Audi A6 with Eight-Speed Auto

Audi A6 2.0T Now Available with Quattro and Eight-Speed Auto, Starts at $45,295

 

Audi’s four-cylinder A6 model is on the cusp of moving from anonymity to relevance in the U.S.: Quattro all-wheel drive and an eight-speed automatic transmission are coming to the A6 2.0T. Until now, the entry-level A6—you may not even have known it existed—has been available only with front-wheel drive and a continuously variable automatic, and sales of the 211-hp model were but a mere trickle. (The FWD/CVT model continues.) Audi predicts sales of the turbocharged A6 2.0T will pick up substantially now that customers can order an example with a driveline more in line with the Audi brand.

Pricing Rundown
The appeal also will be driven by aggressively low pricing on both front- and all-wheel-drive A6 2.0T models. At $43,095, the front-drive A6 2.0T that’s on sale today is a heck of a deal; far from stripped-out, it comes equipped like the more-expensive (and comparo-winning) A6 with the 310-hp, 3.0-liter V-6. When it hits dealers later this summer, the A6 2.0T with Quattro will ask just $45,295 in Premium trim. A Premium Plus version—which adds Audi’s superb MMI infotainment system, navigation, fancier wheels, xenon headlights, and a rearview camera, among other kit—starts at $49,595.
With this pricing, Audi’s entry-level A6 undercuts BMW’s four-cylinder 528i by several grand. A 528i with xDrive all-wheel drive would cost well over $50K were one to equip it comparably to the Premium Plus A6 2.0T Quattro. The BMW does offer more power—240 hp to the A6′s 211—but torque output for the two cars is nearly the same, at 260 for the 528i and 258 for the Audi.




The Big Picture
These horsepower numbers are, of course, a sticking point—and the reason why the A6 and, to a lesser extent, the 528i are priced as reasonably as they are. Other luxury brands, from Mercedes-Benz to Lexus, don’t offer four-cylinder engines in this segment in the U.S., and, as a result, they deliver more than 300 hp to start. A luxury sedan in the A6′s class with 211 or 240 hp may sound underpowered, but it wasn’t too long ago that such numbers were exclusively six-cylinder territory.
In addition, Audi can position its four-cylinder A6 as a fuel-efficient option that doesn’t require the extra buy-in costs of a hybrid or diesel. (That said, Audi does plan to offer both hybrid and diesel versions of the A6 here. Gotta cover all the bases, you know?) The front-drive A6 2.0T is rated at an almost-shocking 33 highway mpg. Whether customers will go for the new model is a gamble the flush-with-cash company can afford to take.