autoblog: 2012 Audi A6 3.0T Quattro [w/video]

Filed under: Sedan, Audi, New Car Reviews, Luxury

Because "Pretty Damn Good" Is So Last Year

Earlier this year, executive editor Chris Paukert and I were chatting one morning about the 2011 Audi A6 he was driving - a car that would soon be replaced with the sharp new 2012 model you see here. Of course, we discussed how the car's styling was growing a bit long in the tooth, but aesthetics aside, Paukert's overall impression of the 2011 A6 was that it was still "pretty damn good."

Fast-forward a few months, and I'm standing in front of the 2012 A6, its full-LED headlamps glaring at me, its new sheetmetal stretched over a more aggressively styled body, complete with new aluminum components that reduce overall weight. The engine, Audi's 3.0-liter supercharged V6, was carried over from the 2011 model, albeit fitted to a brand new eight-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission. And inside - oh, inside - is a suite of technologies that will embarrass the collective staff of an Apple store.

So, if the old 2011 model was "pretty damn good," this new 2012 model must be the bee's knees, right? Oh, is it ever.