Compare the2024 Audi A6VS 2023 Toyota Crown

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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The A6’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Crown doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the A6 and Crown have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The A6 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Crown’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

Both the A6 and the Crown have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the A6 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 128 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Crown has not been tested, yet.

Warranty

The A6 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Crown’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The A6’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Crown’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates rated the A6 third among midsize premium cars in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Crown isn’t in the top three in its category.

Engine

The A6 45 TFSI’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 25 more horsepower (261 vs. 236) than the Crown’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the A6 55 TFSI 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid is faster than the Crown Platinum 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid:

	A6	Crown
Zero to 60 MPH	5 sec	5.7 sec
Quarter Mile	13.5 sec	14.4 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	102.7 MPH	96.1 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

The A6 has 4.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Crown (19.3 vs. 14.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Transmission

A seven-speed automatic (SMG) is available on the Audi A6, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a six-speed automatic is available for the Crown.

The A6 offers an available sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Crown doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the A6’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Crown:

	A6	Crown
Front Rotors	13.3 inches	12.9 inches
Rear Rotors	13 inches	12.5 inches

The A6’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Crown are solid, not vented.

The A6 stops much shorter than the Crown:

	A6	Crown
60 to 0 MPH	107 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	146 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the A6 has larger standard tires than the Crown (245/45R19 vs. 225/55R19). The A6’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Crown (255/40R20 vs. 225/55R19).

The A6’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Crown’s standard 55 series tires. The A6’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Crown’s optional 45 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the A6’s wheelbase is 2.9 inches longer than on the Crown (115.1 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the A6 is 1.1 inches wider in the front and .3 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Crown.

The A6 Prestige handles at .93 G’s, while the Crown Platinum pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The A6 Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.6 seconds quicker than the Crown Platinum (24.9 seconds @ .75 average G’s vs. 27.5 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The A6 has .7 inches more front shoulder room, .6 inches more rear headroom and 1.4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Crown.

Cargo Capacity

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the A6’s trunk lid uses concealed beam hinges that don’t intrude into the trunk. Its intrusive beam hinge reduces the Crown’s useful trunk space.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the A6’s trunk can be opened just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The A6 (except Premium) also offers an optional power trunk, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button or just by kicking your foot under the back bumper. The Crown doesn’t offer a power or hands-free opening trunk.

Towing

The A6 has a 3500 lbs. towing capacity. The Crown has no towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The A6 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Crown uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The engine in the A6 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Crown. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 17% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

Ergonomics

The A6’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. An easy entry system costs extra on the Crown.

The A6’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Crown does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The A6 Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Crown doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The A6’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Crown’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the A6 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Crown doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The A6 Premium Plus/Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Crown doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the A6 Prestige has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Crown doesn’t offer cornering lights.

A power rear sunshade and manual rear side window sunshades are standard in the A6 Prestige to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Crown doesn’t offer a rear or rear side window sunshades.

The A6’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Crown has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The A6 Prestige offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Crown.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Audi A6 and the Toyota Crown, based on reliability, safety and performance.