Audi’s A6 Avant & Porsche’s Mission E Cross Turismo
And then it all goes very quiet
Audi and Merc favourites ight on, while our electric future closes in fast. By Jake Groves
Audi A6 Avant
Audi’s A6 hasn’t even gone on sale yet and they’ve already cranked out the estate version. It follows a well proven formula: take one A6 and give it a bigger rear. Luggage space is rated at 560 litres with the seats up – 10 litres shy of the BMW 5-series Touring and 80 litres short compared to the Merc EClass Estate.
All engines have mild hybrid assistance, while quattro and automatic transmissions are itted across the range. If you’re after a more spirited driving experience, rear-wheel steering, a quattro sport dierential and sports suspension are all optional, as are air springs and Audi’s Drive Select mode system.
NEED TO KNOW
What is it? Audi’s fatter-bottomed A6 exec Tech specs A8 interior, mild hybrid engine assistance, quattro all-wheel drive across the board Aimed at? Taking the A6’s usability up a couple of notches Chances of making production? Bound for showrooms in the second half of 2018
Porsche Mission E Cross Turismo concept
The sleek, low-slung Mission E electric coupe concept that featured in our December 2017 issue has now spawned this four-door, four-seat electric crossover, previewing a 2019 production car.
It has two electric motors delivering around 600bhp and on-demand allwheel drive, with a claimed 062mph time of less than 3.5 seconds, and 0125mph in 12 seconds.
It rides on 20-inch wheels with adaptive air suspension. Styling borrows heavily from the Panamera Sport Turismo at the rear, but with contrasting wheelarch and door sill extensions and – in case you were too polite to notice – blue wheels.
NEED TO KNOW
What is it? Jacked-up Mission E hit with ugly stick Tech specs Two hefty electric motors, all-wheel drive, 250-mile recharge in 15 mins Aimed at? Realising the potential in the Mission E platform Chances of making production? Production model coming 2019
Mercedes CClass facelift
The updates to every body style of the Merc rival to the BMW 3-series and Audi A4 are individually minor but add up to a signiicant tech upgrade and some serious new hardware. A wider infotainment screen is available in the increasingly digital cabin, which hosts a new steering wheel and fresh upholstery.
The warm C43 gains a 23bhp power boost from its V6. Go for the unhinged V8 C63 (pictured) and, while power outputs are unchanged, you get an electronic limited-slip dierential and a nine-speed Speedshift auto instead of the old seven-speeder. The hotter 503bhp C63 S gets active engine mounts.
NEED TO KNOW
What is it? Merc’s updated CClass family (saloon, estate, coupe, cabriolet) Tech specs Digital instrument display, new transmission for the C63 Aimed at? Keeping up with premium rivals Chances of making production?
Orders open now; irst cars delivered from summer. Autumn for the AMGs
Hyundai Le Fil Rouge concept
What is it with car makers getting kinky with their design language? Mercedes has brought us Sensual Purity and now Hyundai is upping the ante with Sensuous Sportiness. This long four-door grand tourer concept is here to point to design elements in Hyundai’s future model range. Hyundai says the name translates into ‘the common thread’, which ‘is a relection of Hyundai’s belief that the brand’s past, present and future designs are all connected’. Inside, there are four separate seats positioned facing a wraparound dashboard that uses lots of swoopy wood and a haptic display for infotainment and climate controls.
NEED TO KNOW
What is it? Grinch-mouthed design study from Hyundai Tech specs Aeronautics-grade aerodynamics, panoramic and haptic driver display Aimed at? Injecting some emotion into Korean car design Chances of making production? The shapeliness will inluence future Hyundais