25 years of RS @ Audi! The All New 2020 Audi RS6 Avant! Enjoy this hot family car coming to your local Audi dealer by the end of 2019!
High-performance Avant for all purposes – sportiness and practical benefits
4.0 TFSI twin-turbo V8 with mild hybrid: high power meets high efficiency
441 kW (600 metric hp), 800 Nm (590.0 lb-ft), 0 to 100 km/h (62.1 mph) in just
3.6 seconds
We have just driven the Alfa Romeo Stelvio on a 1,106 km roadtrip to highest mountain in Norway! Parking the car at 1,850 meters before walking to 2,469 meters after passing the stunning glacier Styggebrean.
We picked up the Alfa Romeo at the local Alfa Romeo dealer in Stavanger, Rogaland Autocenter. Paul at Alfa gave us the stunning grey Stelvio with the 280 HP engine for our test drive.
Our first day brought us north to a great location at Lerdalsøren Hotel in Lærdalsøyri. This is an old classic norwegian building from 1880 that has 5 rooms. The owner of the hotel has a big passion for cars so it was no coincidence that this was the hotel we wanted to stay at.
Our first day we arrived late in the evening at Lærdalsøyri bringing us passed stunning locations like the Hardanger fjord, Folgefonna Glacier, Voss, Aurland fjord, Flåm, the Lærdal tunnel with 24,5 km and finally Lærdalsøyri.
To be continued!
Enjoy this absolutely stunning video taken by Lamborghini this summer on a exclusive roadtrip in the Northern part of Norway. If you ever make it this far north we recommend taking any car and driving through this stunning part of Norway.
Stunning Italian cars in exquisite landscape! Enjoy!
Photo/video: Lamborghini
Typical scenery from the stunning mountains in Norway!
So we have tested the 2019 Audi E-tron All electric SUV! We decided to take it on our signature roadtrip we have taken several of the cars we have driven here on Mzzacars! From Stavanger to Byrkjedal, through Gloppedalsura and back to Stavanger via Vikeså in Rogaland. Amazing roads to test all cars and not having to break any speed limits to see what the car has to offer!
Audi is the premium car brand within Volkswagen Group. Starting with Seat, Skoda, Volkswagen and then the Audi brand at the top. Volkswagen also have Porsche, Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini!
The Audi feeling is premium from the moment you get inside the Audi dealer getting the E-tron keys, to the interior quality and the sound of closing the doors. When testing a car from any dealer, book the test-drive before getting there by phone or email.
The E-tron is an important car for Audi. So far in Europe and the US the E-tron has sold over 6645 cars (June 2019). The E-tron is the first all electric vehicle from Audi. Several other all electric will have their premiere the next few years from the brand. The more sporty sedan, Audi E-tron GT will start production in 2020.
In Germany the car starts at 80,900 EUR. In USA starting at $ 74,000. In Norway where there are NO taxes or VAT at all the price starts at NOK 662,000. All prices checked July 28th 2019.
The E-tron is a luxury electric sport utility vehicle but practical at the same time. Enough power and possibility to pull up to 1.800 kg. Space is enough and no problems with roof rack, box or even a trailer. The only thing we would like to see better is the range. The official range is 408 KM according to WLTP. If you compare the E-tron to other fully electric cars you have the Tesla X and the upcoming Mercedes EQC. The EQC will have almost identical range, however the X has longer range with the larger batteries at similar pricing. However we know that Tesla has problems with quality. We also know that Mercedes and Audi do not have the same problems and even if they did you get the service you deserve when problems occur.
The car, roadtrip and verdict:
So if you live near roadtrip areas with mountains, this is the natural place to test any car! Leaving the city gives you peace of mind almost immediately. The E-tron is extremely quiet. We are driving with 21" edition one large wheels and still almost no sound from the outside. It drives really nice and with its net weight of 2490 kg this car is heavily placed on the road and grabs to asphalt with the large 21" wheels. To get a more direct feeling we turned of the assistance system maintaining the car in its lane. This to get more direct control over the car. All other systems are very nice but takes time to learn how they work. The Audi virtual cockpit display and the 10,1"
screen infotainment system and a 8,6" screen to control temperature and lots more. Everything inside the car is high gloss. This is really nice when its clean.
The virtual side mirrors take time to get used to. They are really cool, and the car looks more modern with these. However we would not choose them.
The E-tron is perfect for a family of 4 or 5. Enough space, enough range to go to the mountains, the large citys near Stavanger and really fast charging possible.
We give the car a thumbs up and we are looking forward to see the E-tron GT next year.
The X5 history:
20 years ago BMW launched the sale of their X5 on the world market! Since then they have produced more than 2,000,000 X5s! It all started in 1999 at BMW's Spartanburg plant in South Carolina, USA!
The testcar:
So we where given the BMW X5 xDrive 30d with M sport fully loaded package! With 21 inch M sport alloy wheels and the car in mineral white metallic. This car is built in Spartanburg in the US and it is USA big both inside and outside.
Still it does not feel too big at all! It drive as easy as Fiat 500 only you sit a lot higher and feel really safe.
Prices in the United States start at $60,700. Prices in Europe start at 65.900,00 €. In Norway the X5 starts at 110.000,00 €
The competition:
By comparison in this segment you can choose from the Mercedes GLE, Porsche Cayenne, Volvo XC90, and the Range Rover and Land Rover. The Mercedes is the only one without an e-powered large SUV(SAV).
The All New X5 gets longer e-range with the new hybrid version - 80 km. The benefit is longer e-range at the price of higher weight. The difference in weight is apx 200 kg from the new e-powered version and the “old” one. If you choose petrol or diesel you loose 500 kg of weight! Also you loose 150 liters of luggage space in the boot. We would choose the diesel versions! 500 kg of weight is significant.
The BMW x-factor:
BMW have always had a stunning way with their sporty design, quality feel and engine sound! This car is no exception. With the largest 21 inch wheels you would think it would be hard to keep the car stable due to the width of the tires compared to the “tracks” in the road. That is not the case. The X5 feels quick and easy to handle. Surprisingly taking the size of this car in to consideration.
Check out the gallery under for the history of all 4 generations starting with our picture of the car we tested just outside Stavanger, Norway.
The verdict:
BMW are on a roll these days. In 2019 they are introducing several new models and more to come in 2020! Yes all other carmakers are doing the same however BMW dare to be different in so many ways! This latest X5 is by far the best X5 ever made in our opinion. It should be as well of course. Still after selling over 2,000,000 cars there is always a risk when trying to repeat the success recipe. Still we love this car. The feel of driving a car where everything has been put together a little tighter than the competition. We have not tested any other luxury SUV/SAV on our site so we have to be open to there might be a tough competitor out there. Naturally it would be something like the Porsche Cayenne or the Mercedes GLE. We will have to wait for that.
The interior:
Stunning interior with ultimate luxury quality in leather and soft touch areas all over the interior space. In addition the car has ambient lighting system all over the place. Even the panoramic sunroof.
The Panamera history:
This year the Panamera celebrates 10 years as a luxury sports sedan! The Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo had its world premiere in 2017! It was the first wagon ever made by Porsche.
Porsche has in our opnion made the Panamera to reach passionate Porsche owners not wanting to leave behind their Porsche in the garage and still travel with comfort, space and lots of power to go full sports car mode!
Since 2009 Porsche has sold over 235,000 Porsche Panameras!
The test car:
The model we where given to test, was the Panamera 4 E-Hybrid Sport Turismo. This car has a V6 twin-turbo engine combined with an electric engine that gives you 462 HP and All wheel drive.
It does 0-100 km/h in 4.6 seconds with the sport chrono package. Top speed is 275 km/h.
Team Mzzacars including son and dad picked the car up from the local Porsche Center in Stavanger, Norway in the afternoon on a Saturday in June.
Day One:
Never having driven the Panamera, we where excited to see what this “wagon” would do for us during our test. We have so far this year tested the 2018 Porsche 911(991) Carrera T and the brand new 2020 911 Carrera 4S.
With the fresh memory of the pure legendary 911 we head for the family version of the Porsche sports car!
Just starting the engine and listening to the great sound of the V6 twin-turbo we understood there is nothing ordinary about this “wagon”. This is a Porsche with 5 doors and 5 seats! It sounds like a Porsche, it looks like a Porsche. So now we wanted to see if it drives like a Porsche should do.
Saturday afternoon we where only able to drive the car around the suburbs of Stavanger and a trip downtown to the city. We parked the car safely in our garage and started making plans for our test drive the following day.
Day Two: Roadtrip to the stunning Norwegian mountains in southern Norway.
Sunday morning we got up and had decided the evening before to pay tribute to the 462 HP begging us to drive the car in conditions where the car could show us what she was good for!
Eating a good breakfast, getting on some nice clothes to fit our stunning Porsche, shorts and t-shirts, we headed for the beautiful mountains of Sirdal, Norway.
Leaving the city limits the car starts showing us what the engineers at Porsche have been working on for many years. As soon as we leave the highway and on the the mountain roads it´s like the Porsche changes it mood.
Behind the wheel of the Panamera with 5 meters length and over 2,000 kg you would think it would feel heavy and unresponsive. The answer is no. It feels light, direct and extremly willing to take you where you going fast and in full control! The All wheel drive system grabs the road like it going to eat the asphalt in the corners on these stunning mountain roads.
“There is NO sign of loosing grip what so ever!”
The PDK transmission is fantastic as well. 8-speed Porsche Doppelkupplung.
Driving in the mountains we chose to set the car in sport-plus mode giving it exactly the little extra you want. This car can be yours in Norway starting at NOK kr. 1,331,900,-. If you live in the US the price start at 106,900,- US dollars. Finally in Germany the price starts at EUR 116,079,-
We have to say we fell in love with this car. Especially since you get both a practical family car and a sports car in one lovely package!
The only sad thing about the test is having to deliver the car back to the fantastic people at Porsche Center Stavanger in Norway!
Stavanger-Gloppedalsura-Stavanger. A must roadtrip for all lovers of driving sports cars!
