Compare the2026 Audi A6VS 2026 Mercedes E-Class Sedan

Both the A6 and E-Class Sedan have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The A6 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The E-Class Sedan’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Audi A6 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The E-Class Sedan doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the A6. But it costs extra on the E-Class Sedan.

The A6’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the E-Class Sedan.

Both the A6 and the E-Class Sedan have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The A6’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the E-Class Sedan’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Audi pays for scheduled maintenance on the A6 for 3 years and 30,000 miles. Audi will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Mercedes doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the E-Class Sedan.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2026 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 6 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

The A6’s 3.0 turbo V6 produces 107 more horsepower (362 vs. 255) and 111 lbs.-ft. more torque (406 vs. 295) than the E 350 Sedan’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid. The A6’s 3.0 turbo V6 produces 37 lbs.-ft. more torque (406 vs. 369) than the E 450 Sedan’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Audi A6 uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The E-Class Sedan requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The A6 offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The E-Class Sedan doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

For better stopping power the A6’s standard brake rotors are larger than those on the E-Class Sedan:

For better traction, the A6 has larger standard tires than the E-Class Sedan (245/45R19 vs. 225/55R18). The A6’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the E-Class Sedan (255/40R20 vs. 245/45R19).

The A6’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the E-Class Sedan’s standard 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the A6 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the E-Class Sedan.

The A6 has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the E-Class Sedan; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the E-Class Sedan don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

The A6 has 2.7 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more rear headroom and 1 inch more rear legroom than the E-Class Sedan.

The A6 has a larger trunk than the E-Class Sedan (13.5 vs. 12.7 cubic feet).