Impressions 1,000 miles in

[Dave fitch]

Had my black edition ultra manual saloon for just a month and 1,000 miles now and having changed from a BMW 525d (3 Litre) thought I would share my impressions good and bad for anyone who might be interested.

I didn't stay with BMW for two main reasons, so much more for your money with the Audi (Black edition with pearl paint all heated seats and lighting pack for almost £2,000 less than a standard 520d se) and the BMW is positively ancient inside compared to the high quality and modern Audi.

Okay Audi plus points,
very quiet (other than tyres which are Bridgestone and I have s line suspension too)

LED headlights and auto dip / main beam although I wish it operated at lower speeds too you can't always be belting around narrow country lanes.

Economy I have had a best of 56mpg on the single journey computer and 47.2 average over the 1,000 miles and I do a fair bit of town driving.

Quality of the leather seats I have lunar silver and a simple wipe with a damp cloth is all I have given it so far and still looks perfect, the pimply leather on my old BMW seemed to store dirt and was much more difficult to keep clean.

The interior especially with the lighting pack looks absolutely fantastic at night.

very comfortable despite 20" wheels and the lowest s line suspension the ride is not harsh at all for me ( my BMW was an M sport)

I expect this to be a contentious one The rotor wheels I think look great and are so so easy to clean after my lovely looking but pain in the bum to clean M sport wheels, I know the s6 style are the favourites at the moment.

Minus points
As already mentioned noisy tyres, I have had Bridgestones before and they were noisy too but with the wheel, tyre suspension combination I can't really complain.

Two regens already and on one occasion I felt I had to take it back out as it was stinking hot when I got home, my BMW was auto and I only noticed a few regens during the four years I had it.

I think that sixth gear is maybe a little high if you need to jump into the overtaking lane on a busy motorway a change down is necessary to get a squirt of acceleration to get into that gap, but again I suppose that's where the economy comes from.

Parking sensors not as good as BMW system for me don't really like the four separate segments and doesn't seem to be as accurate as BMW system

So overall I am very very happy I love the low slung looks with missano red paint, low suspension and rotors, lunar interior is beautiful too, the salesman said I was brave making this choice of colour interior combo, lol I don't agree I can see myself in this car for quite a long time.

[ukgroucho]

Nice to hear you are enjoying the car.

Main beam assist speed threshold can be adjusted using VCDS - you'll see a VCDS sticky at the top of the forum page 1 but the link you want is A6 C7 VCDS Tricks - the various validated tricks have been consolidated into the first post and I think it is item 12 that you need.

There is also a link in there to help you find a local forum member who has VCDS and may be willing to pop across and spend 30 minutes or so with you doing a few tweaks for a small consideration.

[A6S]

I tried changing the main beam speed threshold and it doesn't work on the facelift.
Maybe we should do a sticky thread on the vcds tricks that works on the facelift.

[johnsimcox]

The A6 Ultra seems to regenerate more frequently than pre-Ultra car (I have had both). Also regenerations seem to be more frequent in the early days of the car, maybe due to standing idle with the engine running during the transport/delivery/dealer stage of the process

[DJ Daddy-O]

I am just about to hit 1,000 miles in my car after 3 weeks, so thought I would add some of my own thoughts. I too moved from a BMW (X3).

Good points
- interior quality a definitive step up. My old car creaked and cracked as warmed through the cabin and just about every facia creaked if you pushed it. The car is also far better at insulating outside noise - not sure if this is down to the glass in the front or just better seals. Possibly both. Haven't really noticed any tyre noise, which is good given I have 19" wheels and 255 tyres (Pirelli)
- Tech pack is superb. love the Google maps on the nav and now I have played with MyAudi, it is very easy to search and load destinations etc.
- Engine (3.0l 272ps) - Peach. And can get better MPG than my old 2.0l tractor engine if I want to.
- LED lights - better light than my old Xenons, but don't throw as far (although I did have my old ones set relatively high, so I didn't expect them to).
- Audi Drive Select - really getting to like this. Mine is the Allroad so I have air suspension and I love the variety this offers. Comfort mode on the motorway is so serene, yet hit dynamic on the final blast to my village and it is a totally different car. The way it drives for its size is better than I ever expected.

Annoyances
- The Apps are pants. Audi Connect App looked good but didn't do most of the stuff it was meant to and it messed up me playing music from my iPhone via MMI - deleted!
- the high beam assist always switches the full beam off part way through a (fast!) bend on my way home; there are some red reflective barriers to mark the outside on the bend and it must think they are brake lights.
- agree the parking sensors are more sensitive than BMW; couple of times now I have parked and hit the red/constant noise stop now or you'll explode warning, only to find I am a couple of feet away. Will take a little longer to get used to it.

Haven't noticed any regens specifically, although there was a slightly burning smell when I got home one day, so expect that it has done one.

[ukgroucho]

- Audi Drive Select - really getting to like this. Mine is the Allroad so I have air suspension and I love the variety this offers. Comfort mode on the motorway is so serene, yet hit dynamic on the final blast to my village and it is a totally different car. The way it drives for its size is better than I ever expected.

You might want to try "Auto" for the suspension on the motorway (I have that set in Individual) as it will drop the car to the lowest setting. Maybe not quite as smooth a ride (although motorways are pretty good surfaces for the most part) but it will improve fuel consumption noticeably - as much as a couple of MPG over a reasonable run.

[Splash]

doing a few tweaks for a small consideration.

or just some damn fine coffee and conversation...

[Bar Shaker]

I've only just passed 1000 miles, despite having my car since 1st Sept. My last car was a C6 2.7tdi Quattro S Line on 19s.

Positives
The whole quality of materials and construction is a big leap over the C6.
I like the Tech Pack and the connectivity for music, Google maps, internet radio etc.
The ride quality and handling is a significant improvement over my C6. The car feels much lighter and turns in much better than the C6.
My 320PS BiTdi is more economical than the 2.7 was, despite me driving 'briskly' most of the time.
Being able to select Comfort mode on a long run is bliss.
I love the look of my graphite twin spoke 20s.
Apart from the stonking power, the absolute best bit of the drive is the Matrix LEDs.

Negatives
Tyre noise on PZeros is high on concrete road surfaces.
The bass on the Bose is lacking at low volumes (it's very good at higher volumes)
Nothing else.

[Dave fitch]

Thanks to everyone for sharing their thoughts.
DJ Daddy I am surprised to hear your BMW was creaky I had no complaints about engineered quality in the BMW just seemed so old fashioned and expensive compared to the Audi, it is interesting that I have downsized but only lost about 5 BHP and you have taken a massive leap in power, I love power and torque but could only go for the big engine if I went used and wanted to pick my own spec. I do find this engine to be as smooth and even quieter than my six pot BMW though.

[Willow 15]

Had mine (FL S-line Avant 2.0 Ultra, ex demonstrator) for a 1000 miles, previously in a c6 S-line 2.0tdie Avant.

I enjoyed the c6 but never really fell in love with it, and I know why. My previous car to the c6 was a B6 Passat SEL 2.0 tfsi, 200bhp and tiptronic, basically a disguised big Golf GTI. It was my first car with an auto box and heated seats, when I bought the Audi I never realised how much having a toasty **** and a still left arm was one of the reasons i loved the Passat, I was probably hypnotised by the Audi's beautiful led's.

So 5 years of mainly trouble free driving (including trips to the alps) in the c6 I knew it was time to change, the dpf light had come on and there was a touch of rust on the boot lid where I had chipped the paint. Plus I was bloody sick of changing gear and having a cold ****.

I started looking at 5 series, E class and Superb's but in the end I knew the A6 would win out as the rest just didn't look as good as the FL A6.

So good points

Heated seat, bliss
S tronic box, point an go, love it
Easily linking my phone to the MMI and listening to any content including Podcasts
Google maps, although street view would be good when driving in city centres.
Really quiet but for some reason when hoofing it the engine sounds good and not diesely, must be the magic double glazing.
Two accessible cup holders in the front, instead of the stupid system of the c6 where all the contents of the upper arm rest would be spread all over the back seats when eldest son flipped it back for his drink holder!
Auto boot opening
Mine has panoramic sunroof and although a sunroof has never been on my tick list, it does make the car feel a lot more spacious with the dark interior.

Bad points

I find the heating controls a bit fiddly, but thats probably my ***** eye sight.
When raining the boot lid still has water splashing into the boot.
Not the car but the Audi apps. They have loads of potential but the battery drain is ridiculous.
Slow charging when phone plugged into usb.
Finally, not being in the car behind me to watch those beautiful sweeping indicators. I find myself indicating much more often, just to show off, sad I know.

All in all I know I have got another keeper. When I had the Passat and was on holiday I looked forward to returning home and going for a drive, never had that feeling with the c6, but I know already I'll have that feeling with the c7.