Audi A5 review

Is the Audi A5 a good car?

The latest Audi A5 replaces the A4 saloon and Avant, as well as the various incarnations of the old A5, and is bigger and better finished inside than any of its predecessors, but it’s also much more expensive. 

The experience behind the wheel won’t tempt keener drivers, but the A5 doubles down on being a high-quality, solid and sensible car with smart looks and better legroom (although not headroom) for rear passengers. It’s also more practical than the old A4, thanks to having a hatchback tailgate rather than the restrictive letterbox-style opening of a saloon car.

It’s a shame efficiency doesn’t make a big leap in the petrol cars, at least until the plug-in hybrids join the range, but to a large extent, the A5 is a case of ‘meet the new boss, same as the old boss’.  

Audi A5: model range, specs and rivals

You’re going to have to bear with us for a second, because while the car you see here is the replacement for the Audi A4 saloon, it’s also very much not the new Audi A4 saloon. The change from A4 to A5 was necessary to differentiate between Audi’s EVs and internal combustion-engined cars – although the Audi brand has since backtracked on this model naming strategy. It was to be that all ICE models would use odd numbers, so the A4 needed to become A5. Going forward, electrified versions will continue to use the E-Tron moniker, just like TDI refers to a diesel engine and TFSI is a petrol. The repurposing of the A5 name means a few of the old A5 models, such as the Sportback and Coupé, are gone forever. The A5 is now only available as a saloon or an estate. 

To make things more complicated, the saloon is actually a hatchback, and is very similar to the old A5 Sportback. So if you’re in the market for an A4 saloon, the A5 is your only option. It remains to be seen whether the A4 name, which has been around since it replaced the Audi 80 in 1994, will return when the brand reveals an electric compact executive saloon in a few years’ time. 

Admittedly, the A4 has diminished in importance in Audi’s range in recent years, as the move to SUVs has eaten into the popularity of saloons and estates. Even with the discontinued Coupé, Sportback and Cabrio A5, the A4/A5 models were no better than the sixth-biggest sellers in Audi’s UK line-up.

The latest car comes with a choice of two 2.0-litre petrol engines, with 148bhp or 201bhp, or a 201bhp diesel, the latter the only regular A5 available with a choice of front or quattro all-wheel drive. There’s also a hot 362bhp S5, and a range-topping plug-in hybrid RS 5 will be added in the future. 

All A5s get a seven-speed S tronic gearbox, while the diesel is the first TDI to get hybrid tech. The MHEV+ system can run the car in electric-only mode for very short distances, and Audi says this improves official emissions by up to 10g/km. The two petrol cars have claimed economy figures of up to 42.8mpg, depending on spec, while the diesel returns up to 58.9mpg. The price gap between the 201bhp petrol engine and the identically powered diesel unit is more than £4,000.

A pair of plug-in hybrids will add interesting new alternatives not offered on the old A4 when they join the line-up early in 2025, complete with a range of more than 60 miles on battery power.

The A5 has grown and is larger than the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupé, the car’s most logical rival. Prices have also increased to match its new stature, and while you get a bigger car – around 70mm longer, 24mm taller and 13mm wider – a step up on what was already a nice cabin, and a lift in standard kit, it’s still quite a price hike. 

How much does the Audi A5 cost?

As you might have already deduced, going up one number from A4 to A5 means that pricing across the board has seen a bit of an increase, because the A5 starts at around £42,000, jumping to a little over £44,000 for the mid-range S Line. Push the boat out for the top-of-the-range Edition 1, and you’ll need to fork out just over £49,000. 

Our network of trusted dealers is currently offering discounts on the recommended retail price of the Audi A5 via our Find a Car service. Alternatively, you can lease an A5 or buy a used A5, all on Auto Express.

The brand claims to have worked on the Audi A5 to give it a more engaging driving experience compared with its sensible and borderline forgettable A4 forbear, but we’re not convinced much has changed.  

While our drive through the French mountains isn’t going to be wholly representative of a life likely to be mainly spent on British motorways, early indications are that the car will continue to tread the centre ground between its two premium German rivals, the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class.

Engine options are less numerous than previously, and, currently, the A5 is limited to two power outputs of the 2.0-litre petrol – 148bhp and 201bhp – and the 201bhp diesel, which can be had with either front-drive or quattro four-wheel drive. Next year a pair of plug-in hybrid models with over 60 miles of electric range will be added to the line-up, plus there’s the sporty S5 that launched alongside the A5, while an even sportier RS 5 is in the pipeline. 

What is the Audi A5 like to drive?

In town

The A5 isn’t perfect at ironing out bumps and ripples in the road, but if anything it’s the smaller imperfections that transmit most annoyingly into the cabin. Bigger speed bumps are dispatched with minimal fuss, but the car doesn’t always absorb the smaller stuff around town. However, that is on the larger wheels and sports suspension of the S Line and Edition 1 models; we have a suspicion that the regular Sport on 18-inch alloys will give a more comfortable ride, although that car hasn’t yet been made available to test. 

The seven-speed automatic gearbox is smooth and does its work without drawing attention to itself, and the light steering is at its best in lower-speed manoeuvres.

Rear visibility isn’t great, with the sloping hatchback window not being particularly large, and not having a rear wiper will be a handicap when the weather goes colder and wetter. At least all A5s are equipped with a 360-degree camera and rear camera, as well as Audi’s parking-assist tech.

On A- and B-roads

Despite Audi’s attempts to make the A5 more engaging, the pecking order still has the car below the BMW 3 Series for driver engagement and enjoyment. 

There’s nothing particularly wrong with how the Audi drives; it’s just a very safe and solid companion that doesn't feel like it has any sort of edge to it. Where the BMW would at least make like it’s enjoying a twisting section of road, the Audi deals with it in a slightly disengaged way. A lot of that is down to the feel and weight of the steering, which is lovely around town; but out onto faster roads, that lightness goes from a positive to a negative and a bit more weight and overall feeling of connection wouldn’t go amiss. 

If you’re not after thrills from your compact executive car, though, then the Audi is a great all-rounder that feels solid and sure-footed with plenty of traction, even if you don’t go for the quattro four-wheel drive that’s only available with the diesel engine. 

One thing to note is that, due to its hybrid system, the diesel has a less pleasant feel to the brake pedal. The petrol cars have a more progressive action, but the diesel feels like you’re almost instantly up against resistance in the brake pedal travel, so it’s harder to modulate and gradually feed in the stopping power.

On the motorway

This is the A5’s most natural environment, and the car does a good job of keeping out road and wind noise. The high-quality interior can be appreciated as you settle into a longer cruise, and the screens are nicely angled toward the driver for a cockpit-type ambience. 

The higher-powered petrol and the diesel - both with 201bhp - are better options than the 148bhp petrol for anyone regularly on longer runs. The diesel is much pricier to buy, though, so you’ll need to be doing big miles to make the extra efficiency pay back. 

Engines, 0-62mph acceleration and top speed

The fastest-accelerating engine option in the A5, at least until the plug-in hybrids come along with their extra power, is the all-wheel-drive diesel. Thanks to its extra traction, it can deploy its 201bhp more effectively and go from 0-62mph in 6.9 seconds, taking 0.8 seconds less to sprint from than the front-drive version. The 201bhp petrol engine gets the A5 from 0-62mph in 7.8 seconds, so a tenth shy of the front-wheel drive diesel, and that figure increases to 9.8 seconds for the 148hbhp petrol. 

But the 201bhp petrol regains the top spot for maximum speed, with its 154mph figure a full 4mph higher than the diesel’s, and the 148bhp petrol again languishes at the back on 134mph. 

On the road, the 201bhp petrol or diesel options both feel adequate without being too punchy. Much like the rest of the A5, they are refined and do the job with minimal fuss, but don’t stand out for responsiveness or clout.

The Audi A5 engine line-up differs from the BMW 3 Series in that Audi has retained a sole diesel option, which is by far the most efficient model, thanks to its official figure of up to 58.9mpg, depending on things like wheel size and specification. That does drop back to 55.3mpg if you want the quattro four-wheel drive car, but compares with a best of 42.2mpg for both the 148bhp and 201bhp petrol engines. 

That’s broadly in line with rivals such as the 3 Series and BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe, with the admittedly slightly less powerful 184bhp petrol cars around 1mpg above the Audi on the official test, while the 1.5-litre 204bhp petrol engine in the Mercedes C 200 saloon is about another mile per gallon better on top. That’s despite the A5 diesel getting new mild-hybrid tech that can run the car for short distances on electric power and otherwise gives an efficiency boost. 

You can’t even buy a 3 Series diesel any more, but on the flip side, the 200bhp Mercedes diesel is more efficient than Audi’s. Both BMW and Mercedes already have plug-in hybrids on sale, which Audi won’t be able to say until the first half of 2025.  

The PHEV will definitely be the best option for company car drivers, but the car’s emissions see the diesel sit five Benefit-in-Kind tax bands below the 148bhp petrol, with the more powerful petrol another one higher. 

Tax

Predictably, no versions of the A5 duck under the £40,000 threshold for luxury car tax, so all suffer from higher annual Vehicle Excise Duty from the second time the vehicle is taxed until it is six years old. Given that there isn’t an electric A5, there isn’t a version that offers a route to cheaper company car tax, or is positioned to evade charges in low-emission zones that benefit electric cars. 

Insurance groups

The A5 is likely to be one of the more affordable mid-size company cars around, with the least powerful petrol starting in group 24, which is four-places lower than the equivalent 3-series and nine below the C-Class. 

For the time being, it should also be less costly to insure than electric alternatives such as the BMW i4 starting in group 35, and the Tesla Model 3 beginning in group 36. Ratings for the upcoming plug-in hybrid have yet to be announced, and these versions might be more costly to insure due to having a more complicated drivetrain of both an engine and an electric motor, plus a battery pack.

Depreciation

The A5 holds its value well, with the saloon version maintaining between 42 to 49 per cent and the Avant being worth between 44 to 50 per cent over a typical three-year/36,000-mile ownership period. The BMW 3 Series is slightly ahead (46 to 52 per cent for the saloon and 47 to 53 per cent for the Touring), while the Mercedes C-Class is further back (42 to 47 per cent for the saloon and 44 to 49 per cent for the Estate). The BMW is also the cheapest of the three, and is predicted to be worth the same as the Audi after three years and 36,000 miles, despite the Audi starting several thousand pounds more expensive. 

To get an accurate valuation for a specific model, check out our free car valuation tool...

While the Audi A5 looks quite sensible and grown up in terms of its exterior and interior design, there’s nothing revolutionary about its styling (apart from it now being called A5 rather than Audi A4). However, that does mean you still get all the bits the A4 always excelled in. 

So cabin quality is excellent and everything is laid out logically, including the much-appreciated physical volume knob for the audio system. As in most cars, too much is now controlled through the touchscreen, but the more buttons that remain, the better.  

What is the Audi A5 like inside?

The dashboard is dominated by a long curving arc that’s actually formed by two separate displays, and there’s plenty of squishy surfaces, gloss plastic trim and nice lighting to show it’s a high-class place to be. 

Too many controls work through the touchscreen, but that at least cleans up the front area that would previously have housed the more user-friendly but less aesthetically pleasing rotary controls and other buttons. Standard spec is a round steering wheel that feels noticeably larger than the BMW 3 Series’ more compact device, but above the entry-level Sport trim you get a much nicer wheel that’s flattened-off top and bottom.

What is the interior quality like?

Everything feels high in quality, from the squishy dashboard top and fabric across the full width of the car to the rubber-lined door bins that stop anything from making a noise rolling around. The silver air vents on either side of the cabin and beneath the big screen increase the appearance of premium effort. 

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

Those two big screens that dominate the cabin are a 14.5-inch curved touchscreen central display angled towards the driver, and an 11.9-inch digital instrument cluster that has plenty of functionality and is controlled by touch-sensitive buttons on the steering wheel. If anything, the buttons are over-sensitive, and several times on our test drive, we managed to activate the audio by accident while cornering. 

It’s a shame so many buttons have been removed from the cabin - it’s not a quick press to switch driving modes when you spot a series of bends coming up, for example. The menu system is logically laid out but, like all touchscreens, isn’t easy enough to use when you’re on the move. But at least a little click tells you your prod has been accepted by the system, meaning a touch less time with eyes off the road. 

The standard audio system offers crisp enough sound for most, but if you’re an aural connoisseur, there is a pricey Sound & Vision option pack that brings a Bang & Olufsen upgrade complete with speakers embedded into the car’s headrests. 

Audi’s app now allows A5 drivers to set the climate control and open or close windows remotely, as well as checking location and fuel levels. 

Unlike the A4, the A5 will be able to receive over-the-air updates to the infotainment system, for example, while various apps such as Amazon Music and YouTube can be installed into the infotainment system, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are present. 

Not to be overlooked, and only fitted to the top-spec Edition 1 models, is a third screen. Mounted ahead of the front passenger, the 10.9-inch touchscreen is a bit of a novelty for a while, but having an extra nav or trip computer display isn’t massively useful, although Audi says its tech can stream content away from the driver's prying eyes. 

As mentioned previously, in calling the Audi A5 a saloon, Audi is being slightly disingenuous to the hatchback design of the car. The hatch is actually more practical than a saloon’s letter-box style opening when it comes to fitting big loads in. It is a shame that no rear windscreen wiper is fitted to the A5 (you’ll have to go for the A5 Avant for that), because you’ll either have to break out the bucket and sponge more often in winter in order to be able to see what’s behind you, or rely on the standard front and rear parking sensors and reversing camera.

All A5 Saloons are five-seaters, while there is also the Avant estate model, but Audi no longer sells an A5 Sportback, Coupe or Cabriolet. 

Dimensions and size

The A5 is notably larger than the A4 saloon it replaces, and that extra 70+mm of length is mainly between the wheels, making for a more spacious cabin area. 

The increase in size also puts the A5’s footprint well clear of the BMW 3 Series or BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe, and the Mercedes C-Class, and the Audi is also taller than any of its rivals, although you feel like you’re sitting low-slung when you drop into the driving seat. 

How practical is the Audi A5?

Seats & space in the front

Though the front of the car feels wide and spacious for passengers, there’s not a great amount of stowage. Under the movable armrest there’s a fairly shallow space, and you get a pair of cup-holders and a wireless charging pad in the centre, as well as two USB-C chargers. But that’s about it. The door bins are lined and have a reasonable depth, but it’s not a car where you’re going to forget where you’ve stashed your sweets. 

It is comfortable though. The front seats are big and welcoming, if lacking a tiny bit in lateral support, and it’s not a problem to spend hours in them on a long run. 

Seats & space in the back

Back-seat passengers used to compact executive models sacrificing rear passenger comfort will be delighted to learn that it’s they who most benefit from the A5’s increased size over its predecessor. Legroom is really good compared with the old A4  – or any of the other premium German competitors – and rear passengers get their own ventilation control, as well as a pair of USB-C chargers and a fold-down armrest. 

But the news isn’t all good if you carry taller passengers, because the sloping roofline has a predictable impact on rear headroom. And although the width has increased over the A4, three passengers in the rear will have to be good friends. 

The rear door pockets aren’t lined as they are in the front, which smacks a little of cost-cutting to us. Two ISOFIX points are provided on the outer positions of the rear seat, and are accessed by removing a couple of conveniently located plastic tabs.

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Boot space

Unlike the rear-seat space and despite the A5’s growing dimensions, its boot capacity hasn’t grown over previous Audi compact execs; in fact it’s smaller, at 445 litres, dropping to 417 in diesel A5s. The A4 saloon was 15 litres better than the front-drive A5, while the BMW 3 Series can offer 500 litres and the Mercedes C Class up to 480. 

It is more practical in some ways, though. The small decrease in overall volume is countered by the hatchback opening, which offers better access than a saloon, especially for bulkier or heavier loads. There is a small lip to lift things over, and the boot is quite long and wide, but shallow rather than being particularly deep. 

There’s also nothing particularly clever about the load area. It’s got a couple of plastic hooks, a 12V socket and a luggage net, but no underfloor stowage or neat compartments. 

All versions of the A5 come with a handy 40:20:40 split folding rear seat. In the regular A5, dropping the rear seats has to be done from the back door rather than the boot, whereas the Avant estate model has a handier lever at the rear of the car. The seats at least go pretty much completely flat, which helps when sliding in longer items. Folding the seats opens up 1,299 litres of space, an exact match for the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe or 1,271 on quattro models.

Safety experts Euro NCAP have awarded the Audi A5 the maximum five-star rating. Direct comparisons between the 3-Series and C-Class can’t be made because these rivals were tested under earlier, less stringent testing criteria, but against electric alternatives, the Volkswagen ID.7 scored better in all categories, while the BYD Seal did better in the adult and child occupancy categories, and had a higher vulnerable road user protection result.

Standard safety kit on all cars includes adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning and intersection, turn and swerve assist, as well as front and rear parking sensors and 360-degree and rear-view cameras. But only the top Edition 1 models get lane-change assist, the top-down camera and the proactive passenger-protection system that preempts an accident and primes the car’s safety systems. 

The outgoing A4 finished quite a long way down our Driver Power rankings of the 50 best cars according to owners. It ranked 44th, with the reliability rating a couple of positions lower, although owners rated it highly for value and for economy and running costs. 

Warranty

Audi only gives what is the most basic of warranties at three years and 60,000 miles. Both BMW and Mercedes at least offer unlimited miles with their three-year warranties, whereas other premium brands are more generous, with Genesis giving five years and unlimited miles, and Alfa Romeo five years or 75,000 miles, while Lexus will go to 10 years or 100,000, provided the car is serviced at a main dealer every year. 

It is possible to extend the A5’s warranty to four years/75,000 miles or five years/90,000 miles for an extra cost. 

Servicing

Audi hasn’t yet put out details of the service schedule for the A5, but its cars are available with flexible servicing, which is up to 18,600 miles or two years depending on the car’s sensors assessing the oil degradation. But on some models Audi offers a one-year or 9,300-mile oil service, and an inspection service every two years or 18,600 miles.

Audi pledges to price-match on service, repair, maintenance or new tyres, on any quote that includes Audi genuine parts.

Audi A5 alternatives

While the mid-size company car market has been gravitating away from the traditional saloon car body style, there are still the usual suspects in the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class to contend with. At the moment, the C-Class has the greatest choice of engines, with a selection of mild-hybrid petrol and diesel options, plus a plug-in hybrid with a long electric-only range. The 3 Series still has the edge over the A5 in terms of the driving experience, though.

It’s hard to argue with the latest range of electric cars – especially if you are a company car driver paying Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) tax. Of the choice, it's the Tesla Model 3 that gets our nod, but the BMW i4 isn’t far behind (if you can afford its heft list price), while the Volkswagen ID.7 provides a big battery with a usefully long electric range.