AUDI's new A6 Avant - due in Britain in late spring next year - is expected to carry a £1,500 premium over the saloon, putting the entry level 1.8T Avant at around £24,000. The newcomer is no longer than the saloon and weighs only 50kg extra, but offers 455 litres of loadspace - rising to 1,590 litres with the rear seats folded down - and a maximum trailer payload of 2,100kg.

Available in standard or SE versions, the A6 Avant is available with the familiar 1.8T, 2.4 six-cylinder and 2.8 six-cylinder petrol engines plus the 1.9 TDI and all-new 2.5 V6 TDI diesel engines. Fuel consumption and performance figures are virtually identical to those of the saloon and Audi expects to sell about 3,500 examples in the UK in its first full year.