15 August 2025
Cue the new Q5
There’s a brand-new Audi in town. Cue the Q5 – or a range of them to be exact – including a performance model SQ5. This will be welcome news, as Kiwis have bought over 3,500 of this luxury SUV since 2008.
In fact, Audi tells us that Kiwis are the highest per capita consumers of Audi performance vehicles in the world.
This is the third generation of Audi’s mid-size SUV, neatly coinciding with 45 years of Quattro technology.
The initial concept for the Q5 originated in 2007 at the Los Angeles Motor Show, bizarrely as a two-door convertible SUV. Nissan would later regret a similar concept, the Murano Cross Cabriolet, manufactured between 2011-2014, which sold a meagre 6,000 units in the US.
Not to be outdone, Range Rover dipped their toe into similar topless waters with the Evoque Convertible, claiming ‘it as has space for four adults, a proper boot and even an innovative ski hatch for road trips to Courchevel or Aspen.’ However, their run of automotive gaudiness lasted only two years, from 2017-2018.
Unsurprisingly, it’s been rather quiet in the luxury convertible SUV segment ever since.
In 2025, the Q5 range starts at $111,990, with 2.0L MHEV+ and e-hybrid versions (starting at 150kW), with the top spec SQ5 peaking at $153,990, running the 3.0L V6 TFSI Quattro 48v Mild Hybrid (270kW). All models are rated to tow 2,400kg braked.
Audi has developed a multitude of customisation options like air suspension, coloured brake callipers and glass roofs, with the only limiting factor being your bank balance.
There are no radical changes to the outward appearance. Audi hasn’t mucked around with their winning design formula: the unmistakable curves of the Q5 make it one of the more attractive SUVs on the road.
Length and width have increased ever-so slightly, while height has been lowered by a few millimetres. The longer bonnet and sculpted side panels maintain the Q5’s luxurious, clean design.
Interior build quality is excellent. The ambient lighting has smart functionality, doubling as blind spot indicators, and breaking up the digital excess of the dashboard is a door-to-door soft wrap made from Dinamica material, an environmentally friendly micro fibre that looks and feels like suede.
The Quattro system delivers a balanced ride, on and off the road. Our drive included some ‘soft roading’ in the hills of Boomrock, Clevedon. While road tyres limited any serious four-wheel driving, the Q5 delivered admirably on slippery surfaces – at one point even with a rear wheel suspended in the air. The torque distribution kicked in to deliver power to the other three wheels.
On the highway, the standard Q5 2.0 litre delivered a smooth power band. Though it’s by no means an entry-level driving experience. Paired with a seven-speed dual clutch transmission the Q5 is capable of 0-100km in 7.2 seconds at 7.1L/100km. The SQ5 beefs up the experience in all departments. (Apart from your bank balance.)
Suspension damping, throttle response and steering dynamics are adjusted via selectable drive modes, but I’d wager that that Comfort Mode will be the set and forget for most city drivers.
Overall, the third generation Q5 is an SUV for the modern age, with technology, design and engineering coming together in a sublime package. With new offerings like this, Kiwis will undoubtedly keep Audi at the top of the sales charts.
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