Audi A6 3.0T

Audi gives buyers a choice of three different engines for the A6: a 255 hp 3.1 L V6, a 300 hp 3.0 L supercharged V6, and a 350 hp 4.2 L V8. Our test model featured the supercharged engine, which is all-new for 2009 and provides the best balance of price and performance. About the only thing holding the car back is a rather hefty 4,100 pound curb weight, but in real world driving conditions we rarely wished for more power. Shifting duties are handled by a 6 speed automatic transmission with Tiptronic® that features sport and manual modes. Shifts are quick and quite smooth, and the sport mode does a nice job of keeping the engine in the right gear for more aggressive driving. The A6 also comes with a revised version of Audi’s Quattro all-wheel drive that features a more rear-biased torque distribution (40/60 instead of 50/50) to provide more responsive handling.

Although Audi did a great job of tuning the suspension to balance ride quality with handling, the A6 is a pretty big car and doesn’t hide this fact when cornering. Out on the freeway, the A6 is perfectly poised and relishes taking wide sweeping turns at speed.

Once on the road, however, our ears were assaulted with a startlingly loud squeaking noise emanating from the right rear seat. Given the otherwise superb build quality, we suspect that the seat was manhandled during previous testing and we’re confidant Audi would fix such an obnoxious noise under warranty.