What’s this new car all about then?
The simple answer is that the Audi S5 Avant is the replacement for the S4 Avant - the hottish version of the A4. But it’s called “S5”, not “S4”, which is where it gets not-so-simple.
A while back, Audi decided its new electric models should have even numbers and its combustion-engine vehicles odd. So the new A4/S4 models got shifted up a digit to A5/S5 after 30 years of being perfectly happy where they were… even though there has also previously been an A5/S5 that was quite a different thing. A coupe, in fact. But okay.
And then, in February this year, Audi changed its mind again and decided the model numbers could just indicate the size of car regardless of motive power, while the powertrains could be identified by the familiar “e”, “e-tron”, “TFSI” and “TDI” badges. Like they used to do, in other words.
So the S5 could have stayed an S4 after all, except it was all too late because it was out in the market already. S5 it is then.
This car is all-new, on a fresh platform called PPC (premium platform combustion). It’s upsized a bit over the previous S4: 67mm longer and 13mm wider, so not far off the girth of the previous RS 4.
This is not a full RS model remember, but the S5’s 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 is pretty healthy all the same: 270kW/550Nm. It’s a mild hybrid, or “MHEV Plus” in Audi-speak because it has the 48-volt electrical system plus an electric motor nestled in the 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox. It can actually creep along in zero-emissions mode if needed, albeit only for extremely short distances (like up the driveway in the morning). But it can also hit 100km/h in 4.5 seconds.
It’s an S5, so it’s got all the fancy quattro hardware, including S sport suspension (20mm lower) with damper control, and a sport differential with torque vectoring.
Fancy lights and fancy interiors are Audi things and the S5 has both. The matrix headlights are customisable with 9 different daytime running light signatures to choose from (you can change them on the phone app or in the car) and the OLED rears can put on quite a light show, depending on what the car is doing.
The cabin design will be familiar if you’ve been in the new Q6, with a panoramic curved display and passenger-side screen as standard. The head-up display is a whopping 85% bigger than the previous model.
There’s a new “interaction light” at the base of the windscreen that glows different colours depending on what it’s trying to tell you (similar to Volkswagen’s ID models) and the driver gets a “smart door panel” with a multitude of touch controls.
The upholstery and materials are outstanding, including a little flash of suede-like Dinamica trim across the bottom of the dash. The Sports Seats Plus are snug without feeling overbearing and there’s a little touch of bling with an illuminated S-logo on the backrest.
The standard upholstery is basic black, but if you’re feeling bold there’s an Arras Red option, which is striking but still classic.
There's a new finish for the formerly shiny bits in the cabin called Vanadium Darkened Metal - basically a smoky colour for what would otherwise be chrome-look.
The S5 is still a really good wagon, with 40/2040 split rear seat, power luggage cover and 476 litres of cargo space.
How much is it?
The S5 is $147,990 and comes comprehensively equipped, but naturally you can also indulge yourself with the options list.
There were a couple of notable ones on our test-drive cars. There’s a $1000 Bang & Olufsen 3D Premium Sound System with head restraint speakers that are quite clever, because you can configure what comes through them independently of the rest of the audio system (sat-nav instructions, for example).
The $5000 panoramic glass sunroof is also pretty trick, with 9 separate sections and switchable transparency. Let there be light; or not, it's your choice.
What’s it like to drive?
Our day-long introductory drive wasn’t exactly comprehensive, thanks to traffic (expected) and endless road works (not). Don’t worry, we’ve got a longer-term test car coming.
But first impressions suggest this is very Audi-S: astonishingly fast with a woofly-but-subdued soundtrack, and absolutely unflappable in fast corners thanks to all that quattro/sport differential action.
There’s a whiff of hesitation from the dual-clutch gearbox in low-speed driving and the brakes feel a bit funny in traffic (hybrid regen perhaps), but once the S5 is up and running it’s incredibly slick and dead-easy to drive fast.
What’s the pick of the range?
It’s a range of one for now. But there are more models from this series to come.
There’s an A5 Avant e-hybrid on the way and next year we’ll see the RS 5 in both sedan and Avant forms. Brace yourselves.
What other cars should I consider?
If we’re talking compact-executive wagons, Audi pretty much owns this segment in NZ. Arch rival BMW has a 3-series Touring, but nothing that lines up directly with the medium-hot S5; when the superheated RS 5 Avant arrives it’ll be game-on however, because BMW now has an M3 Touring.
And Mercedes-Benz doesn’t currently offer a C-Class estate in NZ of any kind. So the S5 has this territory to itself.
