Objectivity goes out of the window here when manufacturers jack up an estate car to create a pseudo-SUV, and Audi's allroad is the daddy of the genre. Audi has revealed the new A6 allroad quattro, the third, which, like its predecessors, gets a suspension lift, tough-looking contrasting wheelarch extensions and some brushed metal additions underneath that are meant to look like they might help when the going gets rough.
Six centimetres higher than the regular Avant, it's not going to conquer Everest or the Amazonian jungle, but it'll look great in a ski area or garden centre car park. The air suspension drops by 15mm at speed, while the raised 'allroad' mode gives greater clearance on rough terrain. Likewise, should you be faced with a steep downhill passage the allroad has a hill descent assist function to retain control.
Engine choices include a 3.0-litre TFSI petrol unit with 305bhp and a 3.0-litre TDI engine with 201-, 241- or 308bhp. The highest output diesel delivers 479lb.ft of torque and drives through an eight-speed automatic gearbox, its plentiful grunt allowing a 0-62mph time of just 5.6 seconds. The 201bhp model returns 46.3mpg on the official combined cycle, with a CO
2 figure of 159g/km.
Inside, the A6 allroad quattro gets Audi's usual interpretation of a rugged makeover, with dark black carpeting and instruments as well as aluminium inlays with 'allroad' stamped on them. It's little more than a jacked up Avant admittedly, but somehow a good bit more desirable, despite an anticipated price hike of £3,000 over the equivalent, non-allroad Avant. Not that it will worry buyers, with Audi admitting it's the allroad over every other car in its range that attracts its highest net worth customers.
Kyle Fortune - 11 Jan 2012