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Audi Q5 variants
Total price
Monthly payment
Figures are based on a 20% deposit

Finance representative example (PCP)

Total cash price £34,699. Borrowing £27,759 with a £6,940 deposit at a representative APR of 12.9%.

49 monthly payments
£448.69
Fixed interest rate
12.9%
Total amount payable
£46,173.06
Cost of credit
£11,474.06
Optional final payment
£17,696.00
Annual mileage limit
6000 miles

Audi Q5 buying guide

The Q5 mixes a premium interior with powerful engines, a big boot and a comfortable ride. Grippy four-wheel drive comes as standard, so the Q5 is confidence-inspiring in any weather (it’s also an accomplished tow car with a maximum towing weight of nearly 2.5 tonnes). The running costs are worth considering, but that’s the same for its nearest rivals. In every other respect, the Audi Q5 is an excellent all-rounder.

What Audi Q5 trim levels are there?

Sport is often the name of a high-spec trim, but on Audis it usually represents a mid-range offering. On the Q5, Sport is the first available trim, and it comes with a really strong equipment list. There are 18-inch alloy wheels, plus heated front seats, a powered tailgate, multi-zone air conditioning, push-button start, sat nav and digital radio. More recent models may also feature LED headlights, a reversing camera and digital dials.

Next up is S Line, which is often popular with UK buyers. It boasts a different grille and more chrome trim, plus bigger wheels and S Line badging. It comes with sports seats and firmer sports suspension, as well as tinted rear windows and part-leather upholstery.

Depending on the age of the car, the next trim is either called Black Edition or Edition 1. Both feature a black trim pack that replaces all the S Line’s chrome, plus 20-inch alloy wheels.

Top-spec Vorsprung is nothing short of a tech fest, with adaptive air suspension, a heated steering wheel, heated rear seats and massaging front seats. You also get an arsenal of extra active safety features, including traffic sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring, lane-assist, a 360-degree camera and a system that scans for cyclists and pedestrians before you get out.

No Q5 is slow, but speed freaks are well catered for by the Audi SQ5. In terms of equipment, the SQ5 probably sits between the top two trim levels, as it comes with some of the features from Vorsprung models. There is also an SQ5 Vorsprung if you really want to have your Audi-flavoured cake and eat it.

Audi Q5 interior and technology

The Audi Q5’s interior feels as upmarket as you’d expect – both the quality of the materials used and how they’re all screwed together are very good. There’s leather trim on major touchpoints like the steering wheel, plus cool metal and solid-feeling buttons. There’s not a panel or button out of place or misaligned.

There’s a sensibleness to the layout of the interior, with plenty of buttons to control the car’s major functions. These include the climate control options and some of the infotainment features too. With so much to control, you might feel like a pilot in a plane’s cockpit!

To some eyes the touchscreen looks like it was a last-minute addition, but the Q5 might well have been ahead of the trend as many cars have followed suit. Facelift cars get a bigger screen with crisper graphics, with a media interface that feels a little more modern. Handily, a rotary dial can be used to navigate the screen if you don’t want greasy fingerprint marks dotted all over it.

Audi Q5 engine range explained

Audi Q5 40 TDI diesel

Diesel is still a great choice when it comes to a car like this, giving plenty of power for fully laden trips and decent fuel economy. The 2.0-litre diesel, badged 40 TDI, returns almost 45mpg – that’s on a par with any similarly sized four-wheel-drive SUV – and promises hundreds of miles between trips to the filling station. It’s also capable of brisk acceleration, thanks to 204hp and a slick-shifting seven-speed automatic gearbox.

Audi Q5 45 TFSI petrol

Perhaps you’re predominantly going to be driving around town, you don’t like diesel or fuel economy is a lower priority. If so, the 265hp 2.0-litre petrol engine is ideal. It feels very powerful, and is quicker than many hot hatchbacks if the mood takes you. Switching through the drive modes turns it from a scorchingly quick car into a more relaxed long-distance cruiser. Expect around 30mpg.

Audi Q5 50 TFSIe plug-in hybrid

Audi’s plug-in hybrid engine could be the best of both worlds – the potential for far better fuel economy than the diesel engine, and acceleration that matches the 45 TFSI petrol car. Officially, you can manage over 150mpg and drive for over 35 miles on electric power alone, but both of these things rely on you plugging the car in regularly to recharge the battery. There’s a very slight reduction in luggage capacity if you choose this model, but many buyers see it as a small price to pay for the tech on board.

Audi SQ5 3.0 TDI diesel

Topping the range is the Audi SQ5 performance model, and you might be surprised to read that it’s powered by a diesel engine. But the 341hp 3.0-litre diesel engine nearly has enough power to rip up the tarmac beneath you, with flat-out acceleration from 0-62mph in just five seconds. Almost 35mpg is possible from this engine, despite it being the fastest Q5 you can buy.

Audi Q5 FAQs

The Audi Q5 has been a staple for the four-ring brand since its introduction in 2008. The car you see here was launched in 2017 and was subsequently facelifted in 2021, with later cars getting reshaped headlights, a bigger grille and more chrome trim. In the same year, a swoopy Sportback model became available alongside the boxier and more traditional Q5 SUV.

There are a choice of trim levels and engines, with plug-in hybrid and hot SQ5 versions being sold alongside more conventional petrol and diesel cars.

The Audi Q5 is just shy of 4.7m long, a little more than 2.1m wide and over 1.6m tall. It’s a little shorter than the brand’s estate cars, but the extra height of the Q5 means you get plenty of headroom and a big boot. In terms of width, it isn’t much wider than the Audi Q3.

All of these factors should make the Q5 easy to place on the road, and reasonably easy to park. Every Q5 comes with parking sensors to avoid car park crunches, and most come with a reversing camera too.

The Q5 gives you the high driving position that SUVs have become popular for, while the increased height may make it easier to get in and out than the Audi A4 or A6. Dog owners might find the extra height makes it harder for their furry friends, mind.

Once passengers or dogs are inside, there’s plenty of space for them. Legroom is generous – kids will have a hard time kicking your seatbacks, too – and the Q5 is roomy enough that five adults shouldn’t feel too cramped. The Q5 Sportback only loses a couple of centimetres of headroom and the 510-litre boot is a mere 40 litres smaller than the Q5 SUV, so both are practical options.

A straightforward engine choice greets Audi Q5 buyers. There’s a petrol, a diesel, a plug-in hybrid and a fast one, with all getting Audi’s ‘Quattro’ four-wheel-drive system. All are quick and are reasonably economical, but you should look for the plug-in hybrid if you’re after the best choice for low fuel costs.

Yes, all versions of the Q5 come with Audi's quattro all-wheel-drive system as standard. This enhances grip and performance both on and off road.

All Audi models sold in the UK come as standard with a Thatcham-approved alarm and immobiliser system. This level of protection is in line with that offered by rivals, so the Q5 is no easier to steal than rival cars from BMW, Mercedes or Land Rover.

Car thieves targeting premium brands and SUVs have been known to use a system where they intercept the signal from your car's keyless fob. They then duplicate this signal to gain access to the car and drive it away. You can protect yourself from this crime by placing your key fob as far away from your car as possible when it's parked overnight or, even better, by buying a Faraday pouch that blocks the signal from your fob.

Most Q5s fall between insurance groups 27 and 40, with the most powerful SQ5 model in group 45. With 50 total insurance groups, that makes the Q5 one of the more expensive cars on the road to insure. This reflects its premium branding and positioning, along with the greater repair expense should yours get damaged.

Yes, being an upmarket model from a premium brand, the Q5 will be more expensive than cars from mass-market manufacturers to insure. It's worth doing, however, because keeping up with scheduled maintenance and holding onto the receipts will make sure your Q5 holds on to as much of its value as possible.

The Audi Q5 tends to return average scores in reliability surveys. That might not sound great, but it's a noticeable improvement over the old Q5, which was known to be a little more temperamental. It's also not bad when you consider that most premium rivals including BMW and Mercedes tend to earn mediocre reliability scores, too – usually because including so much on-board tech means there's more potential things that can fail.

The Q5 is an accomplished tow car thanks to its hefty weight, strong engines and standard-fit all-wheel drive. All non-hybrid versions are rated to tow a braked trailer weighing up to 2,400kg – although we'd recommend sticking within the 85% weight rating for the smoothest towing experience.

Plug-in hybrid versions are rated to pull a 2,000kg braked trailer. That's a fair chunk down on the regular model but still quite a high figure for a plug-in hybrid.

The Q5 is a family SUV from a desirable premium brand. Unsurprisingly, that means it holds on to its value quite well.

With robust future prices, you'll often find PCP finance rates for the Q5 are more affordable than they would be for a similarly priced car from a more niche manufacturer.

Certain versions of the Audi Q5 are able to fit three child seats in the car. However, you will only be able to put two child seats on the rear row in the outer positions – the centre-rear seat doesn't have an Isofix point.

The third Isofix point is available as an option for the front-passenger seat. This isn't ideal, however, because kids are safest in the back seats and it means you can't put an adult passenger in the front seat.

Check out our list of the best cars that fit three child seats for a selection of options that are better suited to this task.