Audi A6 2.0 TDI 190PS Ultra Black Edition S Tronic: long term review 1
Audi A6 – the figures
Audi A6 Saloon 2.0 TDI ultra Black Edition 190PS S Tronic
- P11D – £38,470
- Company car tax band – 21%
- Company car tax at 20% (yearly/monthly) £1,616/£135
- Company car tax at 40% (yearly/monthly £3,231/£269
- CO2 emissions 116g/km
- 0-62mph – 8.2s
- Max speed – 144mph
I’VE been fortunate enough to drive many Audi A6 cars, from the original 100 before it was renamed A6 to my own Audi S6 Mk1 with 2.3 five cylinder petrol turbo engine.
But of the more modern A6s I have driven, this latest model is really up there: refined, sophisticated and good to drive (the A6 suspension has often let it down in the past, but not this).
This Audi A6 features ultra technology, Audi’s programme of lightweighting for lower CO2 emissions and improved fuel consumption.
It’s certainly working on the latter: I’m seeing just over 47mpg average at the moment, a combination of long business drives, and short around town /visit the supermarket / go to the tennis club-flavour journeys.
Audi says the benefits of ultra for the business user are “fantastic fuel economy and lower CO2 emissions to help your business save money”. Can’t disagree there.
The Audi I have for review is in ‘Black Edition’ trim: frankly it looks awesome. It’s black (Mythos Black, costing £675), features shaded rear windows, great looking 20-inch ‘5-arm Rotor’ titanium-look alloy wheels, and to provide some visual differentiation, chrome highlighted exhaust diffusers. It looks menacingly fast parked outside the house.
Audi Drive Select
- ‘The steering is set for dynamic (firmer, more direct) and the automatic seven-speed S tronic transmission in the fuel-saving Efficiency Programme’
Also on the spec roster is Audi Drive Select. This allows you to personalise the set-up and responses of the car. You can leave it in auto if you want and let the car decide.
At the moment I’m playing with the settings, but rather like my current set up: the steering is set for dynamic (firmer, more direct) and the automatic seven-speed S tronic transmission in the fuel-saving Efficiency Programme.
I’ve found this delivers the economy I’m looking for but when I need to accelerate quickly I just knock the auto into manual and drop down a cog and off we go: the Audi A6 TDI Ultra Black Edition sprints to 62mph in 8.2 seconds.
It also means the transmission is calmer in motorway type traffic; put it into dynamic and it holds a lower gear for longer – but it’s just not as refined. So I prefer the current setting I have.
But I’d be interested to hear what other settings or combinations Business Car Manager readers have their Audi A6 in – let me know in the comments box. I’d be happy to try them out and let you know my verdict.
