Totally satisfied with my A6 2.8

After extensive research, I narrowed my shortlist to three cars: the Chrysler 300M, Lexus GS300, and Audi A6 2.8 quattro. The cheap plastic used in the 300M interior and pushy Chrysler dealer sales staff helped me eliminate the Chrysler early. The GS300 is smooth and powerful and well-built, but its lack of all-wheel drive, a fold-down rear seat or ski pass-through, made the Lexus an impractical choice for my frequent ski trips to Lake Tahoe. My biggest concern with the Audi was its lack of low-end punch.

But I went for it anyway. The Audi's interior, in its Ambiente atmosphere, was the nicest I've seen this side of a Jaguar XJ, even nicer than the Lexus. The quattro system inspires tremendous confidence in every inclement situation I've encountered. In the snowy Sierras, I'll take this over any conventional 4WD, high center-of-gravity SUV. It looks a lot better, too.

In the handling department, the Audi falls short of the BMW 528i (which was well beyond my $40K budget when comparably equipped). If I could have ordered a sport suspension, I would have. This A6 is a bit too softly sprung to have real road fun.

Thank God for the 5-speed Tiptronic transmission. To compensate for the lack of low-end torque, I had to start driving more like a European and less like an American, i.e. get the engine revving. When I need serious acceleration, I just flick the lever over to manual shift, and keep the tach above 3,000.

I find the A6 to be extremely smooth, quiet and comfortable, whether driving on Sonoma County's rural highways, freeway cruising, or stuck in Bay Area traffic. As I approach the one-year anniversary with this car, I've had no reason to take it back to the dealer other than scheduled maintenance. I'd highly recommend the A6 to anyone whose primary interest is not 0-60 acceleration.