New kit for the Audi A6 and A7

The new Audi A6 and A7 Sportback have some spiffing new technology options to keep drivers informed, entertained and safe.

For £3,250, the six-cylinder A6 automatic and £3,750 for the A7 Sportback, the package includes accident-avoidance technology, blind spot and lane departure warning systems, advanced Google Earth navigation, in-car wi-fi internet connection and Audi Music Interface iPod connection.

There's a touchscreen with fingertip recognition (stops those pesky kids from setting the car to direct you to the wrong county...) and a colour touchscreen with 3D images. In the A7 Sportback, they've thrown in a head-up display to project navigation and entertainment information on the windscreen making it look like it is floating ahead of the car. Spooky or savvy? We'd like to check that out and see for ourselves.

The sophisticated MMI navigation system has a radio unit that combines a tuner and sound system along with a DVD drive, two SD card readers and a 60-GB hard disk containing the navigation data. One-third of the disk capacity is reserved for storing phone data and your favourite tunes.

On the safety front, the Audi pre sense technology monitors driving conditions and takes action if it senses an imminent collision by tensioning the seatbelts, closing the windows and sunroof, lights up the adaptive rear brake lights and engages the brakes at up to 5m per second in the event of an unavoidable impact.

The blind spot warning kicks in at speeds above 19mph and rear mounted sensors monitor activity behind the car and the wing mirrors light up if another driver gets too close for comfort. Lane assist kicks in at speeds over 40mph to keep you on the straight and narrow on the motorway. Adaptive cruise control is also part of the package.

Getting these packs installed saves more than £1,000 compared with getting every feature installed separately.

www.audi.co.uk





By Georgia Lewis

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