1998 Audi A6 quattro review from North America

A hole in the windshield washer fluid tank was discovered, replaced for free by Audi.

The cup holders are getting a little flimsy and starting to break.

The car is very comfortable and is a prime example of a mid-luxury estate.

The styling very subltle, but powerful. Audi made great use of shadowing to convey a classy european figure, while not throwing in to much physical "flash".

The controls for everything are very easy to read and operate, and audio system by Bose operates flawlessly the whole time I've had the car.

Although the climate control is very useful and layed out well, it takes some reading of the manual to understand what some of the settings mean. (ie; you can set the temperature of the car without knowing whether or not climate control is in use)

The 2.8 litre engine has ample power, but remember that this is a very heavy car for a sedan.

The 200hp and 207 lb/ft of torque provides velvety thrust at low rpms, and the engine redlines at about 6500.

You are not going to have the quickest car as it is a heavy thing, but the drive is still very exciting. Punch the throttle in 1st and ride away on a wave of power and click the tiptronic into 2nd and you're at 50 mph. Its still a sporty car.

The steering is very light, some might call it nervous, but its not. Its just very precise and communicative. I think the steering well suits this car.

Gas mileage is where some people will criticize the A6. A brand new 1998 A6 got about 24 city and 19 highway miles. This is very good for this kind of car. But at nearly 40,000 miles, it is starting to lose its green. I predict about 19 highway and about 14 city on average.

The Quattro all-wheel drive is wonderful for straight line traction, but I will probly make the only negative comment about Audi's quattro and say that on quasi-sharp to sharp turns, the rear wheels being driven can cause some moderate oversteer in snow. The Quattro is great durring all other situations though and there is only this very small discrepency with the drift factor.

*Also a potentially minor note, the 2.8 engine is not a great platform for modification. Unless you want to go deep into your pocket for an Eaton-style supercharger ($4,999), there is only about 25-35 naturally aspirated ponies left to achieve.