Plenty to satisfy an automotive ‘Oliver’

As if the Audi A6 allroad quattro were not special enough, the German automobile manufacturer has brought out a limited edition for those automotive Oliver Twists who ask for more.

The third generation of the Avant (that’s Audi-speak for station wagon) has just dropped in Down Under, and with only 150 cars — replete with the latest features — on offer, it’s odds-on to have buyers digging deep for the $117,900-plus to park one in the garage.

Highlights include four-zone airconditioning, electric opening and closing tailgate, 20-inch five-parallel spoke alloy wheels, heated front seats and a choice of four metallic paint colours.

At almost five metres long and two metres wide, the Audi A6 allroad quattro has an imposing on-road presence. Xenon lights, including daytime running lights, are standard, with the option of LED headlamps featuring an automatic dipping function.

On the downside, from the rear the vehicle has a dated look. A mish-mash of angles and surfaces appear to be competing with each other for attention, while the rear view from the driver’s seat is severely limited.

Legroom front and back is expansive and shoulder space up front benefits from the seats being 20 millimetres farther apart.

The luggage area is impressively versatile with room for 595 litres of kit. With the back seats folded away, this is increased to 1680 litres.

A range of roof racks is on offer, and modifications to body components and engine management mean the A6 allroad quattro can tow up to 2½ tonnes.

The wagon will hit 100km/h in 6.6 seconds from rest — 180kW of power and 580Nm of torque from the 3.0-litre turbo-diesel V6 see to that.

Over an easy cruise on the motorway, the A6 allroad quattro Limited Edition went through a frugal 5.9 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres, which is impressive for a big car with a high-power engine. Around town, it hovered around eight litres per 100 kilometres, still impressively low.