KevinGary

If nothing happens for the first 2 or 3 seconds, but the TDI still hits 60 in 5.1 according to C & D then it must really surge for those last 2 seconds. Is the TDI covering the 5 to 60 stretch in under 3 seconds? All kidding aside, and ignoring your over exaggeration, I don't own either one and don't have a dog in this fight. But I have driven the 3.0t and the TDI as loaners for approximately 4 weeks each. Once you learn that the power in the TDI drops at the 3500 mark and that you need to shift at that point to keep it in the power band, it will run with the 3.0T all day long as long as you stay under 80 mph. By the way north of 100 mph my old 4.2 will crush both of them.

iBetterDoNow

KevinGary, you are a funny guy. You don't have a dog in this fight, but your 4.2 will crash both of them? You are bringing in the third dog.

KevinGary

At least I am bringing an old dog to the fight. Lol

sap_pete

I didn't realize you were in the car next to me when I drove it. I also didn't realize the TDI goes 0-60 in 5 seconds while making a 90 degree turn. I also "learned" how to shift and stated that the problem doesn't occur when shifting manually. However, I'm not buying a $65k car when the transmission is behaving like that (at least for me, in this specific car).

Thanks for you contribution, though.

irenesbob

I read the following re the Audi Tiptronic (not sure what years it pertains to):

"The transmission control unit (TCU) controls the transmission by adjusting two position and proportional (throttling) solenoids in the transmission. These solenoids determine gear position, torque converter settings (open, locked and throttling), kick down, etc.
The TCU "learns" the driving style of the driver by summing the way the gas pedal is pushed, i.e. how hard the car is driven. It then develops a dynamic shift program (DSP) index number from 0-256. This is display group 12 under transmission. It has the following four display fields:
1. How car is driven, load (flat ground - no load "E", hill - load "B")
2. Dynamic index number (is calculated using driving resistance index and driver evaluation) 0-256
3. Driving resistance index (is used to calculate dynamic identification number) 0-256
4. Driver evaluation (Is used to calculate dynamic identification number) 0-256"

If this is so with the C7 A6 TDI’s Tiptronic, it could be that the loaner hadn’t “learned” your driving style and was “confused” and trying to sort things out.

Maverick61

I guess since you did not read it the first time - I will say it again - you can't rely on car magazines IMO because they sometimes use aggressive launch control techniques to measure times. I prefer real world driving experiences and I guess what some like to call - the seat of your pants test.

And thank you very much but I know how to drive. And I know what I experienced. The TDI is sluggish compared to the 3.0T. Plain and simple. There may be other reasons some may like the TDI - but fast acceleration is not one of them IMO

NoahWeb

My personal .02 here...any turbocharged engine will seem to be slower than a supercharged one. The latter builds pressure faster than the former. Paired to the diesel fuel, I agree with you that a TDI will feel sluggish....to a point. Once that freight train of an engine gets going it is shockingly quick.

Learning how to drive it is something completely different than a gasoline powered car. My RS4 loved to be revved and driven hard...the TDI is the polar opposite. It is best to shift ~1k RPM short of the redline for best performance.

At the end of the day, you will not find a better mix of performance and efficiency than in the TDI. Bar NONE.

DB22

Audi can build fast diesels but the US market buys a diesel for economy and longevity as does the EU market. A Diesel engine such as the LeMans performance formula is expensive and not cost effective for personal sales besides economic high performance is moving towards hybrid augmentation. The balance achieved by the 2 A6's is just right for the market, reasonable performance with economy for the diesel and a bias to performance for the people who don't hug the trees so tightly.

RobC

Having owned a B8 S4 with a chipped 3.0T and now a Q5 TDI, I would agree that the response at throttle tip-in are different between the two. As has been stated, the turbos need some time to spin up and make boost while it feels practically instant with the supercharged motor. This is the definition of turbo lag. I don't think the Q5 has very much lag, but it is there. It's less noticeable on my S6 with two small turbos connected directly to the exhaust manifold.

This is exactly why a lot of the BMW folks used to preach about preferring a naturally aspirated motor because of its instantaneous throttle response. For normal driving in traffic it doesn't really matter and you can easily ignore the behavior, but when you're using throttle to control the car in a corner, it can make a big difference.

Another thing is that it's possible that the OP drove a TDI that hadn't been aggressively driven previously (and sorry if this has been mentioned, I chose to avoid this thread when I first saw it). Over time the ECU will adapt and become snappier and more responsive if you drive aggressively.

Northmicha7

I test drove 2014 a7 supercharged. Then drove a 2014 a6 tdi back to back. My wife and I immediately preferred the diesel. Torque is always available...maybe except from the dead stop which needs time to spool the turbo. So we ordered a7 tdi and couldn't be happier. It's super smooth and monster torque arrives immediately for 90% of our needs. The car doesn't rev, but we drive a 997.2 GT3 when we want high strung, high rev manual trans madness. That contrast of behavior with a6/a7 is why the tdi with eight speed transmission is the best choice...and even why we didn't do the s7. However, it's nice that audi gives so many different choices in the a6/7. Supercharger, tdi, and bonkers twin turbos if that's what suits your desires.