Where each one leads
Audi a6-avant
- Fewer Audi a6-avant cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (4.3% against 5.4%).
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the petrol hybrid Audi a6-avant uses 9.3 l/100 km on the road, the BMW 3 Series 9.8.
BMW 3 Series
- New BMW 3 Series cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 98 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 136 for the Audi a6-avant in 2022.
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the diesel hybrid BMW 3 Series uses 6.3 l/100 km on the road, the Audi a6-avant 7.1.
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the diesel BMW 3 Series uses 6.0 l/100 km on the road, the Audi a6-avant 6.9.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Audi a6-avant | BMW 3 Series | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | — | 1986–2023 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 406,984 (2010–2022) | 1,714,816 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | — | 472,359 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 16,408 | 127,670 |
| In traffic in Finland | 6,670 | 41,048 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Audi a6-avant | BMW 3 Series | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | — | 75% |
| … against cars of the same age | — | +9% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 4.3% | 5.4% |
| US owner complaints | — | 843 |
| Most complaints about | — | Air bags |
| Model year with most complaints | — | 2006 (202) |
| US recall campaigns | — | 8 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 122 | 1,116 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | — | 23 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Audi a6-avant | BMW 3 Series | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | — | 5★ (2022) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Audi a6-avant | BMW 3 Series | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 11.7 l/100 km (2011) | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel hybrid | 7.1 l/100 km | 6.3 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 9.3 l/100 km | 9.8 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 6.9 l/100 km | 6.0 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | — | 7.9 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 136 g/km | 98 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 174 kW (233 hp) | 137 kW (184 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,914 kg | 1,790 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €85,209 | €50,742 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 207,000 km | 226,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).