2017 A6 Avant SE Executive - Impressions

[Amigo]

Hello all,

Just over a week ago I received my brand new A6 Avant SE Executive. I read a lot in this forum for a good month and a half before its arrival, ever since the order was raised, and I learned a great deal, so thank you all. Now I thought I'd share a few thoughts about this new car, which is ever so slightly different than the A6 variant before. I have now done just over 1,000 miles in 10 days, so I can get a better idea of the car. A word of note, I have driven Fords for over 10 years, the last one (part-exchanged) being a Grand C-Max 1.6 TDCi, and all manuals, this is my first automatic. A bit of background about the car:

Specs

• A6 Avant SE Executive 2.0 TDI Ultra S-Tronic
• 17" wheels (I like comfort), Standard Xenon Headlights
• Tornado Grey (boring for some, but I love it)
• Front Sport Seats (Altancara/Leather) Black + Heated front and rear seats
• Convenience Pack
• Parking Pack
• Lighting Pack
• Technology Pack - Advanced
• High-beam assist
• Audi Smartphone Interface
• BOSE sound system
• Rear Side Airbags

Tyres

The car came fitted with Michelin Primacy 3 AO in 225/55R17 97Y. They are supposed to have rim protection, which you need to be very close and looking for it to see, but some rim protection is there. They are supposed to have 69dB Noise, A for Wet Handling, and C for Fuel Efficiency. The marking on them is: Treadwear: 240, Traction: A, Temperature: A.

When I picked up the car I noticed that the ride is very uncomfortable, I was jumping around like a jack in the box in it. That evening though I took it to the local Shell and checked the pressures. Now the pressures should look like this, as per the label in the car:
TyrePressureList.jpg
The pressures, however, were set to values between 36 and 39 psi, no two tyres the same pressure. So I adjusted them to the comfort setting on the label, 32 psi for the front and 30 psi for the rear. The outcome was impressive, I suddenly drove a completely different car. Needless to say that the pressures stayed like that since. In the 1,000 miles since, I was impressed by how comfortable the car is. You can still feel the road, and its asperities, but, surprisingly, I was not coming out of the car completely knackered after a drive of more than one hour. This was a pleasant change from my old car, which was by no means a bad car, but had done my back in.

One issue of concern to me was the tyre replacement in the future: how often and how costly. From my past experience, I noticed that, with my style of driving, I can safely say that I typically use one set of tyres for the number of miles given by the Treadwear reading of the tyre timed by 10, give or take a couple of thousand miles (with regular front-to-rear swaps). For example, on my previous car, I had Treadwear of 340 and I changed the tyres at 35,000 miles. I therefore expect to change these tyres at about 25,000 miles, but maybe someone else has a different experience. If anything, with this new car I tend to drive more sedately, as it is so serene.

Fuel Consumption

The car came with half a tank, which I used up to empty, and then I refilled with Shell V-Power Nitro+ Diesel, which I intend to use exclusively in the car. This because my previous car had no end of trouble with the EGR Valve and various sensors, all of which were replaced in the end, with limp mode problems very often. However, two years ago I switched to using the V-Power Nitro+ and the good-old Ford had not missed a beat since, rain or shine.
I have just refuelled my A6 and it has done with its first full tank 42.2 mpg (trip computer) or 41.4 mpg (calculation). This trip included motorway for about half that distance, and the rest mostly country roads, with some Cambridge City Centre driving at rush hour, and one expedition (for want of a better word) into Central London on a Saturday.

VCDS Tricks

I played a little bit with VCDS, briefly, and I can confirm that the two tricks I tried:
3. Kerb lighting and10. Close electric bootlid from key and driver's door switch
work on this latest model.
As I do not have LED lights, but basic Xenons, I was happy to get the Kerb Light working, which uses, as mentioned in this forum, the All-Weather Lights, at low speeds, either when the indicators are on for more than a couple of seconds, or/and when the steering wheel is turned a bit more.
Remote closing the boot lid is a God-send.
I already have the Passenger Dipping Mirror, I believe due to the Technology Pack, so I did not try that, but I will try to disable engine stopping when the driver's door is opened. I will let you know if that works.

Lighting

I don't know about previous variants, but this car does not have the option in the MMI to change the dipped beams to driving in Europe, I am told that the car does it automatically the moment the GPS position is in a country driving on the wrong side of the road. I'll see if that argument (or the mention in the manual) works if I meet a French Police officer... as, obviously, I cannot test it while in UK.
The High-Beam Assist I find rather unreliable, as it struggles to detect and react properly on single carriageways, ending up annoying the other drivers. I will play with it more and report back.

MMI and Sat-Nav

I find it curious that Audi seems to use the maps from Navteq, the POI searches and the likes from Google together with the 3D overlays, and the Online Traffic Information from TomTom. And my car's Online Traffic Information, although having the Technology Pack - Advanced, has the licence activated for only one year instead of the three I was expecting. The issue is now with the dealer to sort it out. Audi still do not have a pricing structure for extending it, they are renewing it to current users, it seems, every year, at no cost.

Telephone and Android Auto

This is where there is a lot to talk about, especially about Android Auto. I believe Android Auto has only been available for A6s with the Smartphone Interface built since September 2016, so this is something new, and it shows. Audi finally attempted to give some use to the MMI Touch Pad, which is rather useless otherwise, I feel, in cars with right-hand drive. The solution seem half-baked, however, and I will hopefully cover it in more detail once I make more sense of the interface and the controls. For the moment, one rather important thing I noticed is that in the normal Audi interface you scroll down a list by turning the Control Button anti-clockwise (which makes sense on the continent, it seems), in Android Auto you scroll down a list by turning the Control Button clockwise (which seems more natural in the UK).
The Remote SIM works well with my Samsung Galaxy S6, so does the wireless charging. What I like, though, is that you can setup the car to use the phone's SIM in Remote mode, then enable the in-car WiFi, and then connect the phone to that Wifi, and you then have Google Maps working on your smartphone as well, admittedly in a round-about way.

General Handling and Performance

I feel that the engine has plenty of power and punch for what I need, it can get me out of a tight spot at a round-about or junction, and also provide some fun when I want it (I am easily pleased there).
The S-Tronic gearbox takes some to get used to, and for now it's set to Auto. I will then change it for a whole tankfull, to assess the impact of the car setting also on fuel consumption.
I like the Auto setting with its braking with the engine in gear, i.e. non-coasting, especially in the cold and wet weather of a British Autumn/Winter/Spring.
The Start-Stop is a bit of a nuisance, though, as it seems to cut at the most inappropriate times, but hopefully I will get my head around how to use it.
The rear middle seat is also rather hard, but I have not had a taker yet for a longer trip in that seat.



It isn't much, but this is what my observations are after the first km (kilo-mile). I will play with it some more and I will report back, hopefully someone will find it useful. And this is also my introduction to the forum