The ‘A Drive’ was Audi’s way of allowing us to drive the entire A-range of saloon cars that the German luxury carmaker sells – and, at the same time, get some driver training under the watchful, and ever enjoyable, guidance of Audi driving ace Mark Allison.

The purpose of the drive was simple, you choose a car (ranging from the A4 3.2 right up to the A8L 4.2), and drive to a destination approximately 50 kilometers out of Jaipur city – where Audi had setup a driver training course on a closed off piece of tarmac, along with the necessary infrastructure. Since the start was relatively early in the day, we were saved the traffic rush when heading out, which was a blessing as the general condition of the road, till we got to the highway, was quite poor.

On reaching the destination, we were first treated to a short product briefing by Michael Perschke, head of Audi India, where he laid out for us the key features and technologies that differentiate the brand and its products from its competitors. After the briefing, Mark Allison took us through the basics of the exercises that we would be treated to, along with another tutorial on the importance of having the seat and steering set in the correct position.

But, being the impatient creature that I am, I was just yearning to take the cars out on the course, and see what the machines could do. So, the first exercise involved accelerating to an even 80 km/h, and then slamming on the brakes in a box of cones designed by Mark. This exercise showed just how brake technology had progressed over the years, and even though we hit the brakes with full force, the ABS technology simply wouldn’t let the wheels lock – the car simply came to a safe halt in the shortest possible distance.

Then Mark demonstrated the more involving exercises, which started with the slalom, leading to a fast tug of the wheel to the right to take the car through a designated set of cones, followed by a U-turn while using minimum steering input and maximum road width, through a fast right hand curve, and then on to a full-bore stop in a designated box. The entire exercise allowed the driver to experience how the car behaved in varying conditions, and automatically adapted itself to the different speed and conditions – with the safety features kicking in seamlessly as needed, such as the stability control during the hard right after the slalom, and the ABS coming in at the hard stop just before the end.

But, saving the best for the last, Mark had, as usual, setup a challenging exercise with another cone lined box. But this one was different – in that it was meant to simulate a broken down truck or bus. Adjacent to the cones, there was a small gap – allowing you to swerve at the last minute and divert to the right lane. The task was to visualise sighting, at the very last moment, the broken down vehicle standing just ahead, and then performing accident avoidance.

The objective was to enter the box at a designated 70km/h, slam on the brakes, and turn away from the obstacle without hitting any of the cones. Hitting a cone meant you had hit the obstacle and crashed. As expected, there were a fair share of crashes – with people hitting cones left, right, and center. Yours truly however, was able to adapt easily and I was able to get away without any mishaps – even though I did multiple runs of this exercise!

So, in between the intense exercise and the sun beating down, I got a bit of rest (if you can call it that) when the Audi team asked me if I would like to take the new A6 3.0 TDI out on the highway. Needless to say, I jumped at the opportunity. Given that, previously, I had driven the A6 for a very brief period – this was a good opportunity to give the car some stick and see how it performed out on the open roads. And, with 241bhp and 500Nm of torque, the A6 takes a mere 6.1 seconds to get to 100km/h.

What this translates to in the real world is seamless and effortless performance out on the road with high-speed cruising being a cinch. Coupled with fabulous interiors and a balanced ride, the standard-fit air suspension means the A6 is a very effective tool for long runs. The only bugbear that mars the experience is the steering, which is direct but devoid of any feel. It simply doesn’t let the driver know what’s happening underneath – but that’s the only gripe that I could find.
All in all, it was a good day out with the range of Audi cars – being able to test their limits and capabilities, which is absolutely not possible in the daily rigmarole of driving. Let’s just say, it’s ‘A’ capable fleet.