2007 Audi A6 Allroad

The car was first previewed with the Audi Allroad Concept in early 2005. Today’s announcement is the second of three expected from the German automaker. On Tuesday, the company announced the 2007 RS4 convertible and wagon. What is the third mystery announcement? Some believe it will be the Audi S3, while others expect to see the new TT.

Exterior

The new A6 allroad quattro faithfully perpetuates the design evolution of the brand. Its lines blend the light, elegant Audi architecture exemplified by the A6 Avant with new, bold styling elements taken from the off-road segment. Even the basic proportions have a classic flair, with the low window strip and the distinctly coupé-like roofline that slopes down gradually at the rear. The outline of the body is traced by three lines which inject it with a dynamic spirit and that added forward urge.

The shoulder line arches upwards gently from the front wing, before running down the flanks of the body as an eye-catching light-refracting edge and ending at the rear lights. The inverse arch traced by the dynamic line flows out from the bottom of the front bumper. It runs rearwards above the door sill edges and finally wraps round the tail as a bumper edge to outline the body from front to rear.

Finally, the V-bonnet line also originates in the front bumper before continuing over the bonnet and merging into the roofline. It terminates in the upwards-pointing separation edge atop the tailgate, rounding off the sporty silhouette.

The intricate interplay between concave and convex arcs, between positively and negatively curved surfaces, adds a further dimension to the design of the A6 allroad quattro. It emphasises the stimulating interplay of light and shadow which keeps adding new facets to the design as the viewing angle changes.

The special off-road styling elements which make the Audi A6 allroad quattro truly stand out include the stainless steel underride protector beneath the engine that highlights the vehicle’s robust nature with its solid looks. To accommodate the underride protector, the prominent single-frame grille has been slightly reduced in height. The licence plate holder has been reduced in size to the extent that the licence plate now appears to be floating in mid-air. Depending on the market, Audi adapts the size of the holder to match the local licence plate format.

The vertical bars of the grille are trimmed with chromed strips, while the bumpers have also undergone restyling. They are painted in a contrasting matt colour as standard and are available in a body-coloured matt finish as an option. New, flat intake slits beneath the radiator grille direct even greater quantities of air to the engine. Visible behind the clear-glass lenses on either side is the very latest in headlight technology: as an option, the new A6 allroad quattro can be specified with the adaptive light dynamic cornering light system, incorporating high-intensity xenon plus headlight units and daytime running lights.

When seen side on, the eye is immediately drawn to the striking roof rails which are made from aluminium and rest on four supports. The enlarged heated exterior mirrors, which adjust and retract electrically, provide an extra-wide field of vision. At the bottom of the vehicle’s flanks, the dynamic line is accentuated by sturdy door strips in a contrasting colour, which can be specified in aluminium too on request. Additional sill panelling conveys an impression of tremendous power, as do the flared wheel arches. Both elements are painted in a matt finish, either in a contrasting colour or optionally in the same colour as the body.

Depending on the engine, the wheel arches house wheels measuring 17 or 18 inches in diameter which come in three special designs – a 7-arm rotor design, 10-spoke design and 5-arm "Aero" design. The tyres are slightly larger in diameter than those on the A6 Avant, automatically giving the Audi A6 allroad quattro a higher-set appearance.

The muscular rear end of the Audi A6 allroad quattro can be identified by its wide track and the visible exhaust tailpipes, which are 88 millimetres in diameter on the V8 FSI. An aluminium-look trim strip in the vicinity of the bumper adds a glittering touch, while a stainless steel underride protector also gleams out from underneath the vehicle floor. Like its counterpart at the front end, the rear bumper comes painted in a contrasting matt colour as standard or can be specified in a body-coloured matt finish as an option. If the adaptive light dynamic cornering light system is specified at the front, an attractive LED unit for the brake and tail lights will be incorporated into the rear light clusters.

There is a choice of ten smart paint finishes for the A6 allroad quattro. One of them – Condor Grey – is reserved for the new model and the Audi Q7. In the second half of 2006, Polar Blue will become available as an eleventh colour that will be exclusive to the A6 allroad quattro.

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