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From YourSITE.com Reviews & Road Tests Dirty, smoky, slow and clattering. This has been the stereotype given to diesel-powered cars, commonly believed… even by drivers in diesel-friendly Europe. Decades of these billowing yet frugal automobiles motoring along in the slow lane helped create a stigma that the auto and fuel industry have had a hard time changing. However, today the climate for change is ripe. World fuel reserves continue to shrink at record pace, while both pollution and improvements in diesel technology are on the rise. For the automotive enthusiast, the arrival of racecars like the Le Mans-winning Audi R10 TDI and road cars such as this A6 3.0 TDI S-line show that maybe that stereotype has begun to change.
While race photographers may throw down their hats as they miss the shot each time the R10 sneaks up on them at American Le Mans Series tracks around the USA, Audi and Audi Sport are successfully re-setting the diesel schema. The R10 is fast, remaining unbeaten in any race in which it has been entered, and locked down the American Le Mans Series championship just last weekend at Mosport. Even better, Audi has begun to capitalize on this new stereotype. With all the R10’s accomplishments this season, the Audi name is becoming synonymous with diesel technology – perhaps not on the level of its association with all-wheel drive, but synonymous with diesel nonetheless.
To further emphasize the sporting association with diesel, Audi has launched a range of TDI models with their S-line equipment packages for European buyers. Special market-specific models such as the UK’s A6 TDI “Le Mans Edition” and Austria’s A4 TDI “Le Mans Edition” have garnered press, while a whole range of diesel S-line cars have begun to show up in Audi’s lineup around the world. While there’s been no move yet to put a diesel engine in an S-car or an RS-car, the world car market and Audi’s continual sporting successes with the R10 make it not hard to surmise that this is only a matter of time. For now, S-line TDIs such as this German-market A6 3.0 TDI S-line and the various “Le Mans Editions” are enough to set off the imagination of a conscientious enthusiast.
Alas, there are not yet diesel models sold in the USA. While we have a plethora of S-line offerings, you won’t find a diesel S-line at your friendly neighborhood Audi dealer. To sample one, you’ll have to go to Europe. Or, in our case, come across one that has been brought into the USA for evaluation and is under the ownership of someone willing enough to let you drive it. In our case, the place was the 12 Hours of Sebring and the owner willing enough to share the keys were our good friends at Bosch North America who’d come to the race at the request of Audi. The outward look of the A6 is certainly dynamic enough in handsome Nordic Blue Pearl Effect. Attuned eyes will note that this A6 S-line does not have the body treatment of our American S-line A6s. In Europe, there are two stages of S-line packaging – ours was the one without body kit, but with wheels and striking two-tone black leather interior accented with silver Alcantara, matching silver stitching and aluminum trim. This may not be the fastest A6 in the lineup, but you can easily forget that when you slip into the gripping alcantara sport seats and run your hands along the various pieces of detail work. Dashstrokers beware!
Crank the key and you’ll be greeted with a quiet and refined note. No, it’s not throaty like the 4.2, nor is it stealth silent like the R10. It’s quiet enough though to fool you into thinking it might be a petrol 3.2. That is, until you hit the throttle, at which point the note is decidedly diesel…. quiet and smooth, but decidedly diesel with just a hint of gruffness. At speed, the 3.0 TDI is quite refined, but does have noticeably more vibration than the 3.2 - however minute. The 3.0 TDI makes use of dual intercoolers, a variable geometry turbocharger unit and Bosch’s commonrail fuel design with piezo injectors to amass 225 bhp and a generous 331 lb. ft. at a ground-level 1400 rpm. Fortunately, quattro is standard – a must with so much brute force available, and with such immediacy.
Audi’s Tiptronic 6-speed transmission sourced from ZF is standard fare on the 3.0 TDI. Perhaps that’s just as well. Torque delivery such as that of the 3.0 TDI would probably result in rather short clutch life were it mated to a manual gearbox. Tiptronic-only might discourage the most ardent enthusiast, and we’d have preferred Audi’s great butterfly paddle shifters mounted on the sport steering wheel. Though our tester A6 didn’t have the paddles either, it’s important to note that to have paddles or not to have paddles is up to the buyer. No less than 10 steering wheels are offered for the A6 in Europe, paddle-equipped versions amongst them. The 3.0 TDI when fitted in the Q7, as we recently tested, is no slouch. However, shoehorned into the lighter and nimbler A6 body and performance figures increase. Zero to 62 mph can be knocked out in 7.3 seconds (down from 8.4 for the Q7), while top speed is limited to 151 mph vs. the natural top speed of 134 mph of the SUV. Torque, not surprisingly is immediate. Off the line, this blue sedan feels more like a V8 than a V6. Higher up the shortened rev range though, typical of a diesel, the power falls off and the TDI begins to feel more like a V6 again. Handling is equally impressive. Our non-air suspension tester was a German-market car bought in a German-market dealership and tuned for German-market ride preferences – taught and sporting. Combine that with Audi’s variable power steering that weights up in turns and handling was quite satisfying. Even though the 3.0 TDI is a considerably light engine, the A6’s own architecture with the engine in the snout does have its limits. Any A6 will never be as quick to dance as an M3, but that’s not the point. Handling was very capable and typically Audi.
High speed is where the A6 3.0 TDI shines. All that torque available so early in the rev range means Audi can spec taller gearing. Ease on down the road at 90 mph and the engine revs at a lazy 2500 rpm. Audi suggests a cumulative city/highway fuel economy of 33.2 mpg. We easily beat that, in driving that was heavy-footed, though mostly made up of stop-and-go highway in between Celebration, Florida and the Sebring racetrack where the R10 TDI made history when it won the 12 Hours of Sebring.. Handing back the keys to the smiling representatives of Bosch, it’s easy to see why they’re so happy. The A6 3.0 TDI is a great example of what both Audi and Bosch are capable of. It reinforces the new stereotype of diesel – that of frugal performance, quiet and clean. Still, there is some bad news in all of this. For one, diesel models are still not available in the USA. That is expected to change in 2008 when Audi plans on returning to its diesel roots stateside and bringing over the Q7 3.0 TDI. We’ve heard nothing of the A6, other than playful sources at Audi saying they’re exploring all options. That Audi included Bosch’s A6 in their diesel fleet at Sebring is positive, but certainly not telling. And, even if the A6 3.0 TDI does come to the USA, the likelihood that an S-line version would have some of the more aggressive sporting equipment of our German market tester is somewhat unlikely. Still, we shouldn’t lose hope. If you like what you see here, call or email Audi customer service in the USA and let them know. It’s just such votes of confidence that can sway product planners in Auburn Hills and Ingolstadt as they consider Audi’s North American diesel strategy.
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