Audi A6 Allroad Review 2024

If you want a big family estate car that can do that bit more, the Audi A6 Allroad is ideal. It’s the kind of car that suits having a roof box on top and a bike rack on the back. We think marketing people would call it a ‘lifestyle’ vehicle. Of course, you don’t have to tell anyone how often you actually use those bikes. It also doesn’t feel as bulky as a big SUV.

While it comes with quattro four-wheel drive, it’s certainly not an off-roader, despite what all that cladding on the wheel arches would like to suggest. There is hill descent control and the extra ride height, but what is more useful is the self-levelling air suspension, which makes the Audi A6 Allroad not only hugely comfortable but also great for towing.

The standard Audi A6 Allroad Sport model comes with everything you need from a big estate like this. Stuff like leather seats which are electrically adjustable and have lumbar support, naturally, to LED ambient lighting, 19-inch alloys and privacy glass for the rear side windows. The latter isn’t just about style, it’s useful for cutting out bright sun in the back, handy for young kids on long summer drives.

We’d go for an Audi A6 Allroad Sport with the standard 45 TDI engine which is handily also the cheapest model in the range, although when you’re looking at a car that was £55,000 new, the word ‘cheap’ is all relative. It’s not worth paying extra for the 50 TDI engine.

Vorpsrung is the high-spec trim and would have cost £72,000 new. Ouch. It does come with pretty much every bell and whistle, so if you can get a deal on one, it’s a hell of a lot of car for the money. But unsurprisingly, they are few and far between. 

The off-road-sort-of-estate car isn’t all that common so there’s only two direct rivals to the Audi A6 Allroad - the cheaper Volvo V90 Cross Country and the just as expensive Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain. The Volvo makes a strong case for itself for the money, although it doesn’t come with a 3.0-litre diesel. You can go smaller with something like the Volkswagen Passat Alltrack.

If it’s a well equipped estate you’re after, the standard A6 Avant is probably all you need and comes with quattro all-wheel drive and the same engines. Alternatively you could look at a full-size SUV and there are no shortage of those to choose from like the BMW X5, Audi Q7 and Mercedes GLE.

It’s hardly a shock that the interior of a luxury Audi that costs more than £50k is finished to a high standard. I mean, we’d be more than a little disappointed if it were like a Dacia. You can certainly see where your money goes, there’s more metal inside than an Alice Cooper gig, giving the Audi A6 Allroad a chunky and solid feel inside.

If it’s not metal or glossy plastic, it’s probably covered in leather. Well we say leather, some of it is in fact ‘leatherette’, basically pretend leather. An extended leather pack was available as a £1000 option and added proper leather to the upper instrument panel, doors and centre console, but cars fitted with this are rare as hen’s teeth. 

Even without that, every surface you touch in the Audi A6 Allroad has a quality feel to it. The same goes for the buttons (not that there are many) which work with a satisfying click, even small controls like those for the electric mirrors. Nowhere does it feel as though Audi has cut corners with this car.

What’s better than one touchscreen? Two touchscreens if you’re Audi. The advantage here is that it means a clean and uncluttered interior. Yet Audi has left some things alone - there’s still a proper knob for the volume for instance.

The lower 8.6-inch screen controls the air conditioning and things like the heated seats while the top 10.1-inch screen does everything else like your navigation, radio and displays Apple CarPlay and Android Auto if you connect your phone (but only using a cable - it’s not advanced enough to work through Bluetooth).

The system itself is easy to use and clearly laid out with simple boxes for each of the functions. It’s certainly more intuitive than the BMW equivalent while the display itself is lovely and sharp. The designers at Audi have clearly been playing with their phones as there are lots of similar functions, for instance you pinch across the lower screen to sync the air conditioning between left and right.

One of the oddities however is the haptic feedback – so the screen ‘clicks’ when you press. This is one of things that seems like a neat feature, but we found it quite annoying. Instead of just being able to touch the touchscreen you have to press it. Yes, we know, first world problems but it adds another layer of complexity that’s not really needed. If it ain’t broke... 

The Audi A6 Allroad is certainly not short of space, hardly surprising when it’s close to five metres long. You can happily carry four proper grown ups in comfort without it feeling a squeeze. Storage is decent with large door pockets although the space under the centre armrest is shallow and only good for phones and wallets. 

The one fly in the Audi ointment here is the big central tunnel which makes the middle seat in the back a squeeze unless you want to be very friendly with the knees of your fellow passengers. Stick to two back there and it’s much more comfortable. Plus there are separate controls for the air conditioning. 

It’s ideal for child seats with ISOFIX points that have built in guides around them plus there are top tether points. The generous legroom in the back means you can fit a rear facing seat with room to spare. Sadly, it won’t stop a grumpy six year old from kicking the back of your seat…

The boot is huge at 565 litres and has useful features like an electric tailgate – complete with automatically retracting luggage cover, while the rear seats split 40/20/40 and can be folded down using a handle in the boot. Handy when you’re halfway through loading something heavy and realise it won’t quite fit. 

One standard feature we’re not quite convinced by is the luggage-securing boot-rail system which comes with a luggage strap and a net. It’s a nice idea but in reality you won’t find yourself using the net much and without it, the boot is left with two metal rails that like to collect dirt.

The Audi A6 Allroad dimensions are 4951mm long, 2110mm wide and 1534mm tall.

While there is a 55 TSI petrol in the Audi A6 Allroad, you’re more likely to find the Holy Grail than come across one. True it’s fast, with 340PS but it’s also thirsty. The two diesels suit the Audi much better.

Both the 45 TDI and 50 TDI are powered by the same six-cylinder 3.0-litre diesel engine. The 45 TDI has 231PS and 500Nm which we think is more than enough for everyday driving. It’s certainly our choice in the range and the most common model around too.

If you do want extra oomph, the 50 TDI ups power to 286PS and boost torque to a hefty 620Nm. There’s no denying this thing pulls like a train and is effortless quick, but with the same 2500kg towing capacity as the rest of the range, there seems little point in paying extra for one. You don’t even get a different badge on the boot.

But this is where we come to the crunch. Because the one thing that lets the Audi A6 Allroad down is the tiptronic gearbox. This is a conventional automatic rather than a twin-clutch affair and indeed, it shifts up in the blink of an eye with almost unnoticeable shifts.

The problem comes at lower speeds. For some reason there’s a delay in the gearbox. It’s only maybe a second or two, but when you’re pulling out of a junction, or attempting to accelerate across a roundabout, it's noticeable. As a result, the Audi A6 Allroad is hugely frustrating to drive and it overshadows the rest of the car.

Along with superb comfort, the Audi A6 Allroad is also incredibly quiet and refined, which you’ll appreciate on long motorway journeys. There’s pretty much no wind noise, helped by the fact the suspension lowers itself by 15mm above 74mph (which also benefits fuel economy) while despite the big wheels, tyre noise is kept to a minimum.

That’s down to lots of sound insulation but other things help, such as the air suspension which not only means a comfortable ride but also filters out the vibrations caused by rough and pitted roads. 

The 3.0-litre TDI engines are quiet at start up and you’ll barely notice any noise, even under hard acceleration plus there’s no vibration coming into the cabin. The TSI engine is even quieter, although it does become more vocal at higher revs, albeit in an enjoyable way if you like that sort of thing. Which we do.

There are plenty of onboard safety systems in the Audi A6 Allroad including the Tour Assist package which has efficiency assist, adaptive cruise assist and emergency assist. The City package features the intersection assist and the exit warning. This usefully warns passengers not to open the doors if the car has stopped and it detects cyclists or cars approaching.

As well as lane departure warning, there is also a rearview camera and the Parking System Plus with both front and rear sensors. While the Audi A6 Allroad itself hasn’t been crash-tested by Euro NCAP, the Audi A6 saloon achieved the maximum five-star rating in 2018 with a high 85 per cent rating for child occupant safety. 

Other useful extras for parents include not just window locks but also controls for the child locks on the rear doors. Handily they’re right next to the electric window controls and easy to check, with a read light showing they’re locked.

The Audi A6 Allroad scored a pretty average 9.00 out of 10 in the HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Survey, although it is worth bearing in mind that this figure includes the previous generation model too.

As a brand Audi wasn't pulling up any trees either, being placed 21st out of 30 manufacturers - behind BMW in 20th and way behind Mercedes-Benz in 13th.

The 45 TDI is between group 40 and 45 for insurance depending on the spec, a few groups higher than the Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain, so you’d likely be paying a bit more for your premium if you choose the Audi. The 50 TDI sits between groups 43 and 45 while the lesser spotted 55 TSI is group 41 or 45.

This Audi A6 Allroad was launched in 2019 so you will pay £165 a year in road tax, regardless of what model you choose. Be aware though that with a list price of more than £40k, the Audi A6 Allroad falls into the ‘showroom tax’ bracket.

This means that for the first five years of its life, owners will have to pay an extra £355 on top of that £165 from the second time the car is taxed.

There are just two trims - the standard Sport and the top of the line Vorpsrung. For us, the Audi A6 Allroad Sport comes with everything you’ll need and would expect on a £50k car. So there are leather seats (electrically adjustable), navigation, LED interior ambient lighting, a rearview camera, 19-inch alloys, keyless go and privacy glass for the rear side windows. 

It also has Audi's clever Matrix beam LED headlights that keep the main beam on, but avoids dazzling other road users by adjusting the pattern of the beam. It’s a genuine clever bit of tech that actually works.

If you can find an Audi A6 Allroad Vorpsrung, you’ll get every bell and whistle there is including 21-inch alloys, a panoramic glass sunroof, an electric steering column, the extended leather pack, head-up display, Technology Pack, Tour Pack and the City Assist Pack. You’ll also get posh power closing doors, for the ultimate limo lifestyle.

If you’re regularly towing, look for a car fitted with the optional electrically swivelling towbar which also includes trailer stabilisation with ESC.