With the E-Class out for some time already and BMW launching the next 5-Series this year, Audi has been a bit tardy, with the new A6 due next year, but maybe the delay will give it them edge.
With the E-Class out for some time already and BMW launching the next 5-Series this year, Audi has been a bit tardy, with the new A6 due next year, but maybe the delay will give it them edge.
Indications are that the new A6 will be similar in style to the Nuvolari Quattro concept shown at the Geneva motor show last month, with the front-end heavily influenced by the Pikes Peak concept. Audi said at the Geneva show that the Nuvolari “outlines the direction that Audi’s exterior and interior design will take”.
The Pikes Peak off-roader concept was shown at the Detroit Motor Show and Audi said later that it would go into production, possibly badged as the A7.
The most prominent feature of the new styling is the massive twin-grille, seemingly inspired by the Auto Union racers of the 1930s. The next A6 is expected to have aluminium body panels, which will save about 100 kg compared with a steel body. It has a new chassis similar to the system used on the Nuvolari, which the company said results in a good power-to-weight ratio and high rigidity.
The car is likely to be powered by a range of V6, V8 and V10 engines, starting with a 111-kW 2,0-litre V6 petrol version and a 149 kW 3,0-litre V6 TDI. A 249 KW V8 is also likely and a range-topping RS6, powered by a 372 kW 5,0-litre V10 engine sourced from Lamborghini, will take on the mighty BMW M5 and Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG in the power struggle. An Avant version is expected soon after the saloon has been launched.
One of the major technological advances on the next A6 is electro-hydraulically assisted power steering.
