But why a Touareg? Surely a Porsche Cayenne S Diesel makes more sense, as Porsche is, well, better known for fast cars? “We had a long debate, and we believe Touareg is a prime car. It can handle any competitor from around the world. Hardly a Porsche 911 R or LaFerrari, is it? But Stackmann is resolute in his belief that what the world needs now is V8 Touareg diesel, sweet V8 diesel. “I’ve met a lot of Touareg V10 TDI customers, and those that have one will never sell it. It’ll be the same idea with the V8. It’s for those customers who want something very special, and they’ll get it. Well, it’ll be the last V8 diesel that Europe sees, as there’s no chance it would come to the U.S. Stackmann also clarified that the V8 won’t find its way into any other cars, so the Touareg is it. Who doesn’t love a car with heaps of power and just a little bit of spite.
Valve The exhaust gas recirculation valve cooler can corrode and contaminate the oil, which then damages the engine’s cylinder bores. Eearlier Amaroks have a dash that’s quite utilitarian, but facelifted cars from 2017 have a far better set-up that feels more car-like. Refinement is good, if not up to the standard of many SUVs, while cabin space is excellent - there’s plenty of room for five adults. Carrying capacity is superb, too: the load bay is enormous and the payload of over a tonne means you can take almost anything. Owners can choose fixed or variable servicing, with the former set at every 12 months or 12,000 miles; the latter stretches this to every two years or 24,000 miles. Fixed servicing ranges from £219 to £449, while variable is £260 to £449. The 3.0 V6 TDI engine doesn’t have a cambelt, but the 2.0 TDI unit does, and it needs replacing every four years or 130,000 miles, at £558. That gets you a new water pump at the same time. Four recalls so far is no disaster. The first was issued in December 2013 because of possible fuel leaks, and two more followed in August 2015. One centred on the brake calipers, while the other was because of potential airbag glitches in the event of a crash. The most recent recall in December 2017 was sparked by possible failure of the power steering system. Five-star ratings make up half of the entries, with owners generally loving the refinement, build quality, comfort and economy. Its go-anywhere abilities get a big thumbs up, too, but one owner has had reliability problems, followed up with poor parts availability.
Audi is an industry leader in lightweight aluminum body construction and advanced fuel-efficient technologies in both its gasoline and diesel engines. The new A6 offers an impressive 16 per cent reduction in fuel consumption when equipped with the 3.0-litre TFSI V6 engine edition that will spearhead its launch in Canada. In Europe, the A6 debuted with five power plants: two gasoline engines and three TDI (diesel) units. Later on, Canada is expected to get the 3.0-litre TDI and the 2.0-litre TFSI gasoline engine, which is an interesting move. A hybrid A6 is also in the works and is expected next year. All Audi gasoline engines have direct fuel injection, and a new stop-start feature. Stop-start turns the engine off when the car stops and automatically restarts it as the driver lifts foot pressure off the brake pedal. It’s a slick system in operation and provides a significant fuel saving, especially in city traffic. The Canadian 3.0 TFSI engine will be mated to the latest Quattro permanent all-wheel drive system, with a crown-gear centre differential and a torque vectoring function.
As well, Audi Drive Select, a system that allows the driver to choose various steering, suspension, engine and transmission settings, will be standard on the A6. A new “eco” mode has been added to the selection choices, and there’s no prize for guessing what it does. The new styling changes are subtle and don’t dramatically change the overall look of the A6. However, it’s actually a little lower, lighter, and shorter, and new wind-cheating details have dropped its coefficient of drag to 0.26, which is sports car territory and exceptionally low for a sedan. New optional LED (light emitting diode) headlights give the car an even more striking appearance from a front view. While the LED headlight offers similar illumination when compared to Xenon headlights, it consumes less power, and has a more natural look to its light. In addition, the A6’s fog and cornering light performance is improved. The standard Xenon headlight unit comes with a LED daytime-running light strip that looks like a solid ribbon of light.
