Re: NYT Audi write-up

["C.K. Johnson" <ckj@airmail.net>]

At 09:48 AM 9/28/95 -0400, you wrote:
>Audi got a nice feature write-up in the New York Times Sunday automotive 
>section, Sept. 24.  If anyone wants a copy posted to the list -- then maybe 
>one of you AOL'ers could check whether that got included in @Times and copy it 
>in if it did?
>
>
Here's the article.  Reprinted without permission.  The usual disclaimers apply.


ABOUT CARS: AUDI'S A6 QUATTRO - A REAL BARGAIN AMONG EUROPEAN SEDANS

By PETER PASSELL c. 1995 N.Y. Times News Service 

   New and improved: you've heard that one before. But cheaper?

   It is hard to imagine finding a real bargain among rock-solid European
sedans. 

   Yet that is just what Audi is offering in the A6 Quattro, one prong of
the company's strategy for regaining a respectable share of the fiercely
competitive American market for ``near luxury'' cars. 

   Audi, you may not remember, drew rave reviews in the 1970s for selling
Mercedes-Benz look- (and drive-) alikes for two-thirds of the price. But
disaster struck in the mid-1980s, when Audis with automatic transmissions
were blamed for accidents caused by ``unintended acceleration.'' 

   It proved to be a bum rap, fed by the overwrought imaginations of
television producers and tort lawyers. 

   All automatics accelerate - occasionally with tragic results - when
drivers accidentally hit the throttle instead of the brake, and the
statistics showed that Audis were no more prone to that than other cars.
Nonetheless, Audi's sales in America collapsed from 74,000 in 1985 to 23,000
in 1988. 

   The stain faded. Meanwhile, though, Lexus and Infiniti reached the
market, Volvo moved upscale, Mercedes added some less expensive models and
Range Rovers became the vehicles of choice in East Hampton. 

   In 1994 Audi sold just 12,600 cars in America and the number of dealers
drifted down to 283. 

   One part of Audi's comeback strategy is refreshingly old-fashioned: the
1995 models are 7 percent to 25 percent cheaper than comparably equipped
94s. Prices will be slightly higher for '96, but more equipment, like an
automatic transmission, will become standard. 

   More important, for '95 Audi unbundled its sophisticated full-time,
four-wheel-drive Quattro system, transforming it from a premium feature on
top-of-the-line models to a $1,500 option on every car. 

   At a list price of $36,080, the gussied-up version of the A6 that I drove
is $7,740 cheaper than the 100CS Quattro it replaced. But an A6 Quattro,
complete with automatic climate control, eight-speaker stereo and
power-almost-everything, can be had for around $33,000. 

   For 1996, an automatic transmission is standard and Quattro costs $50
more, for a base price of $34,345. 

   Initial impressions do not make the pulse pound. The A6 is conservatively
designed in the modern, slightly bulging mold for maximum roominess and
minimum wind drag. Only the rakish hood line and wraparound headlights
visually separate it from the pack. 

   The interior, with firm, very comfortable seating for five, carefully
finished trim, tilting and telescoping steering wheel, jewel-like controls
and plentiful storage space, is comparable to (but hardly distinguishable
from) the high-end competition. 

   Likewise, a first run through suburbia will not turn sports car nuts into
A6 enthusiasts. The 2.8-liter, 172-horsepower V6 offers adequate power to
pull the 3,700-pound Quattro version into traffic without fuss - and with an
easy 20 miles to the gallon. 

   But with the five-speed manual gearbox, the car seems sluggish in first
and second before the engine reaches 3,000 rpm. And the shock absorbers feel
a touch softer than expected from an autobahn-buster. 

   Power-hungry drivers do have the option of an industrial-strength version
of the A6, which the company has labeled the S6. The exterior is identical,
save for a few pieces of trim. But under the hood sits a turbocharged
five-cylinder engine that generates 227 horsepower. The performance
difference is greater than one might imagine, since the turbo adds a big
kick even at low engine speeds. 

   Unfortunately, the price difference is also greater: The S6, with
four-wheel drive, leather sports seats and hands-free cellular phone
standard, costs $45,715. 

   Give the A6 a chance, though, and it really grows on you. The power
steering and suspension, feather-light in the parking lot, are
confidence-building-firm at highway speed. It must be a joy to drive the A6
on those few remaining strips of concrete in Europe that permit speeds of
100 miles an hour-plus. 

   When pushed hard, the A6 is a model of understated competence. That is
partly due to the lack of road noise and the exceptional calm of the engine,
even near the red line of 6,400 rpm. But it is mostly a product of Audi's
remarkable all-wheel drive. 

   Like the four-wheel drive on Jeeps and their ilk, the Audi Quattro offers
superior traction in mud and snow. But unlike the four-wheel-drive systems
on most sport utility vehicles, Audi's full-time system makes everyone a
better driver on high-speed turns or rain-slicked roads by automatically
feeding the most power to the wheels least likely to lose their grip. 

   In practice, that means the A6 Quattro behaves like a well-designed
rear-wheel-drive car in ordinary driving, with none of the destabilizing
tugs on the steering exhibited by front-drive cars under heavy acceleration. 

   When the going gets tough, though, the A6 Quattro hunkers down and grabs
the asphalt better than the most beautifully balanced two-wheel-drive sports
sedans. 

   Not surprisingly, all Audis come with powerful anti-skid disk brakes,
dual air bags and side-impact beams, along with high-output headlights that
are a godsend to middle-aged eyes. 

   What may surprise, though, is that unlike competing Japanese, German and
Swedish sedans, the A6 got the highest possible rating for survivability in
high-speed crashes from federal regulators. 

   It remains to be seen whether the A6 Quattro can help to bring Audi, a
unit of Volkswagen AG, back from the lonely fringe of the American car market. 

   The company is hoping, hoping, hoping that superb all-wheel drive,
touches of luxury and a fine suspension will coax sport-utility owners from
their glorified trucks. What is very clear is that this Audi is a terrific
value among refined sedans. 

   INSIDE TRACK: Upscale transportation for grown-ups who don't part easily
with their pfennigs. 

   00:30 EDT   SEPTEMBER 24, 1995