A6 BiDi with optional sports diff - worth the extra?

[Mondie]

Hi,

New member here from the NE of Scotland.

Very tempted to order one of these and very interested in the sports diff. Coming from an M5 and having owned Evos in the past I want some handling. I have read the sports diff makes a real difference to the feel of the car but finding owners or even cars for sale with this option is rare. I am not expecting Evo like handling but would like something that hangs on around our winding and fun Scottish roads.

So - whats the consensus on this £1,100 option. Worth it?

Cheers
Mondie (Simon)

 

[Scottk]

I got it on mine and it seems to be well worth it. Very difficult to get the car out of shape, it just sits down and goes round corners. Body roll is still noticeable and you can get the car sideways when the tyres start to go but it never feels like the back is going to go.

 

[Mondie]

Good feedback thakns Scott. I think I am pretty set on ordering it, probably fishing for more a confirmation than anything else. Thinking about the S Line sports suspension too, the S line cars are known for hard suspension but I have read the facelift is noticeably better over rough roads. A bit like the sports diff its hard to find much real world feedback from owners though.

Cheers,
mondie

 

[Scottk]

Mine has the s line suspension but I run 19" in Summer and 18" winter. The ride is fine if a bit harsh on poor surfaces. Probably the worst issue for me is the road noise from the tyres on poor surfaces. My daily commute is Cruden Bay to town and the car is great for that-getting a real world 40 mpg. Do regular runs to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Sheffield and the car is superb apart from the bit of road round about Brechin -I'm sure you know it, concrete with lots of patches and cracks. It's really noisy over this. Can live with it as it is the only fly in the ointment in an otherwise very capable car-fast, comfortable and economical.
I have now clocked up 30k in just under 18 months and servicing has been £540 for one minor and one major, total cost per mile is coming in at 13.7p. Got VCDS cable so I can fault scan and do a couple of options. Also means I can change the rear pads and discs when necessary. Mine is pre facelift though and can't comment on the updates. By the way, it's excellent on winters during the colder months.

 

[Mondie]

Yours has the optional S line suspension rather than the standard sports suspension that comes with the S line? If so thats great feedback as I want this car to handle as well as it can for a family barge. I live west of Aberdeen so have 20 mile commute into Cove each day, a mix of A and B roads with some pretty poor road surfaces like what you describe. Winters are a must, we have had these on our last 2 M5's but the reason for going to Audi is that we need AWD. The roads have been wet 40-50% of the time even through summer, the M5 just does not get its power down in the well at all, its a wonder the TC light element hasn't blown as its on constantly!

We just got back from Aberdeen Audi and even gave them a chance to quote while there. We want quite a few options (around £5k worth) and I was surprised that their quote was within 3k of Carwow without haggling. Whether they can bridge the gap if I start pushing remains to be seen

 

[Scottk]

Mine has the standard s line suspension- sorry for any misunderstanding!
My options came to about 8k-I got memory seats, heated all round, advanced key, BOSE, sports diff, tech pack advanced, storage pack, rear air bags, Daytona grey and 4 zone climate. Think that was all.
They can definitely get close to carwow-pm me for details if you want. I got a really good offer from York Audi but Aberdeen came close enough for me and the guys there are really decent. Had a few cars from them and we have always had exemplary service although they are really busy! Another guy in my office traded in his Range Rover for an SQ5 and got a good deal-they actually gave him a better trade in than RR against a new sport.

 

[Mondie]

I will certainly give the local dealer a chance once we have nailed down what we want so its good to know they are decent to deal with. I am never quite sure as they have for so long had an easy ride with the oil industry. Will PM you when we get close. Yours is a great spec, we saw a couple of Daytona's today and it really suits the A6 and with the blackouts looked quite sporty.

As of now we are thinking Black edition in Daytona gray with 20' twin 5 spoke alloys, sports diff, Super sports seats (which adds electric and memory) in silver leather, Tech pack, Heated front seats & s/wheel, S line suspension & Light pack. I am having second thoughts about the tech pack now as I realised the main screen is not a touch screen but rather has a touch pad plus the centre drivers screen is colour so I am not sure how much better that can get. I do like the idea of the 8' screen but that's a lot of money for a 1' bigger screen that is not touch controlled and a phone box I am not sure will get used..

 

[woollyjoe]

Have driven all versions of the A6 ...

Sports diff: car doesn't suit winding roads, so diff has limited application. Grip is already phenomenal. If you can, of course it will be better, but don't expect it to handle like an rs4 for example.

Suspension: no difference in facelift, lower sports suspension gives the A6 a much better stance on the road and reduces body roll which is actually very impressive. If you are worried about comfort, get the 19inch wheels and run lower PSI. The A6 is hugely sensitive to tyre pressures.

With these options, you are close to s6 prices already and these can be had with 20% off.

 

[Mondie]

Joe - thanks, good to hear from someone who has driven all the variants. I am not at all worried about comfort, rather just wanted to make sure the car wasnt too crashy on the lowered S suspension which if I understood you is not too much of a problem.

I have given the S6 some thought, I would need to add about 5k of options to it (met paint, 20' alloys, Bose etc) so the gap between it and the BiDi remains at about 5k assuming each can be had with 20% discount. Not sure I want a petrol V8 and 23pmg again, if it had another 100hp then maybe but it has a decent torque deficit to the diesel and I am not sure if the resale will be weaker than the diesel too. Anyway you have given me something else to think about.

Cheers

 

[woollyjoe]

i wouldn't say it's too crashy, but there's a big difference in comfort with lowered suspension. I think some of the comfort can be got back with lower PSI.

On the lower suspension the car has never scraped a speed bump in London and the suspension works betteron motorways.

The noise though will annoy you on any suspension if tou get 20".