Sunday Drive by Hormazd Sorabjee: Audi hits a six
With avant-garde design, a techy interior and a comfortable price, the carmaker may well regain its lost market share
At last, we have an all-new Audi. Apart from new variants and facelifts, we haven’t seen a completely fresh product from the German luxury car brand since the Q5 SUV was launched back in early 2018. That’s because Audi, which is part of the VW Group, has spent the last four years battling the ‘Dieselgate’ scandal and subsequently upgrading its engines in core markets around the world to come clean. The Indian market fell off Audi’s radar during this crisis as the beleaguered carmaker had bigger things to worry about. With no products to excite buyers, Audi lost a huge chunk of market share and has fallen far behind German rivals, Mercedes-Benz and BMW.
Detailed distinction
But there’s fresh hope now in the form of the all-new Audi A6, which is the company’s first salvo in the fight to claw back lost ground. Based on the bigger and more luxurious A8’s platform, the A6 has a good starting point and, as a result, it’s substantially bigger than the outgoing model. It’s grown in every dimension but visually it’s hard to tell as the A6 is still clothed in Audi’s typically understated design. However, with the new car, it’s the details in the design that provide distinction.
Soft, smooth and rounded lines are replaced by sharper creases and squarer details that are more in-your-face. You can’t miss Audi’s latest ‘Bulgarian Beard’ grille, which is wider than ever and lavished with shiny chrome. In fact, the new A6 has a lot more chrome and bling than before, acquiescing to the tastes of the new age, flaunt-it-on-Insta car buyer.
Into the future
The interiors too, are a departure from the unpretentious interiors Audis are known for. The dashboard is layered with brushed aluminium, piano black surfaces and some very classy open-pore wood veneer. The seats are trimmed in ‘art’ (for artificial) leather, which you could easily mistake for the real stuff, and the metal finishes the cabin is swathed in are all very upmarket. The cabin’s got a very techy and futuristic feel too. There’s not a single analogue dial or instrument, with everything being digital. There are no physical buttons either and all the functions are touch-operated. The trouble is that you can’t avoid taking your eyes off the road to use the system, and the lower screen, especially, requires you to look down.
Audi’s ‘Haptic feedback’ gives a nice positive click when you press screen buttons but you do miss the old fashioned knobs and switches and the solid, tactile feel they offer. Also impressive are the screen’s graphics, which are sharp, logically laid-out and pack in lots of functions.
The A6 is fairly well-loaded with trick features like the hands-free parking assistant, but there are a few nice-to-have items, like seat ventilation and a 360-degree camera, that are missing.
Shock treatment
Space is important in this segment and while there’s a lot more of it in the latest A6 over the previous model, it can’t compete with the long-wheelbase Mercedes E-class or a BMW 6 Series GT on legroom. That said, the seats themselves are very comfortable and the heavily contoured bench in the rear, with lots of bolstering all round, will snugly hold two large passengers. It’s not so comfy for a third or middle passenger, who has to contend with a flat middle seat and a raised central tunnel.
The new A6 ditches the diesel engine and comes with just one engine option, the 45 TFSI – this translates to a 245hp, 2.0-litre petrol engine. It’s impeccably refined – you can barely hear it for the most part – and power is delivered in a velvety smooth way. You won’t complain about the lack of performance either as there’s enough punch to waft you to serious speeds, but the 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox is a bit slow to react and plays spoilsport when you’re in a hurry.
The A6 rides on steel springs and, unlike some of its rivals, doesn’t have air suspension as an option for that magic carpet ride. But it’s not a big miss because the tyres the A6 rides on have a high profile, which do a good job of cushioning passengers from road shocks, and ride comfort is nothing short of brilliant.
The A6 doesn’t take any major risks in this segment and comes across as a well-rounded luxury sedan. Some customers will miss the diesel but most will love the A6 for its avant-garde design and techy interior. The best news is the pricing, which undercuts the competition comfortably. The two variants – ‘Premium Plus’ and ‘Technology’, pegged at Rs. 54.20 lakh and Rs. 59.20 lakh (ex-showroom), respectively – are really good value. It’s game on for Audi.
Hormazd Sorabjee is one of the most senior and much loved auto journalists in India, and is editor of Autocar India
Sunday Drive appears every fortnight
From HT Brunch, December 1, 2019
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