[Year's_End]

All Things to All People

By Michael Jordan
04-12-2009

====================REVIEW SUMMARY====================

What Works: Supple ride quality; 4,400-pound towing capacity; attractive, well-appointed cabin.
What Needs Work: Pricey.
Bottom Line: All things to all people, only in a good way.

====================PERFORMANCE SUMMARY====================

0-60: 6.8s
1/4 mile: 14.9s @ 93.1mph
Slalom: 61.9mph
Skidpad: .80g
60-0: 117ft

If you're looking for a definition of what Audi is about, you don't have to look much further than the 2009 Audi Q5. Of course, if you're looking for some kind of premium flagship, then the Audi guys will wave you over to the midengine R8 sports car or perhaps the S5 coupe or even the Q7 V10 turbodiesel sport-utility.

These are fine pieces, sparkling evidence of Audi's ability to think laterally and develop examples of unexpectedly useful technology, a tradition that began with the inline-5 engine, moved on into all-wheel drive and has since popularized everything from direct fuel injection to LED running lights. For all this, though, Audi's strength continues to be simple transportation, vehicles that take you down the road and deliver you safely. You know, sensible stuff.

And the 2009 Audi Q5 expresses these sensible values. It's stylish, luxurious and powerful, yet this is an Audi that's content to be itself, rather than striving to be an alternative to a BMW or a Mercedes-Benz or even a Porsche.


All Things to All People
At its entry-level price of $37,200, the Q5 is a rival to the Infiniti EX35 and the Lexus RX 350. Add all the convenience features on the options list and the $49,000 Q5 Prestige ranks with the way the BMW X3, Land Rover LR2 and Mercedes-Benz GLK are usually equipped. And thanks to electronics that help configure the Q5's power, handling and control feel for the sporting driver, this Audi also tries to deliver the personalized performance of the new coupe-style crossovers like the BMW X6 and forthcoming Acura ZDX. The Audi Q5 makes the idea of being all things to all people into something good.

Scaled up from the platform of the Audi A4 sedan, the Q5 measures 182 inches overall, 74.8 inches wide and 65.2 inches high. It's a couple inches longer than a BMW X3, Land Rover LR2 and Mercedes-Benz GLK, roughly the same size as an Infiniti EX35 and Volvo XC60, and a handful of inches shorter than a Lexus RX 350.

Of all its competition, the 2009 Audi Q5's 110.5-inch wheelbase is the longest, which helps maximize interior passenger volume. Indeed, the Q5 affords 101.5 cubic feet of living space, with 29.1 cubic feet of cargo capacity behind the second seat and 67.3 cubic feet with the second seat folded. In comparison, the Lexus RX 350 has 100.9 cubic feet of interior passenger space, 40 cubic feet of cargo capacity behind the second seat and 80.3 cubic feet of capacity when the second seat is folded.


The Audi Vector
None of this matters when you're rolling down the road, because the Q5 brings the refinement of an Audi to the whole highway proposition. There's none of the carved-from-carbon-steel, heavy-footed German thing that makes the Audi Q7 feel like a Hummer in a Hugo Boss suit.

The ride is supple for a crossover, even with the optional 19-inch 235/55R19 Goodyear LS2 tires, and the overall message is refinement instead of ersatz off-road capability. Somehow the A4's newly rearranged drivetrain components and the latest torque split for the all-wheel-drive system (40 percent front/60 percent rear) seem to make a more noticeable difference in this 4,327-pound package than the 3,870-pound 2008 Audi A4 sedan we last tested.

As with any crossover, there is a lot of weight to move around, but the 3.2-liter Audi V6 does a good job of it. Though this engine seems to lack any sort of personality, it delivers 270 horsepower at 6,500 rpm and 243 pound-feet of torque at 3,000. You don't have to twist it hard enough to get peak output, as the standard six-speed automatic sweeps you along on the broad crest of the torque curve. The Q5 gets to 60 mph from a standstill in 6.8 seconds (6.5 seconds with 1 foot of rollout like on a drag strip) and on to the quarter-mile in 14.9 seconds at 93.1 mph.


Drive Dynamically
What makes the 2009 Audi Q5 unique among its competition is the fact that it can move around all this weight in a different style that depends on the way you set the optional Audi Drive Select. The Q5's electronics configure throttle response, transmission shift points, steering effort and suspension setting according to four different parameters: Comfort, Automatic, Dynamic and Individual.

This system might sound like a gimmick, but the difference in the way the Q5 behaves is immediately noticeable whenever you switch from mode to mode. When it came to acceleration, we discovered a half-second difference in quarter-mile time between Automatic mode with the stability control engaged and Dynamic mode with the stability control switched off.

Around the skid pad, the Q5 records 0.80g in Dynamic, and while the stability control remained active at the limit even when switched off, it intervenes very precisely, first trimming speed with brake applications before chopping the throttle. We noticed a distinct difference in steering effort between the Comfort and Dynamic modes. Under braking, the Q5 stops from 60 mph in 117 feet, and the brakes are effective and fade-free on every stop, while Dynamic mode makes a slight bit of difference in reducing brake dive.

Through the slalom, the Q5 proves surprisingly well balanced, and it turns into the gates crisply with a sensation of nicely weighted steering — very different from any Audi of only a few years ago. The stability control remains active and grabs the front brakes very aggressively — the sort of anti-rollover thing you find in any tall utility vehicle — but it still turns a speed of 61.9 mph.


Audi Does Utility
All this talk about driving dynamics is a little beside the point, though, as a utility vehicle — especially an Audi utility vehicle — is meant to be a little bit more about the experience of riding in the vehicle than operating the machinery.

And it's a fine ride. As always, the aesthetic experience is wonderful, as the combination of high-quality, soft-touch materials, design architecture that doesn't try to visually intimidate you, and a sound driving position really set any Audi apart from the competition. The field of view is commanding, obstructed only by the outside rearview mirrors, devices that seem to grow ever larger by federal mandate, which is one reason why you never see anyone turn their head to check a vehicle's blind spot before changing lanes (much less use the turn signal).

And as a utility vehicle should be, the 2009 Audi Q5 is a little miracle of clever utility. The engine oil level is monitored electronically. There's blind-spot protection warning. There are spaces for 1-liter water bottles in every door and a thermo-controlled cupholder in the center console. The seats are great and three-zone air-conditioning is standard. The power tailgate is broad and helps promote a low liftover height into the cargo compartment. There are levers in the cargo area to flip down the second-row seats for loading convenience.

The U.S.-specification Q5 also comes already equipped with a towing package as standard equipment, and it's rated for 4,400 pounds, which is 900 pounds more than the best of its competition. There's even a special sensor that recalibrates the stability control when the electronics detect that the roof rack is being used, since the vehicle's center of gravity has changed.

The Q5 also incorporates the new third-generation MMI interface for the navigation and infotainment systems, so good in its combination of layout and controls that the new BMW iDrive is simply a pretty frank copy. We like the new terrain mode, which gives you a true three-dimensional view of the oncoming road using terrain data originally recorded by the space shuttle.


The Price of Performance
You get a lot with the 2009 Audi Q5 when it's equipped with the Prestige package, but you also pay a lot — $49,025 for the vehicle you see here. Considering the Q5 is meant to belong to the class of relatively compact crossovers, it's difficult to rationalize when an Audi A6 sedan is staring you in the face for the same price. We found ourselves looking closely at the $37,200 price of a base-model Q5 and wondering what it would be like, while simultaneously scanning this vehicle's options list and wondering what we'd delete (to some, the Drive Select system and 19-inch wheels seemed likely targets).

Maybe this is a lesson that crossovers are not part-time utility boxes. Instead they are what they were meant to be, sedans that have been stretched and folded into a slightly different shape. There is no price discount just because it has a tall roof and a clamshell hatch.

But there could be a more affordable version of the Q5 on the way, as the Audi people tell us candidly that the newfound appreciation among Americans for the price of gasoline (and all things automotive in general) has made it likely that we'll soon see this crossover with the turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4 with its 211 hp and 253 lb-ft of torque.

For all this, though, the 2009 Audi Q5 makes sense to us in a way that few other crossovers do. After all, making sense is the Audi way.


Source: http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...hotopanel..1.*

[Los Angeles]

I agree, it is a bit pricey but, aren't all Audi's in comparison to their competitors?

That being said, the Q5 is really nice!

I'd take it over any of the other small SUVs on the market.

The only other one I would consider would be the new FX SUV.

[DrunkOnJ20]

Originally Posted by Los Angeles

That being said, the Q5 is really nice!

+1, very neat.

[footie]

I saw one in the flesh the other day and it's probably the best looking SUV on sale. Where as the GLK and X3 are very square the Q5's lines flow yet the overall impression of the car is a taut muscular stance.

It's so much better looking than the Q7.

P.S.
It's meant to be quite handy on the track as far as SUVs go. I did read that the 3.0TDI version was as quick the X5 4.8si around the Autozeitung test track which is very impressive given the power difference.

[Year's_End]

Originally Posted by footie

I saw one in the flesh the other day and it's probably the best looking SUV on sale. Where as the GLK and X3 are very square the Q5's lines flow yet the overall impression of the car is a taut muscular stance.

It's so much better looking than the Q7.

P.S.
It's meant to be quite handy on the track as far as SUVs go. I did read that the 3.0TDI version was as quick the X5 4.8si around the Autozeitung test track which is very impressive given the power difference.

I definitely agree in regards to the comparison about the X3 and GLK. The GLK's design is too simplistic and unoriginal, and already looks outdated to me. The X3 is nothing more than a mess. The Q5, while on the bland side, is very well-executed. I can't find much to argue with its sheetmetal, save for the garish taillights (but those taillights do provide a visual connection to the Q7).

In the article, they noted that understeer was not as big of an issue as they expected, which is surprising and good to hear.

I'm itching to test drive one myself.

About the X5 comment: Perhaps it comes down to the overall increase in weight and overall dimensions of the X5.

[footie]

X5 4.8is vs Audi 3.0TDI

Weight : 2275kgs vs 1930kgs (345kgs)
length : 4667mm vs 4629mm (38mm)
Height : 1725mm vs 1653mm (72mm)
Wheelbase : 2820mm vs 2807mm (13mm)
Front track : 1566mm vs 1617mm (49mm)
Rear track : 1596mm vs 1613mm (17mm)
Power HP : 355hp vs 237hp (118hp)
Torque : 500Nm vs 500Nm

PTW : 158 vs 123

Overall size is similar and each have roughly the same footprint but the main differences are overall weight and overall height with the Q5 being the lighter by 345kgs and almost 3" lower but the X5 counters with a much higher power to weight.

All things considered the Audi is very impressive and when you also consider that it doesn't have the trick diff that's part of the S4's package one can only assume that when Audi decide to make a true S or RS model of this car then we will be in for a treat.

[wimpwgn]

Editor's name is "Michael Jordan".

[TheAcAvenger]

Originally Posted by wimpwgn

Editor's name is "Michael Jordan".

IIRC, a guy named Michael Jordan has been writing for car mags since the early 90s. It's just something I always used to notice.

[sinnet112]

It looks nice on the outside and the inside, but my only complaint is the LED positioning. IMO Audis with LEDs on the bottom of the headlight look better than when placed on top.

[Garduna]

It's a good suv. Tho I'd take the GLK. The Q5 definately looks a LOT better than the Q7.

[Robert]

Does it go offroad?

[Year's_End]

Originally Posted by Robert

Does it go offroad?

As well as a 328Xi I'm sure haha.