Audi A6 Avant Review 2025: Price, specs & boot space

Buying an Audi A6 Avant in the past was because you wanted something with a bit more space in the back than a typical SUV like the Q5. With the new A6 Avant losing out in this area the lines become more blurred, and as we've touched on, it becomes more of a lifestyle choice - do you want to have an SUV or swim against the tide a bit and have an estate?

Both the new BMW 5 Series Touring and Mercedes E-Class are more practical (at least when it comes to boot capacity), but the A6 Avant has the more tempting entry price. That's not forgetting the diesel engine that the 5 Series Touring doesn't offer, and with a range of over 600 miles with a full tank of fuel, this might be the bigger attraction for high-mileage drivers. 

With just two engines to choose from currently, the choice is very much dependent on your needs and what driving you're likely to do. While diesel is falling out of favour, the 204PS diesel engine with its mild hybrid (MHEV) tech really impressed, especially as it comes paired with Audi's quattro four-wheel drive system and four-wheel steering as standard. 

Then it comes down to which trim to pick. If we're honest, the base Sport trim has pretty much everything you'll need, but S line is likely to prove the most popular due to its slightly sportier styling, lower ride height and a few more little extras. That said, we'd be tempted to stick with the A6 Avant in Sport spec and plough the money saved into some wafty adaptive air suspension that's an optional extra. 

If you're looking at an Audi A6 Avant, then its direct rivals are the BMW 5 Series Touring and the Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate, and while it might be showing its age against newer competition, don't discount the Volvo V90. Both the 5 Series and V90 aren't available with a diesel engine, but you've got the choice of petrol and plug-in hybrid options, while the E-Class offers all three options. 

If your biggest concern is boot space, then take a look at the latest Skoda Superb Estate. It might not have the premium cache of the other cars above, but it's a brilliant all-rounder, while spec it in top-of-the-range Laurin & Klement trim and you'll get that premium feel without the premium price.

Looking for something electric? Then the A6 Avant's sister car (or should that be cousin?), the A6 e-tron Avant, is one to take a look at, while there's the excellent BMW i5 Touring and sleek Volkswagen ID.7 Tourer to consider as well.  

Audi is famed for the quality of its interiors and the A6 Avant doesn't disappoint. It has a real premium feel with lots of soft-touch plastics at key touchpoints, while the use of semi-gloss silver and high-gloss blacks is used to complement the soft-wrap dashboard with contrast stitching. 

Seats are finished in twin leather upholstery, but you can also have some surfaces trimmed in sustainable materials, including Cascade fabric and Dinamica micro-fibre - both manufactured from recycled polyester. 

Look a little further down and you'll find some less premium plastics, though it doesn't dull the overall quality feel of the car. If we're nitpicking, the abundance of screens and high gloss surfaces is a nightmare for fingerprints - you'll need to keep on top of these with a microfibre cloth if you want to retain the slick feel of the cabin.

With up to three large displays possible on the central console of the A6 Avant, there's a lot to get to grips with. First up is the 11.9-inch digital instrument display for the driver, which is supplemented by a large 14.5-inch MMI touchscreen in the centre. If that's not enough screens, you can also spec an optional 10.9-inch MMI display for the front seat passenger (standard on Edition 1 cars). What's the point of this, you might ask? Well, if they can't be bothered to reach over to the main display, they can help with/interfere with the sat nav on their own screen, choose what you're listening to or be really antisocial and watch something, leaving you to get on with the driving. Don't opt for it and the display is replaced by some gloss black plastic.

Back to the larger infotainment display and as is the way with lots of new cars, pretty much every facet of the car is accessed via this display. That means anything from simple tweaks to the climate control to more in-depth adjustments via submenus. You'll need to spend some time familiarising yourself with the interface, but it's a solid system and has some useful shortcuts to the side of the main display. Reality is though that once you've got the car set up how you want. you'll probably rely on the A6 Avant's Apple CarPlay and Android Automotive connectivity most of the time. 

It's a shame there are no dedicated temperature controls (a complaint levelled at most new cars it has to be said), but the touchscreen is responsive, while the clarity is excellent. It's not all jabbing at a touchscreen though - there's a welcome volume dial, as well as quick access to the A6 Avant's drive modes and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). And as we've mentioned, there's a suite of buttons on the driver's door handle to adjust things like mirrors and lighting.  

The driver display can be toggled through different displays - you can get turn by turn directions displayed for example, though we couldn't get a full screen sat nav map that was possible on older versions of the system. 

As part of the £2,965 Sound & Vision Pack, you can get a handy head-up display, while other highlights of this optional extra include a Bang & Olufsen premium sound system with 3D sound and integrated headrest speakers. Otherwise, you get a 10-speaker sound system as standard.

The outgoing car was big, but the new A6 Avant is bigger still, with Audi adding a further 60mm of length to the car, increasing the overall length just under five metres. As you can imagine with a wheelbase of 2.9 metres, there's huge amounts of space in the cabin of the A6 Avant. There is loads of space up front and generous legroom in the rear, while both front and rear seats are really comfy with plenty of headroom for even tall adults. If you're planning to get three people in the back on a regular basis, you might want to consider the rather large centre tunnel. Anyone pulling the short straw and sitting on the middle seat will have their legs straddling either side of it. 

The cars we tested were fitted with a switchable panoramic glass sunroof (£2,400 optional extra) that makes the cabin of the A6 Avant feel really airy and spacious. The neat trick here is that it has nine different levels of density, ranging from almost fully transparent to effectively fully shaded to suit the ambient light conditions.

What about the A6 Avant's party trick - the boot? At 503 litres it actually comes in smaller than the 565 litres in the outgoing car. Even less impressive is if you opt for the diesel-engined A6 Avant as the addition of the mild hybrid unit means boot space shrinks further to 466-litres. At 503 litres, that's almost 70 litres down on the BMW 5 Series Touring and 140 litres down on the Mercedes E-Class. If you want a really big boot, then if the Skoda Superb Estate's 690 litres doesn't suffice then you're going to need a van. 

That said, it's a good useable space with easy access, while the rear seats have a 40:20:40 split. Fold them all down and you have a total of 1,534 litres to play with. 

Audi has kept things pretty simple when it comes to engine choice with the A6 Avant - there's one petrol and one diesel. 

Starting with the petrol, it's a 2.0-litre four-cylinder TFSI unit with 204PS and delivering power to the front wheels only it has a 0-62mph performance in 8.3 seconds. Opt for the diesel and you get a 2.0-litre TDI with again, 204PS. With a bit more torque (400Nm vs 360Nm) and quattro four-wheel drive, the diesel is quicker off the line, taking just seven seconds to hit 62mph.

That's not all, as the diesel engine also benefits from a 48-Volt MHEV system, which means that it can run under electric power alone - for example, in slow-moving traffic or pulling away from home. It also bolsters the total power output by 24PS and 230Nm of extra torque when starting off and accelerating. 

If you're looking for a plug-in hybrid option, there's not one currently at launch, but one will be joining the range very soon.

Regardless of which one you choose, both engines come with a seven-speed S tronic twin-clutch transmission. 

Audi reckons sound insulation has been improved by as much as 30% compared to the outgoing car (without adding any weight thanks to the materials used), and the result is an incredibly hushed and refined cabin. The sleek sculpting of the body means air flows over the body and subdues any wind noise, even at high speed. 

If you've been used to starting up a diesel in the past to be greeted by an audible clatter, then it can be a little unnerving when pressing the start button in the new A6 Avant as nothing happens. Pop it into drive and you simply glide away under electric power before the diesel engine kicks into life once you're on the move. Once up and running, the engine disappears into the background. 

The petrol engine doesn't feature the MHEV tech, so you don't get to enjoy silent running, but in the main it's pretty quiet. You'll probably notice the whistle from the turbo than the engine, with it only making its presence known under acceleration as it has to work harder than the diesel to get up to speed.

While the Audi A6 Avant is yet to be tested by Euro NCAP, we'd be surprised to see it not scoring less than the full five-star rating - all recent Audis have scored highly, including the Audi A5 and A6 e-tron.

As with a lot of new cars, the Audi A6 Avant is brimming with safety tech, with Adaptive cruise control, Lane departure warning, Swerve assist, Turn assist, Front cross traffic assist and Front emergency brake assist all coming as standard across the range. In addition to this, Edition 1 spec cars also get Side assist and exit warning, Lane departure warning with emergency assist, Rear-cross traffic alert and Rear turn assist. 

While the beeps and bongs can be fairly unintrusive, you can turn these systems off and what's really nice is that you don't have to spend ages in the menu to do so. A couple of presses and you can mute things like lane keep assist and the speed limit warning alert.

It's no surprise to discover that the new Audi A6 Avant comes with the brand's standard three-year, 60,000-mile warranty. If you wish, you extend this to four years and 75,000 miles (£815), or five years and 90,000 miles (£1,970). In the latest HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Index, Audi placed twelfth for owner satisfaction.

Insurance groups for the new Audi A6 Avant are still yet to be set, but as a marker, the previous model started in insurance group 33, though more desirable trims and power naturally move insurance groups up. 

After the first year, you're going to be paying a flat rate of £195 to tax an Audi A6 Avant, whether that's the diesel or petrol option. One thing to bear in mind is that as even the most affordable model easily costs over £40,000, you'll be subject to the Expensive Car Supplement. This adds a further £425 a year to the standard rate between years two to six, bringing the total annual tax cost to £620. 

The Audi A6 Avant kicks off with Sport trim, with the A6 Avant sitting on 18-inch alloy wheels and coming with bumpers, grille, air inlets, rear spoiler and diffuser that are designed to enhance the sport-orientated feel of the car. The A6 Avant also gets LED headlights and rear lights as standard, while there's a total of seven digital light signatures to allow you to personalise your A6 Avant.

Moving inside and highlights include Audi's 14.5-inch OLED MMI Navigation system as standard, along with an 11.9-inch digital instrument display. There's four-zone climate control, electrically adjustable and heated front sports seats trimmed in twin leather, and a twin-spoke multifunction leather steering wheel with shift paddles. Other notable features include ambient LED lighting, a reversing camera, 'parking system plus' with a 360 camera, adaptive cruise control and hill hold assist. 

Plump for the Audi A6 Avant S line and not only does it run on larger 19-inch alloy wheels, but it sits 20mm lower due to the addition of sports suspension. There are also some styling cues to differentiate it from the Sport model, with the bumpers, grille, air inlets, rear spoiler and diffuser all getting some attention. That's not forgetting the rear privacy glass. 

The interior of S line trim cars sees S embossing on the sports seats, a three-spoke steering wheel that's flattened at the top and bottom, while aluminium door sill inserts have an illuminated ‘S’ logo at the front. 

Top-spec Audi A6 Avant Edition 1 cars get even larger 20-inch alloy wheels (you can even spec optional 21-inch wheels if you wish), a black exterior package and red brake callipers. The sports seats are now finished in Dynamica microfibre/leather with an ‘S’ embossed and diamond pattern, while there are a number of additional safety features bundled in as standard - side assist and exit warning, lane departure warning with emergency assist, rear-cross traffic alert and rear turn assist.