Review of the new Audi A6 3.0TFSI

Audi's A6 3.0 TFSI is quick by any measure. Its 287bhp supercharged V6 petrol engine can get it to 60mph in under six seconds. It's strong through the bottom of the rev range like a diesel too with a fiery top end like you'd expect from a good petrol car. The penalty for all this fun is around 30mpg on the combined cycle, a good showing for a powerful petrol but of course not in the league of the oil-burning alternatives.

There's no substitute for cubic capacity. At least, that's the mantra they used to hold to in the American automotive industry and look what happened to them. Today, it's widely accepted that in order to conserve fuel and meet ever tightening global standards for exhaust emissions, car engines are going to have to get smaller. The problems start to arise when you bung those smaller engines into larger cars and performance takes a nose dive. Audi thinks it has the answer and has put its plan into action with the latest A6. Here, both the old 3.2-litre V6 and 4.2-litre V8 engines were replaced by a 3.0-litre V6 unit with a supercharger.

Audi has put its faith in forced induction, the use of turbochargers or superchargers to feed extra air into an engine and enhance its performance, as an alternative to sheer engine size. Modern technological developments have largely eliminated the laggy power delivery and the increase in fuel consumption that used to afflict turbo and supercharged engines and Audi's 3.0 TFSI supercharged unit is certainly brimming with technology.

Using Audi's FSI direct fuel injection technology, a supercharger and a pair of intercoolers, the 3.0-litre TFSI unit manages to punch out 287bhp. The supercharger does its best work at the lower end of the rev range and with the maximum torque output of 420Nm available all the way from 2,500 to 4,850rpm, the unit delivers almost diesel-like muscle. The advantage over an oil-burner is that with peak power on stream between 4,850 and 6,800rpm, there's a lusty top end to reward the driver who enjoys leaving his or her foot in the corner. You might conclude that in terms of performance, this engine offers the best of both worlds and Audi would thank you for doing so. In raw figures, the 0-60mph sprint takes 5.9s and the 3.0 TFSI A6 runs into its limiter at 155mph.

"Bolting on a supercharger isn't an obvious route to power and economy but Audi has pulled it off.."

It's quattro four-wheel drive or bust with the 3.0 TFSI engine as only the lesser A6 units come with front-wheel drive. Quattro is a permanent 4x4 system with a self-locking centre differential that can distribute torque between the four wheels as required by the road conditions. The standard torque split is 40:60 in favour of the rear wheels in an attempt to give the A6 a sportier feel. The standard gearbox with the 3.0 TFSI engine is a 6-speed tiptronic effort with a selectable sport mode and wheel-mounted paddle shifters for that F1 effect.

Audi likes to maintain a strong family resemblance across its model range and the latest A6 falls into line behind its stable mates. The single frame grille dominates the front end as before but the bumpers have been reshaped so that the line of the lower edge lifts up at the centre. At the back, the tail lights have been tweaked along with the bumper while the saloon model gets a more sculpted boot lid arrangement. The daytime running lights complete the imposing effect but they're only standard on the sporty S-Line models. The classy cabin of the A6 left little room for improvement but Audi have upgraded some of the materials and increased the chrome detailing. The latest version of the excellent MMI infotainment system is also included. For space, quality and design, Audi's interiors continue to show rival manufacturers the way.

There are so many electronic systems in modern cars and particularly in models which compete at the rarefied level of the A6 but Audi's MMI system succeeds in the difficult task of making them reasonably intuitive to operate. The latest version is centred around the familiar 'joystick' dial with its four menu buttons grouped around it. The changes come in the navigation system which offers 3D mapping with graphical representations of major landmarks to help you find your way and the 40 gigabyte hard drive that can store up to 2,000 addresses or a good few hours worth of MP3 music files.

As a result of its positioning at the upper end of the A6 petrol range, the A6 3.0 TFSI is only available in SE and S-line trim with prices starting at just over the £35,000 mark. All A6 buyers get the MMI control system with its colour screen, 17" alloy wheels, cruise control and climate control but the SE adds leather trim, a mobile phone kit and an auto dimming rear view mirror. The S-line is the sporty one and as such chips in with a bundle of styling accessories including larger alloys, a body kit and Xenon headlamps with LED daytime running lights. Inside, there are sports seats, aluminium finishes and a sports steering wheel.

The A6 is available in saloon or Avant estate forms and the 3.0 TFSI unit is one of the engines offered in the Allroad model which is basically an estate with some off-road capability thrown in. The rivals for this car are clearly defined: there's the BMW 5-Series and the Mercedes E-Class but you would also have to add the Jaguar XF to that list along with the GS from Lexus.

Efficiency was a primary goal in the development of the 3.0 TFSI engine so how have things turned out? On the combined cycle, you can expect 29.7mpg from the Avant version (or 30.1mpg for the saloon) with emissions of 223g/km and the saloon fairs slightly better at 219g/km. This still makes the car relatively expensive to run but for a powerful V6 petrol unit with this kind of performance, the 3.0 TFSI makes a commendable stab at keeping costs down.

The old 3.2-litre V6, despite being a second slower to sixty, could only manage 28mpg, whilst emissions were unacceptable at over 240g/km. As for the old A6 4.2-litre V8, well despite all that cubic capacity, it was still slower than this 3.0TFSI, managed only 24mpg and had emissions up at nearly 280g/km. Overall then, it would seem clear that a step forward has been made. Mind you, given that this car's closest rival, BMW's 530i, manages 36.7mpg on the combined cycle and puts out emissions of just 178g/km, it was clear that progress needed to be made. At least compared to the sector's other efforts, the A6 now shapes up reasonably well on a costs basis.

Bolting on a supercharger isn't an obvious route to making an engine more economical but in combination with a reduction in overall engine capacity Audi has pulled it off. The supercharged 3.0 TFSI petrol engine in the A6 offers thoroughbred performance with manageable running costs. The diesel alternatives will still be too hard for many to resist but keen drivers could easily be tempted. The appeal of the 3.0-litre TFSI lies in its charismatic performance and buyers who value that along with Audi's superb interiors and all-wheel-drive security should appreciate this car.

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Audi A6 3.0 TFSI Quattro SE 4dr Tip Auto Saloon
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