Audi A6 Allroad driven: Executive long-distance motoring reimagined

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5 mins read

2 October 2026

We’re used to ruggedised versions of estate cars coming and going. Mostly going, it must be said: they had a surge of popularity 15-20 years ago but now most have vanished. Through the years, most of them have been fairly superficial jobs: lift the suspension a bit, paint the bumpers black, offer four-wheel drive if feeling generous, done.

Aside from Dacia, which operates in a slightly different price class, Audi is now the only marque persisting, in the UK at least. It was one of the first on the lifted estate bandwagon with the A6 Allroad Quattro in 2000 and it seems determined to be the last off. Rather than phoning it in, it has gone to town on the new Audi A6 Allroad.

There are the obligatory black bumpers and raised ride height, of course, but it also gets flared wheel arches. The engineers say the widebody isn’t quite the same as that of the upcoming RS6 Avant but, let’s be honest, it looks like a lifted RS6, which is to say pretty great.

Compared with a normal Audi A6 Avant, the Allroad also gets taller and wider tyres (285/35 instead of 255/35 on the 21in wheels) and four-wheel steering.

To really seal the deal, this is the only A6 that you can buy in the UK with a six-cylinder engine, which makes all the difference for a big executive car like this.

It arrives with a 295bhp 3.0-litre diesel V6, and later in the year that will be joined by a 362bhp petrol V6 and a 2.0-litre petrol-engined plug-in hybrid powertrain.

The PHEV is obviously the most sensible choice with company car tax in mind (it should be good for around 60 miles of electric range, depending on spec), but the V6s are what pique our interest.

That’s because BMW won’t sell you a six-cylinder 5 Series in the UK without a plug (even though it offers a 540i and 540d abroad) and Jaguar, Volvo, Maserati and everyone else have long since left the big-engined executive car market. The Allroad’s only direct rival in that respect is the Mercedes-Benz E450d Estate.

Both the V6s use Audi’s MHEV Plus system, which adds a 24bhp electric motor on the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox to provide some assistance as well as low-speed engine-off running.

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The petrol is familiar from the S5, while the diesel is the latest version of the long-running V6 TDI, which gets a new intake and gains an electric compressor that gets the boost going before the turbocharger is spooled up, plus various other tweaks to allow it to meet Euro 7 emissions standards.

Even though an equivalent EV would be even quicker, smoother, more responsive and effortless, there’s something oddly beguiling about a big diesel engine in a car like this – a sense of texture, and a sense that you could drag absolutely anything up a mountain. It’s very subjective but pleasing nonetheless.

BMW’s and Mercedes’ straight sixes (the existing Euro 6 versions, at least) are smoother low down, but Audi’s V6 is remarkably keen to rev.

The ability to pootle through town on electricity is neat and the dual-clutch ’box works effectively, even if it isn’t as smooth as a good torque converter would be.

I also had the opportunity to try the PHEV. Outright performance is almost identical, but the inline four sounds like it has to work harder, despite the electrical assistance. It’s perfectly creditable for its kind, but here BMW has the trump card with the straight-six 550e Touring PHEV.

Having tried a German-spec A6 with the petrol V6 a while back, I suspect that engine will be the pick of the range here too, thanks to its power and smoothness.

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Despite its raised ride height, the Allroad would also be the pick of the A6 range to drive even if it didn’t get the juicy engines. That’s because it receives air suspension and four-wheel steering as standard.

The engineers aimed for the spread between the drive modes to be quite broad, and that bears out in practice. It’s really rather cosseting in Comfort, while Balanced and Dynamic offer useful steps up in body control.

The 21in wheels can drum a bit over sharp intrusions, but that’s probably inevitable at this size. The standard 19s have a cool, early-2000s throwback design, so the solution is obvious here.

Despite having sought Corsica’s only dual carriageway and pushed the Allroad up to the consciousness-warping speed of 65mph, it’s hard for me to say how quiet it is, but a regular A6 was pretty good in this regard when we road tested it.

What my test route did have plenty of, though, was corners. Although a large, two-tonne estate wouldn’t have been my first choice to re-enact the Tour de Corse, I was impressed by the Allroad.

Variable ratio steering and four-wheel steering is sometimes a recipe for numb feel and nervous responses, but here it feels clean, progressive and very accurate, with the rear steer remaining in the background until it’s time to swivel around a tight hairpin.

The chassis engineer admitted that the 285-section tyres are a bit excessive and more for looks than anything, but they sure do make for big reserves of grip.

Having driven them back to back, I’d say the lighter V6 feels a tad keener than the PHEV. There’s not much in it, though.

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Inside, the Allroad is the same as any other A6, which is to say that it’s roomy enough and all the technology works quite well but a lot of the materials aren’t up to the standard we expect from a car that can cost up to £90,000.

Also, UK buyers are being denied the optimum spec, which is the brown leather Contour seats and the round steering wheel, as seen above. The Sport seats that are compulsory in the UK are comfy enough but the Contour seats are on another level, and the round wheel helps alleviate the issue of the top of the instruments being cut off.

The Allroad costs from £69,720 as a diesel or £72,145 as a PHEV. That’s £4000 more than an equivalent A6 Avant, which seems fair for what you get and is a bit cheaper than an equivalent E-Class.

The concept of a big diesel continent-crosser with an 850-mile range and some light off-road capability feels romantic and a bit old-fashioned. It now also comes with a pretty hefty price tag, but the A6 Allroad is a reminder that, when executed well, it can produce a very satisfying and desirable sort of car.

Audi A6 3.0 TDI Allroad
A bit of a throwback, in a good way. Quick, harmonious and practical. Cabin deserves an upgrade, though
Price	£69,720
Engine	V6, 2967cc, turbocharged, diesel, plus 48V ISG and electric motor
Power	295bhp at 3620-3750rpm
Torque	428lb ft at 1500-3620rpm
Gearbox	7-spd dual-clutch automatic, 4WD
Kerb weight	2120kg
0-62mph	5.4sec
Top speed	155mph
Economy	44.1mpg
CO2, tax band	167g/km, 37%
Rivals	Mercedes-Benz E450d, Skoda Superb 2.0 TDI 4x4

Illya Verpraet

Title: Road Tester

As a road tester, Illya drives everything from superminis to supercars, and writes reviews and comparison tests, while also managing the magazine’s Drives section. Much of his time is spent wrangling the data logger and wielding the tape measure to gather the data for Autocar’s in-depth instrumented road tests.

He loves cars that are fun and usable on the road – whether piston-powered or electric – or just cars that are very fit for purpose. When not in test cars, he drives an R53-generation Mini Cooper S or a 1990 BMW 325i Touring.