A4 sedans offer two engine choices, both featuring Audi's new five-valves-per-cylinder technology. The standard engine is a turbocharged 1.8-liter 4-cylinder, generating 150 horsepower and 155 pound-feet of torque.

All wagons come with the V6. And that's not a bad thing. Audi's newest V6 is a five-valve design based on the old two-valve engine. Boasting 190 horsepower, it definitely lends more urgency to forward progress. Don't be deceived into thinking all those valves and cams add up to a high-rpm screamer. The essential trait of this undersquare engine design is torque. It's a highly tractable engine around town, making upshifts well short of the rev limiter.

Unlike most manufacturers, Audi offers 5-speed manual transmissions as standard equipment. The $1,075 optional automatic is a Porsche Tiptronic, which allows drivers to operate it as a semi-manual. It lends a little more variety to automatic driving than the garden variety automatic and can make commuting more entertaining. As automatics go, this is a good one, but we still prefer manual gearboxes, and our 5-speed tester reflected that. Frankly, we were a little disappointed with the shift action, which lacked precision, but it's still our preference.

Audi's $1,600 Quattro all-wheel drive system was a valuable feature in mid-winter Michigan. After driving Avants of all flavors, we think the Sport package is a bargain at $400, which adds slightly stiffer springs, more aggressive shock damping and heavier antiroll bars. The standard suspension allows just a little too much up and down motion and body roll for such an otherwise sporty little freighter and the Sport suspension offered acceptable ride quality on southeastern Michigan's pothole-infested highways.

The final major extra was an $1,190 power moonroof. We checked it for function and sealing, then forgot about it--too much snow coming in with it open, you see.