BUSINESS

A6 Invades the Local Market, Sales Begin

By Sophia Kornienko

Staff Writer

Konstantin Nabel / For The St. Petersburg Times Russians test-driving the new A6 that German analysts called a "Killer BMW."

Official sales of the new Audi A6 in Russia start Friday. Dealers in Europe and Russia have already received 12,000 orders. St. Petersburg's Rus-Auto officially presented the model Thursday.

Russian dealers have ordered little over 400 cars so far, and most of those cars had found their future owners long before the new model hit the country's market. Some cars were even sold at Thursday's presentation.

It is the new Audi's combination of a dynamic sports design and the comfort level of a sedan that account for the model's popularity, experts say.

"Even though this new premium class sedan has been exhibited only at a few car shows, and its potential buyers had no opportunity to test-drive it, the release of this most luxurious of sports cars and the sportiest of luxury cars is promising to become this year's main event," Russian car magazine Kolyosa wrote last week.

Prices for the Audi A6 in Russia were first announced in late May. The cheapest car in the A6 family, equipped with a V6 2.4 engine and a mechanical gearbox, will cost $49,564 in basic complication. Audi A6 3.0 Multitronic with a V6 petroleum engine and a CVT variator will be sold at $61,300. The only diesel car in the series, a Quattro with a V6 TDI engine and an automatic gearbox will be offered at $73,400. Finally, the most expensive piece among the A6 models is the Audi A6 4.2 Quattro, priced at $90,400. The Audi A6 requires maintenance every 15,000 kilometers in Russia and every 30,000 in Europe.

Over 1,000 A6 cars are projected to be sold in the country by the end of the year. Car dealers are still offering the previous generation models, but those are "leftovers" - of the old Audis, very few models are produced, such as the Audi S6 Avant. The new A6 Avant will appear next year, to be followed by the Audi S6 new generation sedan in 2006.

The 1998 version of the Audi A6 was claimed to have a weak suspension mechanism and a high level of theft due to low protection efficiency, said Alexander Korpusenko, sales specialist at VEHO, St. Petersburg's Mercedes-Benz dealer. However, Korpusenko said, Audi is a steady German brand, very popular in Russia. The Audi A4 is reported to have the best sales, he said.

According to the safety rating published last week by the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil Club or ADAC, owners of five-year-old Audis A6 apply for repairs at ADAC half as frequently as the owners of five-years-old Opel Omegas, but twice more frequently than those who drive Nissans Almera of the same age. MINI, Audi A2, Toyota Avensis and Toyota RAV4 were named the safest cars in their categories. Among sports cars, ADAC cited Mercedes-Benz SLK as the most reliable, and gave the lowest mark to Audi TT. Among other cars often demanding repair were Renault Clio, FIAT Punto, Scoda Felicia, FIAT Bravo, Renault Kangoo, Renault Megane, Alfa Romeo 147, Opel Omega, and the 1998 Mercedes Vito.

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