Ever since the Audi 100 (C2 and C3) and quattro of the early 80's I've been in love with the sound of five cylinder engines. I can't think of a better sound. Volvo joined the club when designing the 850 for the 90's, no doubt copying Audi. Another 5-cyl engine and a move to front wheel drive, and later adding turbo and AWD. Mercedes was part of it all with diesel fives.
I was very disappointed when Audi dropped the 2.3 engine for the A6 when changing the name of the 100 to A6 in 1995. The 4 cylinder engines had no soul and the V6s were not exciting either. At least the S4 still held on to the turbo 5 for a while.
Audi is returning to the fives with cars like the TTS and even the new quattro concept. I don't bother lusting after them because they are so expensive. (I'm too realistic) Could I just have a base A4 with a 5 please?! Today, the 2011 VW Jetta 2.5 is the closest thing to old school Audis. The simple, understated exterior design, semi-independent suspension and light steering makes it a modern 100.
Below is a link to an awesome Audi 100 (Avant!) sound video on YouTube. Beware - watching it may lead to nostalgia and spending hours watching related clips!!
Your choices for new five-cylinder-engined cars (in the US) are Volvo's C30/S40/V50/S60, VW's Golf/Jetta, and soon, the 2012 Passat - maybe the ultimate throwback to the C3 Audi 100.
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