I enjoyed the heated leather sport seats in this five-seater. They're a bit firmer than the regular seats, but have great support and manage not to be difficult to climb in or out of. My test car came equipped with the Sport Package, which included a three-spoke steering wheel with perforated leather grips that felt terrific underhand. The steering wheel also had controls for the audio system and Bluetooth, which was crystal clear and easy to connect.

Audi's MMI system wraps all the audio, navigation and information functions into a knob controller. Twist the knob to navigate the information screen and push it down to select an item. It's that easy. Four function buttons surround the knob and their function changes depending on the MMI screen that's being used. MMI has a little learning curve to it, but it quickly becomes second nature. What I really liked about this system is the driver doesn't need to look away from the road to hunt for one of countless buttons/wheels/knobs; everything is in one place.

In the backseat, my kiddos were content and did their best to filthy up the place, which was when I began to see the blessing of black carpet. Sure, it shows every blade of muddy grass their baseball cleats drag in, but that goes away with a quick pass of a vacuum. What you don't see is the dirt or food or wet who-knows-what that's so painfully apparent on lighter carpets. The lesson? It's impossible to stain black carpet, not for lack of trying on my boys' parts.

If I were to ask for anything more from the A4 Avant, it'd be interior storage. The center console has a small bin that can hold chargers and a lip balm, but not much more. I managed to stuff a pack of baby wipes in the door bin, but there really wasn't anywhere good to hide all the stuff I usually haul around in a car. I guess that's European minimalist style. At least it had cupholders. There are two in the front row and two in the rear armrest, which also has a small storage compartment, and a bottle-holder in every door.2010 Audi A4 Avant