For 2001, the design is unchanged. (An update is in store for 2002. The newer car will borrow visual elements from the larger A6 sedan. Most notable will be a new horizontal crease running the length of the car and more modern trapezoidal taillights. Upfront, the headlight shape gets massaged, and the bumper will incorporate a chrome-lined lower grille that mimics the main grille up above.)

The Avant wagons are just about the slickest small haulers ever conceived. In some ways the Avant is more eye-grabbing than the sedan. While most U.S. manufacturers have turned their backs on wagons, Audi has demonstrated that light cargo capability and svelte sheetmetal are not mutually exclusive concepts. It's not quite an inch taller than the sedan, and its sloping tailgate lends the same graceful touch as the sedan's curved rear roof pillars.