After 3 years on this forum and owning an ID.4, we found a deal we couldn't refuse. A certified pre-owned sub-10K-mile Q6 e-tron Premium Plus Quattro with warm weather package (vented seats, premium audio) for well below $50K. It was a dealer owned car (presumably loaner fleet), and with the CPO it ironically has more warranty than a new model.
Too early to write detailed impressions but it feels like they took the ID.4, and fixed most of my grievances. Just a few big differences:
TL;DR: The Q6 has better range, sound insulation, sound system, and tech, but most surprisingly, much better turn radius. The ID4 has softer suspension and clearly superior seats.
Sound:
1. The car is q-u-i-e-t! It's weird because the ID4 never had noise issues, but the e-tron is like a studio
2. The B&O audio is so-so, but still amazing compared to how awful the ID4s system was once I removed the Kicker Key amp. I find B&O generally way overhyped for what it is, but it has a subwoofer, can reproduce music without distortion. I'm on the fence about the surround effects. It adds a lot of treble and kills the midrange, so I largely turned it off. I'm an audio purist, so IMHO a good system sounds good without touching the EQ. This does need EQ-ing. The speakers in the headrest feel a little gimmicky but might come in handy for navigation instruction.
Infotainment/tech:
1. The head-up display is quite useful. It eliminates the need for a speed gauge. Picks up speed limit signs etc.
2. The OLED main display is very pretty but the base theme is pretty bland.
3. Carplay renders at crisp resolutions and Liquid Glass really looks good here. FYI, IOS 26 has widgets in Carplay and while the ID4 can display one widget at a time, the Q6 has space for 2 widgets. It's awesome!
4. Lane keep assist and safety tech is very similarly favored to the ID4, but slightly more aggressive. The HUD showing safe following distance is very helpful.
5. The car has 4 window openers, a physical volume control knob (!!!!!), and almost all of the flat buttons are actually still buttons that click.
6. Mood lighting is phenomenal, and I like it that the turn signal has its leds that blink.
Seat comfort:
1. The ID.4 wins by quite a large margin. The Q6 doesn't have massage seats on any trim. I find audi seats back-breakingly stiff. I consider the ID.4's seats one of the most comfortable I've ever used.
2. The seat ventilation is OK, it can make things more comfy, but in ~70F weather it wasn't too relevant. The funniest thing was, my wife and I couldn't figure out what is the noise coming from the back until I realized how damn loud the seat went is at max speed
The jury is still out but the noise might make it less practical than I thought it would be.
Driving dynamics:
1. The Q6 is faaaaaast and effortless. It maxes out the speed I can actually use/enjoy in the city, but on the highway it is glaring that has to monitor speed because the car can sneak up to 85MPH and the cabin remains quiet.
2. The suspension is stiffer than the ID.4 but shares the same characteristics. Perhaps the stiff sensation is due to the seats. Overall it's very similar to the ID.4, just a slightly different flavor.
3. Turning radius is shockingly sharper on the Q6 quattro than on the ID4 AWD. Might be the steering wheel's tuning, but both I and my wife noticed that we tended to oversteer because this car corners way better.
Range
This is where we've never had issues with the ID.4. Our lifetime consumption was 3.1kWh/mi, and we consistently got >3.5mi/kWh on dry weather roadtrips. But, the Q6 is next level. We have it on 82%, and its guess-o-meter shows a 314 mi range left in efficiency mode. Crazy! We scored 3.1 mi/kWh on our way home despite me having some fun with the instant torque.
Too early to write detailed impressions but it feels like they took the ID.4, and fixed most of my grievances. Just a few big differences:
TL;DR: The Q6 has better range, sound insulation, sound system, and tech, but most surprisingly, much better turn radius. The ID4 has softer suspension and clearly superior seats.
Sound:
1. The car is q-u-i-e-t! It's weird because the ID4 never had noise issues, but the e-tron is like a studio
2. The B&O audio is so-so, but still amazing compared to how awful the ID4s system was once I removed the Kicker Key amp. I find B&O generally way overhyped for what it is, but it has a subwoofer, can reproduce music without distortion. I'm on the fence about the surround effects. It adds a lot of treble and kills the midrange, so I largely turned it off. I'm an audio purist, so IMHO a good system sounds good without touching the EQ. This does need EQ-ing. The speakers in the headrest feel a little gimmicky but might come in handy for navigation instruction.
Infotainment/tech:
1. The head-up display is quite useful. It eliminates the need for a speed gauge. Picks up speed limit signs etc.
2. The OLED main display is very pretty but the base theme is pretty bland.
3. Carplay renders at crisp resolutions and Liquid Glass really looks good here. FYI, IOS 26 has widgets in Carplay and while the ID4 can display one widget at a time, the Q6 has space for 2 widgets. It's awesome!
4. Lane keep assist and safety tech is very similarly favored to the ID4, but slightly more aggressive. The HUD showing safe following distance is very helpful.
5. The car has 4 window openers, a physical volume control knob (!!!!!), and almost all of the flat buttons are actually still buttons that click.
6. Mood lighting is phenomenal, and I like it that the turn signal has its leds that blink.
Seat comfort:
1. The ID.4 wins by quite a large margin. The Q6 doesn't have massage seats on any trim. I find audi seats back-breakingly stiff. I consider the ID.4's seats one of the most comfortable I've ever used.
2. The seat ventilation is OK, it can make things more comfy, but in ~70F weather it wasn't too relevant. The funniest thing was, my wife and I couldn't figure out what is the noise coming from the back until I realized how damn loud the seat went is at max speed
The jury is still out but the noise might make it less practical than I thought it would be. Driving dynamics:
1. The Q6 is faaaaaast and effortless. It maxes out the speed I can actually use/enjoy in the city, but on the highway it is glaring that has to monitor speed because the car can sneak up to 85MPH and the cabin remains quiet.
2. The suspension is stiffer than the ID.4 but shares the same characteristics. Perhaps the stiff sensation is due to the seats. Overall it's very similar to the ID.4, just a slightly different flavor.
3. Turning radius is shockingly sharper on the Q6 quattro than on the ID4 AWD. Might be the steering wheel's tuning, but both I and my wife noticed that we tended to oversteer because this car corners way better.
Range
This is where we've never had issues with the ID.4. Our lifetime consumption was 3.1kWh/mi, and we consistently got >3.5mi/kWh on dry weather roadtrips. But, the Q6 is next level. We have it on 82%, and its guess-o-meter shows a 314 mi range left in efficiency mode. Crazy! We scored 3.1 mi/kWh on our way home despite me having some fun with the instant torque.
