2018 Audi A6: images leak online ahead of official showing

This is the first of three leaked images of the Audi A6...

Fifth-generation Audi A6, due in the UK in April, will be equipped with Level 3 self-driving technology, as first seen on Audi's range-topper

Leaked images of Audi’s fifth-generation A6 suggest the upcoming four-door will inherit design and technical features from its bigger sibling, the A8.

Three pictures of the BMW 5 Series rival have surfaced online before Audi could pull the wraps off, showing that the saloon will feature a front and rear heavily influenced by the A8 when it arrives on roads this April.

At the front, the A6 in the leaked images sports angular headlights either side of a wide-mouthed grille, while at the back, a chrome strip stretches across the width of its rear. Although largely similar, the smaller A6 does, however, have more emphasised rear wheel arches than the discreet A8.

Audi has refrained from commenting on the leaked pictures, but the car’s obvious relation to the A8 suggests it will have a similarly clutter-free design for its dashboard. A dual screen Virtual Cockpit system, like the one in the A8, is likely to be included inside as well.

Autocar understands that the A6, which will be on display at the Geneva motor show next month, will be equipped with the same self-driving technology that was pioneered on the A8.

This should garner the saloon with Level 3 autonomous driving abilities where permitted. Level 3, according to the six-level scale of self-driving capability established by automotive engineering organisation SAE International, means 'conditional automation'.

In this state, the car is able to control most aspects of driving and monitoring the road, but the driver must be ready to intervene when necessary. The A8 was the first production car to feature such technology when it was launched earlier this year.

Prior to the leaked images, a preview video (above) offered an early official sighting of the next A6 - codenamed C8 - while photographs of the car undergoing testing provided the more glimpses of its design. The car's exterior details follow the design trend used on all cars since the Q7 launched Audi’s new styling direction in 2015. 

The upcoming A6 will share its underpinnings with the A7, meaning it will undergo a slight increase in size compared with the outgoing model. A choice of front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive drivetrains will be offered and the latest quattro system, as fitted to the A4 and A8, will feature.

Power will come from four-cylinder 2.0-litre, 3.0-litre V6 and 4.0-litre V8 engines, with two plug-in hybrid variants planned. These will have electric motors to supplement either a four-cylinder or V6 petrol engine, although these derivatives are expected to be more popular in the US and China than in Europe. Plans for a diesel-electric hybrid powertrain have been scrapped.

The sporty S6 won't be launched until 2019, but when it does its engine will be downsized from the 4.0-litre V8 seen in the current car to a 2.9-litre V6 that's used in the RS4 Avant and RS5, as well as the Porsche Panamera S. In the S6, it's likely to produce in excess of 450bhp – that's more than the 444bhp of the RS4 Avant.

An RS6 is expected to arrive in 2020, with the rival to the BMW M5 said to be morphing into a hugely powerful plug-in hybrid sharing the same powertrain as the 671bhp Porsche Panamera S E Hybrid. 

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Jimi Beckwith and Greg Kable