Audi A6 3.0T facelift (2008) CAR review

With an almost invisible change here and there, the Audi A6 joins the Golf and 3-series as the latest barely perceptible facelifts of best-selling German cars. Okay, I know, the Golf shares only roof and glass with its forebear but it hardly moves the game on. For the A6, Audi has merely tweaked the headlamp and front bumper treatments, added a stainless highlight along the side rubbing strips and, on saloons, fitted new LED tail lamps and a new bootlid. It’s the oily bits that have been occupying Ingolstadt minds. A bit.

Did the Audi A6 really need a facelift, then?

Maybe not, but you don’t stay ahead of the pack by slowing down. The A6 is firmly cemented as Europe’s best-seller in the business car category, ahead of the BMW 5-series and the Merc E-class. It’s four years old, still soberly stylish and competent, and Audi believes a spec tweak and an A4-style cosmetic refresh are enough. For now.

This 3.0 TFSI. What’s new there, then?

Well, you’ll have noticed it’s a new capacity for Audi’s petrol V6. Gone is the old 3.2 and in comes this new supercharged 3.0-litre - that’s right, it’s no longer ‘T’ for ‘turbo’. In fact the new engine has an even tougher job than it would elsewhere, because Audi is discontinuing the 4.2 V8 in the UK. The new 3.0 matches it for torque, and improves on the old 3.2 by being 13.3 percent more powerful and 16.2 percent more economical.

Want some more stats? Happy to oblige…

Remarkably, 95 percent of A6s sold in the UK are diesel-powered, so Audi has rationalised petrol versions down to the base 168bhp 2.0 TFSI, the 217bhp 2.8 FSI V6 (up 10bhp) and the new 3.0. Above them sit the V10-powered S6, and the newly launched twin-turbo RS6 saloon. The old 2.4 V6 has gone.

The 2.7 and 3.0 TDIs continue, with power up by 10bhp and 7bhp respectively. The old 2.0 PD unit is no more, and in comes Audi’s new common-rail four-cylinder, with 168bhp - or 136bhp in the new eco-optimised TDIe.

Click 'Next' below to read more of our Audi A6 first drive