joe0816

I have read that there is more aluminum in the frame to reduce weight.

2016 Audi A6 and S6 first drive | Autoweek

"the A6 and S6 have also benefitted from an aluminum-intensive diet, with the new body now comprised of 20 percent aluminum panels. Audi says that fuel economy ratings will improve as well with the debut of these updated engines, though it's a little too early for EPA's fuel economy figures -- we'll have to wait until the new models go on sale in the spring."

joe0816

But, looking at the Tech Specs, it looks like the curb weight is 90 lbs heavier

jasonlitka

Yup, the S6 is a bit flabby.

NVJeff

Do we have a definitive answer on the start/stop?

The order guide from December when I placed the order for my car definitely listed the start/stop as follows:


"Start/Stop system with energy recuperation"


Has this been dropped subsequently for the S6? I sure hope so as I have found this feature to be very irritating and disconcerting when driving loaner vehicles (BMW 3 series) and rental cars.

p.s. I would be very surprised and disappointed to learn that the weight of the S6 had gone up another 90 pounds. This makes no sense to me as I know of no change in the car that might account for anything like this much weight. There are only minor styling changes in the sheetmetal, addition of better sound proofing in the glass (had anyone else noticed this?)and a higher state of tune for the engine to gain 30 HP.

With all the pressue on manufacturers to meet EPA mileage requirements 90 pounds would be a very material gain in weight.

Thanks!

amelen

The latest order guide shows it as dropped. I have it on my Macan and it's pretty useful. There is a button to shut it off when you don't need it.

jasonlitka

You ordered from an early guide. Those change 3 or 4 times and frequently have errors or omissions even when they stop updating them.

Anyway, no, we don't know conclusively, and I doubt we will until one is actually delivered. I'm leaning towards it not being included though; it would have been in US press releases. That's a real shame. It really does make a difference in fuel economy on my wife's BMW and has no impact on off-the-line performance.

Parkles

Didn't you see the improvement in horsepower? It added some muscle.

jasonlitka

Maybe, maybe not. It was underrated before so this might just be a correction. If they really did add 30HP then it's more than likely actually over 500.

That said, I'd like to draw your attention to the Bentley Continental GT. Here we have a vehicle with a 6.0L, Twin-Turbo W12 engine making 567HP. However, because the curb weight is 5115lbs, pushing the as-tested weight with a driver closer to 5400lbs, it manages a run from 0-60 in about the same time as a S6, perhaps a tick or two slower if you use launch control. In addition, it comes with a 24 gallon fuel tank which exacerbates the issue because it gets an EPA rating of 12/21.

Weight is the killer of both performance & economy. There is absolutely no reason why the S6 should weight 4486 lbs.

The one saving grace here is that there's a chance that the 4486 number is incorrect. The S7 only reports 4508 lbs and I believe they were previously much farther apart. Also, since Curb Weight is typically given for the base level of equipment, since Prestige is now an option pack, it should have dropped slightly or been reported as two different numbers.

EDIT: Here's another quirk. The 4.0T A8 weighs 4508. The odds of those being exactly the same are pretty slim.

Parkles

All the talk from Europe where they already have what we here in the US are calling the MY2016 S6 (maybe we should call it the C7.5) is that it has more power and better fuel economy. The easiest way to pull this off is with the car being lighter. Aside from the sport exhaust option, I don't think there's anything on the 2016s that is additional equipment that should be adding extra weight.

JohnnyG0925

Exactly how does making a car lighter give the engine more power?