
Old 10-03-2002, 10:55 AM
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Considering Audi A6 Avant Quattro Wagon

First of all, I am very happy with my 1998 C230. But lately, I've been under the 'new car buying' fever. I am seriously considering the 1999 Audi A6 Avant Quattro Wagon.

I know I am not comparing apples to apples here, but I am really attracted to the Audi because of the standard options (triptronic, 3rd seat, etc.) and the much reasonable price (compared to a 1999 E320 wagon). Features and options wise, I think it has more than the E320 wagon.

I am hoping that members of this forum who are familiar with the A6 wagon would send me their opinions. By the way, I have yet to test drive it . I'm really not sure how it feels to drive the Audi. I am also concerned if it costs a lot of money to maintain these cars.

Thanks.
JC

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  #2  
Old 10-03-2002, 01:26 PM
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These cars are very nice. Ride and handling is much better than the previous version A6, and the Quattro gets independant rear suspension.

Interior quality is very good (miles better than ANY W210 E-class), especially the red lighting of the cabin from the roof at night.

Drives okay, nothing spectacular.. you won't be taking a different route home just to drive some twisty roads - because of this, it would be nicer if the ride quality was a little better (it's no E-class), but it'll suffice.

Which engine is it? The 2.8 30v goes ok, not very dramatic though when blunted by the autobox (which isn't quite as sweet shifting as a Mercedes one, but good nevertheless).

Looks nicer than an E-class wagon IMO, and it's not as big, I'd consider it hard.



But before you buy it, make sure you're not buying it simply because of specification, especially not simply because it has tiptronic - After the first 2 days of driving I assure you, you'll never use it again (except if/when racing )

Our A8 4.2Q has tiptronic and I simply never used it after a day. 5th gear is high geared so I often drive in '4' or '3' position, thus maintaining the automatic function.

later!
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http://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall.jpghttp://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall2.jpg
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  #3  
Old 10-03-2002, 02:33 PM
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Avoid Audi

repair costs are higher than Mercedes in my experience, build quality is not as good, and company has failed to honor warranty too often, IMHO.
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  #4  
Old 10-03-2002, 03:41 PM
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I test drove a couple of A6's ('98's I believe) when I was car shopping early last year. Had it not been for the lack of power in the 2.8, I could easily be driving one now (see my sig for what I ended upgoing for - it's not the diesel ). I was looking for a sedan, alter my impressions accordingly.

The interior, as pentoman mentioned is awesome. Fit and finish I think is better than the W210's (i.e. less 'plasticy-looking' plastic, nicer wood grain, great stiching on seats, not a squeek in the thing).

However, while more solid feeling than your average car, it doesn't feel as 'heavy' as the W210 either (and no where near what a W124 feels like), this is a pro to some, a con to others.

I actually thought the A6 was a great handler! More precise-feeling in the twisties than an E320.

The MB wins hands down with grunt. The extra 25 poines in the M104(3?) feels like 50 compared to the 2.8 (that's good 'ole MB displacement advantage), no comparison there.

You NEVER hear of problems with Quattro - one of the best active safety features ever built into a car. But, from all that I researched, I just didn't get the same feeling of overall longevity from the Audi, and the electrical problems that they are prone to having (in addition to various engine gasket failures), just seemed more maintenance-intensive than a comparable E-class is.

Overall, a fine product and very close running with an E-class imho. It does win hands down with price/options, but how much more are you gong to put into repairs over the life of the vehicle?

good luck - let us know what you go with!

Regards,
- Ryan
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  #5  
Old 10-03-2002, 04:20 PM
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2.8 is rated at 190 horses or thereabouts. same engine as in the VW passat v6 which was my previous car. not a lot of oomph down low plus the A6 is significantly heavier and the quattro drivetrain makes it even slower. for something that size, the 2.7T works better and of course the 4.2 v8 is best IMHO...
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  #6  
Old 10-04-2002, 08:44 AM
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Smile

I knew I could rely on the people in the forum to give me their honest opinions. I also wanted to make sure that the person giving me their opinions can relate to my predicament (since you are mostly MB owners).

Maybe, I should have mentioned the real reasons why I am considering it (in order of priority):
1. Practicality (I have three kids 8, 4, 2 yrs. old)
2. More space and comfortable to drive
3. Low Maintainance cost
4. Speed and oomph is not very important since I do not race anyway. I'm pretty happy with my 4 cyl. W202, so I assume the 6 cyl. A6 would be much better.

Is this a car I would be proud to drive? I mean, when I drive my MB and the BMW I used to have, people notice it. When I see a person driving a Volvo (w/c could costs up to $40K+), I don't really think much of it. Is an Audi in the same category as driving a Passat?

Is this also a car that you would love to drive for a long time (in terms of years). I'm sure the people in this forum can relate to what I am talking about. Is this a car I would like to keep until it reaches 200K miles?

How is the resale of this cars? I tend to keep my cars clean and well maintained. The last BMW I had, I was able to sell at 'Dealer Retail' price.

And lastly, when it comes to maintenance cost, Audi use to have a bad reputation in this area. I had a landlord before who made a lot of money in his Audi shop, but of course I am referring to the mid-80s models of the Quattro. I assume they are a lot better now.

Anyway, I appreciate the opinions and would love to hear more from you and the others. Thanks again to those who responded.

Best Regards,
JC
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  #7  
Old 10-04-2002, 11:13 AM
spiral
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3kids? They are going to grow.
Take a serious look at the big Honda Van. The big Toyota one is popular, but I do not know if it sells in the US.

Gary
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  #8  
Old 10-08-2002, 03:47 AM
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JC, I own a Passat which is close in size to the A6. On the matter of interior room, the Passat would appear to have more. This is simply because the A6's rear window has a steep angle to it, which cuts down on the cargo room. I don't know the exact numbers for cargo volume, but it just appears like the Passat has more cargo room. Though you mentioned the third seat option, the Passat doesn't have this.
On the matter of the Tiptronic transmission, we passed on the option when we bought our Passat. VW doesn't have the best automatics in terms of long term reliability. One of the features of that transmission is it's ability to "learn" the way you drive. It takes a few miles to learn your driving style, heavy or light. If you share driving time with your wife and she drives different, everytime you egt in the car, the tranny will be shifting oddly to re learn your style. With all that said, in the long run, how will you know if theres a REAL problem versus it's still learning.
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  #9  
Old 10-08-2002, 08:37 AM
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Tiptronic

Rickjordan,

Thanks for replying to my inquiry. That was very interesting what you said about the tiptronic learning your driving style. I have not heard of that before. I've heard of comments about the way the A6 would shift gears, but it never occured tome that it was learning your driving style. I think I will research on this matter some more.

Thanks again.

Best Regards,
JC
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  #10  
Old 10-08-2002, 10:30 AM
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the tiptronic tranny has it's own ECU and aside from having this "learning capability", can also be custom programmed. i had a passat v6 w/ tiptronic for 3 yrs and i don't really think the "learning" amounted to much because it was my daily driver and my daily commute might be different from weekend jaunts where i might be driving more aggressively.

the Audi, on the other hand now has this "multitronic" tranny which is a completely different animal. it is essentially a CVT with preprogrammed shift points in manu-matic mode. i'm just not sure if they now have it in the quattros.
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  #11  
Old 10-08-2002, 12:21 PM
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The tiptronic's learning ability is not a function that much improves the car, or the way it drives, IMO. The A6's and A8 that I've driven (lots of miles in the A8) have it.

Generally if you pay close attention to it: if driving lightly for a few miles, then you'll find if you start putting your foot down a little more, it'll still change up quite early (earlier than you're expecting). Annoyingly, if you put your foot to the floor (say, to overtake), then it'll think for the next 30 seconds you want to be Ayrton Senna and hold on to a low gear, and eventually change back to how it was before.


Sadly, it doesn't really seem to provide any more function than the simple 'E' and 'S' mode selector on many Mercedes (and other cars), but it just changes modes automatically rather than you having to bother switching it yourself. Unfortunately you find yourself waiting for it to decide how Sporty or Economy you want to be, when often I'd rather force it into a mode myself with a switch.


But maybe that's because I do more miles in my 190E than in the A8 tiptronic.


Either way, it's no more reason to buy a car than I said tiptronic is..


On the other hand, you get a nice selector and screen to show you what gear you're in:
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Considering Audi A6 Avant Quattro Wagon-tip.jpg  
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http://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall.jpghttp://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall2.jpg
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  #12  
Old 10-08-2002, 04:47 PM
mbz380se
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Quote:
Generally if you pay close attention to it: if driving lightly for a few miles, then you'll find if you start putting your foot down a little more, it'll still change up quite early (earlier than you're expecting). Annoyingly, if you put your foot to the floor (say, to overtake), then it'll think for the next 30 seconds you want to be Ayrton Senna and hold on to a low gear, and eventually change back to how it was before.
The tranny wants you to "badge up" the car to the S8 model and play "Ronin" on a European backroad.

-Sam
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  #13  
Old 10-09-2002, 10:28 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by mbz380se


The tranny wants you to "badge up" the car to the S8 model and play "Ronin" on a European backroad.

-Sam
hehe..

The A8 (or S8) is waaay too big to consider anything of the sort! Does handle very well, but you can't beat the size and 1.8 ton weight. A 190E is far more suited and massively more fun for this kind of thing.

Has to be raining to get Ronin amounts of slide though


later!

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190E's:
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2.0E 8v 1986 107,000m Black 2nd owner
http://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall.jpghttp://www.maylane.demon.co.uk/190esmall2.jpg
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