RE: New A6

["Buchholz, Steven" <Steven.Buchholz@kla-tencor.com>]

> >You can always ask your dealer and query AoA to be sure, but the general
> >feeling I hear expressed by the auto manufacturers is that the American
> >public doesn't want a luxury sedan with anything but an automatic.
> 
> For that segment of the auto market, where the typical buyer is 55-60
> years
> old, this is probably true.  But when you consider the overwhelming demand
> for the BMW 540i with the 6-speed tranny (most dealers are asking for, and
> getting, more than MSRP for them), it makes you think that *maybe* Audi
> will
> offer the A6 4.2 with a 6-speed....would be nice...
> 
... I've certainly got my fingers crossed!  A 4.2 liter 6-speed would be the
perfect candidate for updating my '83 QTC ... :-)

I've heard similar things quoted ... and similar ones based on education
level.  BMW either knows better about what will sell here in the USA, or
they do studies to find out what will ... as far as I can tell, someone in
an office in Ingolstadt (or perhaps Auburn Hills) sits down and decides what
we need.  While I have never owned a BMW automobile I have gotten offers to
drive their cars in off-road/autocross-style test situations several times
(I do ride a BMW motorcycle) ... let's see, I've owned six Audis over the
past 20 years, two of them might be considered to be "flagships" (the ur-q
and the v8q) and the last time I ever got anything from Audi was when I
requested a catalog from the "boutique" ...

... from what I see Audi could care less about the fact that they sold cars
any time before 1999 ... if you really think it would be cool to have an
A6/4.2 with a 6-speed your best bet is to get in contact with AoA or the
factory and ask them.

Steve Buchholz
San Jose, CA (USA)