Audi Q5 2.0 TFSi quattro S line

Jul 12 2009 John Scantlebury

IT is almost a mantra with a new sports utility vehicle to claim that it drives and feels like an ordinary car. Equally reliable is the fact that usually it doesn't, not unless you are paying out silly money.

So welcome to Audi's Q5, a compact SUV of the most sophisticated breeding, yet with a starting price of just over £27,000.

Built on the same platform as the current A4, it contrives to be a roomy vehicle for five people plus substantial cargo without being dauntingly bulky. Yes, it has muscular shoulders over what are 19in wheels in this S line version, but the overall look is actually quite neat at a fraction under 4.7 metres in length and with a height of 1.65m, doing the job without requiring agility to get into it.

That's a useful start in chasing the car-like ambition but it is down below in the suspension that the real magic is worked through the frontal five-link axle and the trapezoidal-link rear. Not only is it immensely secure (working with Audi's renowned quattro drive, of course) but it is supremely absorbing and comforting at the same time in its standard setting. For variation, you can buy in the push-button Audi Drive Select system which delivers still more comfort or extra dynamism as the mood takes you.

Audi always delivers good-feel direct steering which plays its part in the Q5's excellent manners and there is a fine cabin ambience generated by great noise insulation. Yes, very much a car-like experience and a high-quality car at that.

The Q5 is never going to feel ultra sporty but the impressive set-up is teamed with some notable engines, not least the 208hp TFSi 2.0-litre petrol engine here, direct injection, turbo charger, intercooler and all.

This is a flyer of the highest order, generating 258lb/ft of pull all the way down at 1,500 revs and thus providing instant get-up-and-go and satisfaction. In the test car it was teamed with a very smooth-changing seven-speed S-tronic gearbox and in that guise it got the Q5 from standstill to 62mph in 7.2 seconds, quicker than can be achieved with the six-speed manual box.

The 137mph automatic does provide for manual change and this car also had paddle-change on the steering wheel, so again you can drive the car the way you fancy.

Such virility normally carries a hefty penalty, but this version claims an average 33mpg and carbon dioxide emissions are below the 200g/km mark.

If the performance is impressive, you just know Audi is going to get the living quarters right. In this high-level trim you get leather upholstery, naturally, teamed with leather grips, quality plastics and highlights in brushed aluminium and chrome, while everything is super-efficiently laid out.

The dial-driven central control panel is angled towards the driver and tops the tower, followed by buttons for such items as hill-descent control, stability control and parking controls, the multi-media section and finally the climate control panel, including switches for cooled/heated front seats. Consequently, the area in front of the driver is quite clean-lined, devoted just to the main dials and some crucial info.

A lot of the Q5's toys, including the hi-tech satnav, cruise and distance control, DVD player and electrically-operated tailgate, are pay-for options, and you can also buy in cladding for any off-roading you may want to do. The car is no heavy-duty mud-plugger but it can certainly handle modest adventures.

Other features in the test car included look-round-corners headlights, automatic lights and wipers and powered adjustment of the driver's seat.

Away from the gadgets, it's the roominess of the Q5 that impresses. Those at the back get seats that slide (so you can choose to have stretch-out legroom) and recline, with services that include your own aircon controls, a power point, reading lights and a central armrest with pop-out drinks holders. The back seats also fold over to give additional capacity to an already usefully sized boot.

The Q5 is undoubtedly a class act, with all the attention to detail we have come to expect from Audi, even in its basic form. Just how much more you want to spend on larding it with extras is down to you. Either way, it is a car to put the frighteners on all the other medium SUVs.

FAST FACTS

Audi Q5 2.0 TFSi quattro S line auto

Price: £32,890

Mechanical: 208bhp, 1,984cc, 4cyl petrol engine driving four wheels via 7-speed automatic gearbox.

Max speed: 137mph

0-62mph: 7.2 seconds

Combined mpg: 33.2

Insurance group: 15

CO2 emissions: 197g/km

BIK rating: 25%

Warranty: 3yrs/ 60,000 miles