Welcome to the new Audi A6 Allroad – a lifted, all-wheel drive estate aimed squarely at the kind of people who want all the off-road ability of an SUV, but not the size or image. We like this kind of people.

And we like this kind of car. The Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain is tremendous, and so is the Volvo V90 Cross Country. The Audi has a tough fight on its hands to better them.  

On sale from August for around £55,000, the Allroad gets adaptive air suspension as standard. In its highest setting you get 45mm more ride height than a normal A6 Avant at speeds of up to 35kph. ‘Off-road’ mode is available up to 79kph and gives a 30mm lift, meanwhile at speeds of more than 119kph, the ride height is lowered by 15mm for better aero.

There’s hill-descent control, which takes care of braking down steep slopes, a feature within the infotainment system that shows you the angle of nearby slopes (and warns you if it thinks you’re about to tip over) and more underbody protection. Meanwhile wheel arch trims, special roof rails and various other subtle changes set Allroads apart from normal A6s. Inside is as before – meaning much space and a twin-screen infotainment system.

Engines are standard Audi – two 3.0-litre diesel V6s, both with all-wheel drive (of course), eight-speed automatic gearboxes and mild-hybrid tech. The 45 TDI gets 228bhp and 500Nm for 0-100kph in 6.7 seconds and a 250kph top speed. Adequate. But the one you want is the 50 TDI, which gets 282bhp, 620Nm and does 0-100kph in 5.9 seconds.