Granted, its lofty price leaves it as the reality of few and the aspiration of many (it starts at $30,740), although it wouldn't be so far
 |
| The A4 Avant's lofty price leaves it as the reality of few and the aspiration of many. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press) |
out of the reach of many minivan or SUV buyers, considering the escalating price of some of those vehicles. While it may not be able to pack in as much cargo and/or the requisite five kids in the back, it could manage three kids handily or for that matter, a couple of bulky child seats.
Speaking of the rear accommodations, anyone lucky enough to catch a ride back there would probably enjoy the comfortable rear headrests. My friends started throwing out so many complimentary adjectives that they made me promise to include at least a single paragraph describing the supreme levels of neck comfort and support afforded by Audi's rear passenger headrests at all three seating positions. Whether the passenger was pushing six feet or barely scraping five, they all loved the headrests. My girlfriend even took to sitting in the backseat for no better reason than the headrests, or so she told me. Maybe
 |
| Whether the passenger was pushing six feet or barely scraping five, they all loved the headrests. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press) |
my conversational skills are not what they used to be. Or are the headrests really just that good? It's a toss-up.
One thing that didn't quite mesh with the A4 Avant's family mission was the firm, sporting suspension that I spoke of earlier. While creating the opportunity for loads of fun, it also transmitted a fair bit of shake n' quake on buckling asphalt or broken road surfaces, not to mention streetcar tracks - ugh, don't even get me started on streetcar tracks. How would mom and baby Zoe feel about that? I don't know exactly, but it might be difficult to keep Zoe soundly asleep on my city's downtown streets. Maybe if we lived in California, where frost heaves haven't turned the highways and byways into a network of potholes and ski jumps, life with an A4 Avant would be better. My town's roads are seemingly only in existence to provide access to a constantly growing number of construction sites.
