With the electric A6 and S6 on their way, some of Audi’s core tenets are shipping out. Here, they’re front and center.
Chris Perkins / Motor1
By pure coincidence, I drove this Audi S6 just weeks before the automaker revealed its electric A6 and S6 E-Tron. Audi tells Motor1 that the gas A6 and S6 will live on for some time alongside their electric counterparts—both were updated for the 2024 model year—but there’s no doubt where things are headed. The launch of Audi’s new electric sedan recontextualizes its outgoing sedans.
The A6 can trace its lineage back to the Audi 100 of 1968, the first car from Audi as we know it today. This S6 reflects a distinctly German approach to auto engineering: come up with an idea and stick with it no matter what. Audi’s traditional drivetrain layout of engine ahead of the front-mounted transaxle dates back to the 1930s, with the DKW F9, a proposed successor to the Volkswagen Beetle. It’s a layout with advantages; It creates lots of interior space and easy packaging of all-wheel drive with a simple driveshaft running rearwards. But it puts the heaviest parts of the car exactly where you don’t want them, creating a potential nightmare for vehicle dynamics.
| Quick Specs | 2024 Audi S6 |
| Engine | Twin-Turbocharged 2.9-Liter V-6 |
| Output | 444 Horsepower / 442 Pound-Feet |
| 0-60 MPH | 4.4 Seconds |
| Price / As Tested | $76,595 / $93,290 |
Front-engine performance cars generally have their powerplants mounted as far back behind the front wheels as possible. Other than Subaru, Audi is pretty much alone in this approach to packaging. This is where the trope of “Audi’s understeer” comes from, and there is some truth to it. So, it would seem this layout would make an odd base for a sports sedan.
But, I think we must consider how people actually use cars like this. Is anyone taking an S6 to a track day? Probably not. Are people getting up early to carve canyons with one of these? I doubt it. They’re using it like any old luxury sedan, one that happens to be faster than most. In this way, the S6 succeeds.
While facelifted for 2024, the A6 is by far the oldest of the German mid-size luxury sedan trio with new versions of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and BMW 5 Series debuting last year. I actually think that’s an asset. The interior still has lots of sensible physical knobs and switches, and though it has a second screen for climate controls, it works very well. Plus, it’s just got that Audi-nice feel throughout. The company simply knows how to make a car feel nice, and this one with the extended-leather interior—part of the $8,200 Prestige package—is downright sumptuous. It’s one of those cars that feels right the second you get inside.
Long gone are the days of Audi S6s with silly engines, twin-turbo V-8s and even a V-10. Though not terribly characterful, the 444-horsepower twin-turbo V-6 is effective and even musical at times. In the S6, it’s bolstered by a 48-volt electric compressor that helps compensate for turbo lag, so there’s always good response from low revs, and the eight-speed automatic is smooth and quick through the ratios.
Without the $4,000 S Sport Package, which includes rear-wheel steering, an electronically controlled rear differential, and a sports exhaust, I don’t think this S6 is quite as keen a driver as it could be. Still, it’s competent on a fast road, with a ride that’s never too harsh despite its 21-inch wheels. Thank height-adjustable air suspension with adaptive dampers for that.
Interestingly, the S6 no longer has a direct rival, at least among gas-powered luxury sedans. Both the BMW 540i and Mercedes-Benz E450 are less powerful, and put less emphasis on performance, though both are a little cheaper. Meanwhile, BMW no longer offers the M550i and the Mercedes-AMG E53 is now a 603-hp plug-in hybrid that will likely be a lot more pricey than the $76,995 base price of the 2025 S6. (We tested a 2024 model, but the car is unchanged for 2025.)
Plus there’s real sleeper appeal here. Maybe not in this admittedly lovely shade of Grenadine Red, but the S6 is relatively subtle and handsome compared to the new E-Class and 5 Series. Get one of these in a dark color, too, and it will fly well under the radar.
Like so many of Audi’s cars, it’s easy to see the S6 fitting well into your life. It’s not the most thrilling four-door on the market by any means, but as a luxury daily driver with some GT bonafides, it’s a worthy option. It drives well, without asking the owner to make sacrifices for its performance.
I think there’s real charm here too. I’m a romantic when it comes to automotive history, and I do appreciate the stubbornness of Audi rigidly sticking with a formula it knows, even if a lot of people would argue it’s not the right approach. It’s the same sort of thing as Porsche sticking with the rear-mounted flat-six in the 911, even as rear-engine cars have been otherwise abandoned. That’s something you really only get with German automakers.
This mechanical layout still has some years left ahead of it. After this gas-powered A6 bows, Audi will replace it and the A7 with a single model carrying the A7 moniker, just as it did with the A4 and A5. Still, the electric age will eventually see Audi abandoning a thing it’s been doing for decades. It’s happening across the auto industry, and while I of course don’t want to say it’s a bad thing, it is a thing. We are losing some ties to the past.
Chris Perkins / Motor1
Competitors
- BMW 5 Series
- Mercedes-Benz E-Class
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Audi S6 / RS6
Engine 2.9-Liter Twin-Turbo V-6
Output 444 Horsepower / 442 Pound-Feet
Transmission 8-Speed Automatic
Drive Type All-Wheel Drive
Speed 0-60 MPH 4.4 Seconds (mfr.)
Maximum speed 155 MPH (electronically limited)
Weight 4,486 Pounds
Efficiency 19 City / 27 Highway / 22 Combined
Seating Capacity 5
Cargo Volume 13.7 Cubic Feet
On Sale Now
Base Price $76,595
As-Tested Price $93,290
