autocar on the new a6 styling.

[Dave Eaton <dave.eaton@minedu.govt.nz>]

to quote from autocar on their opinion of the styling of the new a6.........

'call the radical new a6 a coupe and you won't get an argument from audi.  count them and, yes, there are still 4 doors.  but look at the profile of a roofline that merges as one into a near flat rear window and then blends into a wonderfully curvaceous rump, and you understand immediately that this is no ordinary executive saloon.

'not since the hugely influential aerodynamic 100 in 1982 has audi made such a fundamental change to the shape of its cars.  not content merely to evolve the elegant look that works so successfully on the a4, a newly confident audi has discarded the conventional three-box appearance in favour of an almost ellipsoid form. while mercedes struggles to find a new styling direction that integrates those oval headlights into the look of the rest of the car, and bmw is content to be evolutionary, audi has come out fighting, changed direction and redefined the silhouette of it's executive class a6.  could the stillborn four-door porsche 989 have looked any more coupe-like?

"we are becoming more progressive, more radical and above all more emotional," says peter schreyer, head of audi design.

'in 1994 audi's design team was working simultaneously on the tt and the new a6, and consciously developing the new form that will eventually spread through the entire audi range.  the tt and the a6 share more than just the shape of their tail lights; they redefine the relationship between the body and the glasshouse, introduce geometric shutlines and, while retaining a relatively long front overhang with a traditional grill, bring a stubby rear end that is truly new.

' claus pothoff's design was frozen in january 1995, meaning that the a6 has been just 24 months in development, a staggering 17 months less than the old a6.

'when vw launched the new passat an audi in all but name, we wondered how audi would respond to the in-house competition.  here was a car that not only threatened the a4, but could also tempt families away from the lower end of the a6 range.  what we didn't know at the time was that the new a6 would move the goal posts; now, the a6 is gunning for mercedes e-class and bmw 5-series as never before.