Rearview mirror: Audi A6 (C6) - 2004 to 2011

Above: C1 100

Before it became known as the A6, Audi’s large executive saloon was called the 100. The 100’s roots can be traced to as far back as 1968 when Audi launched the C1 100. The C2 100 came in 1976 and had the honour of offering the first production in-line 5 engine in the world. The revolutionary C3 that was in existence from 1982 to 1991 arguably can be considered to be the most famous of all the 100 models. The C3 100 had a remarkable aerodynamic look and pioneered famed Audi technologies like the procon-ten, a safety restraint system before the days of airbags. The C4 100 appeared in 1991 and when Audi introduced its new naming convention in 1994 with the first generation A8, the C4 100 was facelifted to become the A6 from 1995.

Above: C2 100. Below: C3 100

Above: C4 100

In its transformation from Audi 100 to A6, the C4 was facelifted with minor exterior tweaks as well as new engines. The A6 saw the discontinuation of the 100’s 2.3-litre straight-five, an engine that was related to the fire breathing Group B rally quattros. Both C4 100 and A6 saloon models were offered here in Singapore

In European markets, the C4 A6 was also offered in high performance S6 guise. The S6 was powered by a 296bhp 4.2-litre V8 while the limited edition S6 Plus offered more power (322bhp) than the standard car. More interesting though, the S6 was at the centre of a name dispute than involved Volvo. The Swedish brand had wanted to name its saloon models with the alphabet ‘S’ followed by a single digit depending on the size of the model. The replacement for the 850 then, was earmarked to be called S6 and the 900 Series replacement, the S8. Audi protested and claimed that the S6 was on the market first before Volvo decided on its naming convention. In the end, Volvo had to give in to Audi and changed their new naming convention to include the number ‘0’ after S6 or S8 and hence the naming of Volvo saloon models as S40, S60 and S80 which it continues to use till today.

The 1997 C5 returned to the aerodynamic profile and slippery shape of the C3 100 and went on to inspire the look of its C6 successor as well. Underneath the skin, the C5 was based on a new platform and featured a new range of engines and transmissions. In terms of perceived quality and luxury levels, the C5 was a major step forward over its predecessors and hence offered stiff competition to the 5 Series and E-Class for the very first time.

The C5 was sold here with a variety of engine options including a 4.2 V8 and several V6 variants. The most popular C5 model here though is probably the tax friendly 1.8T 20-valve turbo, which offered 150bhp from its five-valve per cylinder motor.

Besides the saloon body shape, an Avant model was also offered. The latter spawned a 4x4 crossover model in the form of the allroad. The allroad, considered to be Audi’s first off-roader before the days of today’s Q5 and Q7 SUVs, featured a raised ride height and black plastic mouldings on its exterior to give it that off-roader look and proved to be rather popular in European markets. The allroad was offered in Singapore with a 2.7-litre biturbo V6.

The C5 was also the first A6 to receive quattro GmbH’s RS treatment. Like the more recent RS 4 and C6 RS 6, the C5 RS 6 was only offered in the late stages of the C5’s product life cycle in 2003. Initially available only as an Avant, the RS 6 featured a 450bhp biturbo V8 that could propel it to 100km/h from rest in under 5 seconds seconds. A saloon model was later introduced and several C5 RS 6s in both body styles were sold in Singapore. In 2004, quattro GmbH released a final limited run version of the RS 6 Avant called the RS 6 Plus. This model had a fire breathing 480bhp tuned version of the standard car’s 40-valve biturbo V8.

Credits: Story by Raymond Lai Photos by Audi and Raymond Lai