Top Safety Pick criteria

2006 Audi A6

large luxury car / 4-door sedan

2006 Audi A6 4-door sedan
2005 Audi A6 shown

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Roof strength
Head restraints & seats

Other available safety features

  • Optional daytime running lights

Key

  • G
    Good
  • A
    Acceptable
  • M
    Marginal
  • P
    Poor
  • Superior
  • Advanced
  • Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2005-11 models

Tested vehicle: 2005 Audi A6 3.2 quattro 4-door 4wd

The Audi A6 was redesigned for the 2005 model year.

The frontal offset crash test ratings also apply to the station wagon version of the A6, known as the A6 Avant, beginning with 2006 models.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the frontal offset crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained very well.

Smeared greasepaint indicates where the dummy's head hit the roof rail, grab handle, and head restraint during rebound. Head accelerations from these hits were low.

Intrusion into the driver's space was minimal (shown with carpeting removed).

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CEF0523
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm) 6
Left (cm) 7
Center (cm) 8
Right (cm) 9
Brake pedal (cm) 2
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm) 2
Right (cm) 4
Steering column movement
Upward (cm) 4
Rearward (cm) -1
A-pillar rearward movement (cm) 0

Driver injury measures

Test ID CEF0523
Head
HIC-15 220
Peak gs at hard contact 16
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.7
Extension bending moment (Nm) 14
Maximum Nij 0.32
Chest maximum compression (mm) 30
Legs
Femur force - left (kN) 7.2
Femur force - right (kN) 6.5
Knee displacement - left (mm) 10
Knee displacement - right (mm) 2
Maximum tibia index - left 0.66
Maximum tibia index - right 0.59
Tibia axial force - left (kN) 2.1
Tibia axial force - right (kN) 3.0
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 58
Right 75

How the moderate overlap front test is conducted

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2005-11 models

Tested vehicle: 2005 Audi A6 3.2 quattro 4-door 4wd with standard front and rear head curtain airbags and standard front seat-mounted torso airbags

The Audi A6 was redesigned for the 2005 model year.

The side impact crash test ratings also apply to the station wagon version of the A6, known as the A6 Avant, beginning with 2006 models.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the crash test.

View of the vehicle after the crash with doors removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Action shot taken during the side impact crash test showing the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side curtain airbag.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy's head was protected by the side airbag.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CES0512
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm) -12.5
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Driver injury measures

Test ID CES0512
Head HIC-15 252
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.2
Compression (kN) 0.3
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 43
Lateral force (kN) 1.7
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 27
Average deflection (mm) 21
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 3.24
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.40
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 2.3
Acetabulum force (kN) 2.2
Combined force (kN) 4.2
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.1
L-M moment (Nm) 62
A-P moment (Nm) 32

Passenger injury measures

Test ID CES0512
Head HIC-15 119
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.0
Compression (kN) 0.5
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 38
Lateral force (kN) 1.8
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 27
Average deflection (mm) 16
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 3.73
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.39
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 0.2
Acetabulum force (kN) 1.9
Combined force (kN) 2.1
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.5
L-M moment (Nm) 131
A-P moment (Nm) -23

How the side crash test is conducted

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2005-11 models

Tested vehicle: 2010 Audi A6 3.2 4-door 2wd

Overall evaluation
Curb weight 3,855 lbs
Peak force 14,701 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio 3.81

How the roof strength test is conducted

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: All seats AHR built before Dec 2006

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry
Technical measurements for this test
Seat type All seats AHR mfg before Dec 2006
Geometry
Backset (mm) 62
Distance below top of head (mm) 55
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g) 13.4
Head contact time (ms) 69
Force rating 2
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N) 171
Max neck tension (N) 726

How the head restraint & seat test is conducted
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.