Audi A5 Review & Prices

The Audi A5 is a posh four-door car that’s handsome, comfortable and comes with a wide range of engines - but the boot is pretty small and the interior doesn’t feel as solid as the closest alternatives.

The A5 is actually the successor to the Audi A4 saloon, not to the Audi A5 coupe. Audi’s naming strategy feels a bit like two parents fighting over who gets to name the newborn children - but whether the A5 is named Steve or Araminta, it’s still an alternative to other premium family cars like the Mercedes C-Class, BMW 3 Series, Volvo V60 or Volkswagen Passat.

You can tell the A5 is in the same family as the latest Audi A6 and Q5 SUV. The front grille and slim headlights are flanked by a pair of big air intakes, giving the whole front end quite a purposeful look. Wide wheel arches and muscular flanks reinforce that impression, while the rear of the car gets the ever-in-vogue full-width lightbar and a pronounced boot lip spoiler.

The lights are particularly fancy, because you can configure the pattern of the daytime running lights to personalise your car a little. They can even display detailed patterns like warning icons.

Inside, the A5 gets a huge, sweeping twin-screen dashboard, with an 11.9-inch driver display and a massive 14.5-inch infotainment touchscreen. It’s a huge upgrade over the old car but feels a little overkill, and while it fits the larger A6 and Q6 the sheer size makes the quite compact A5 feel a little claustrophobic.

You can even option a third display for the front passenger, which is totally unnecessary, but if you don’t then you get an ugly slab of fingerprint-heavy black plastic. That’s rather a theme, actually, with too many surfaces covered in cheap-feeling plastic where on a BMW 3 Series they’re more solid.

Despite the hefty dashboard, it’s not too cramped inside the A5. It’s one of the best cars for very tall drivers because the seat goes back all the way to the rear bench - but if there’s someone average-sized installed in the front, rear-seat passengers have enough room to get comfy on a long journey. Headroom isn’t spectacular thanks to the sloping roofline, but you can always get the Audi A5 Avant (estate) if that’s a concern.

The Avant might be a better bet if you need a lot of boot space, too. The A5 has a 445-litre boot - dropping to 417 litres in four-wheel drive models and a measly 331 litres for the plug-in hybrid - which is smaller than the equivalent Mercedes C-Class and BMW 3 Series. The saving grace is the hatchback boot, which does make it easier to load bulky items than in a traditional saloon.

Under the bonnet the A5 comes with a range of engines including petrol, diesels and a plug-in hybrid. It’s nice that Audi still offers a diesel - BMW doesn’t - and it’s a great option for very long-distance drivers, but most people will be better served by one of the peppy and reasonably efficient petrols.

The plug-in hybrid is a great option for company car drivers as it attracts very low benefit-in-kind tax, but it’s a lot more expensive than the other engines and doesn’t have the longest all-electric range of its alternatives.

Regardless of engine, though, the Audi A5 is a lovely car to cruise around in. The diesel engine can be a bit noisy but the petrols are very quiet, and once you settle into a motorway run things are very hushed indeed with little wind or road noise.

At lower speeds it’s effortless to drive around town thanks to light steering and decent visibility, and even the regular petrol and diesel engines have a bit of electrical assistance for better pickup from a standstill. The gearbox is a bit clunkier than the BMW 3 Series’, though.

Verdict

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it - the Audi A5 is an evolution from the old A4 and retains that car’s classy looks, reasonable practicality and easy-to-get-along-with driving manners. A BMW 3 Series is better to drive and more practical, though, and the A5’s new interior isn’t anything like as solid-feeling as the old A4’s was - so it’s no longer as easy a recommendation as it was.

If you’re interested in one, check out the latest Audi A5 Saloon deals available on Carwow, or save money with an Audi A5 lease deal. You can also browse used A5 Saloons as well as other used Audis from our network of trusted dealers. When it’s time to sell your current car, Carwow can help with that, too.

The Audi A5 starts at around £43,000, which puts it right in the middle of its closest alternatives. A BMW 3 Series costs about £42,000, while a Mercedes C-Class starts nearer £46,000. The estate-only Volkswagen Passat is a little cheaper at around £41,000 and the Volvo V60 starts at about £45,000. The plug-in hybrid A5 is a bigger investment at roughly £50,000, compared with about £47,000 for a BMW 330e and £53,000 for a Mercedes C300e.

The range starts with Sport trim, which gets 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, heated front seats, three-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control and a reversing camera as standard. This trim is named Technic for e-Hybrid models.

S line adds 19-inch wheels, sportier exterior styling, sports suspension, leather sports seats, privacy glass and ambient interior lighting. Black Edition brings black exterior detailing alongside more distinctive interior trim and extra comfort equipment. Vorsprung sits at the top of the regular range at around £57,000, or £64,000 as a PHEV, adding 20-inch wheels, Matrix LED headlights, a panoramic glass roof, head-up display, 360-degree cameras and the 10.9-inch passenger screen.

The diesel engine is a lovely thing for motorway driving, but can be a bit unrefined at lower speeds

In town

The Audi A5 uses advanced mild-hybrid technology, which means you don’t quite get the all-electric driving capabilities of a proper hybrid, but you can pootle around at lower speeds without engaging the combustion engine. It does improve refinement in heavy traffic, but when the diesel engine in particular is called upon, it can be quite noisy.

The e-Hybrid is the model to have if you do a lot of urban journeys and can regularly charge up. It has around 60 miles of electric range, which is plenty for even the most demanding commute, and the A5 really suits smooth, silent electric power.

Otherwise the A5 is an easy thing to pilot around town thanks to light and direct steering, and visibility is pretty good too. You do have to be aware that the gearbox can be caught out if you’re slowing for a roundabout and then decide to accelerate, though, which can get mildly frustrating.

You get some useful kit as standard, such as 360-degree cameras to help with parking, as well as some driver assistance tech to help avoid accidents in town.

On the motorway

The Audi A5 Saloon is at home on the motorway, particularly in diesel form where it settles into a quiet, refined and economical cruise. Wind and road noise are kept to a minimum, and you’ll barely notice bumps in the road.

You get adaptive cruise control as standard, which helps maintain your speed and your distance to the car in front, as well as a lane departure warning system. You also get a blind spot monitor on top-spec Edition 1 models.

On a twisty road

With its focus on comfort and refinement, it comes as no surprise that the Audi A5 Saloon is not the most engaging car to drive down a twisty road. The steering responds quickly to your inputs, which gives a hint of sportiness, but you don’t get much feedback from the tyres and the gearbox isn’t particularly eager to shift when left to its own devices. The suspension deals well with bumps though, and it all feels very safe and secure, just not quite as much fun as a BMW 3 Series on the same road.

The Audi A5 Saloon’s cabin is relatively roomy, but alternatives offer more space in the boot

When you sit inside the Audi A5 Saloon it’s easy to get a comfortable driving position because there’s plenty of adjustment in the driver’s seat and steering wheel. However, we found that the instrument display is set quite high, so the top of the wheel rim blocked the top of the display, which is inconvenient, though this is likely to be dependent on your driving position.

Speaking of which, the twin-screen display does rather loom over you, so you might feel you need to sit higher than you otherwise might to see clearly over them.

Storage is pretty good, with door bins that are roomy if a little awkward to get to, and a large if shallow space under the armrest. You get two deep cupholders with a wireless charging pad beneath the main screen, which angles your phone away from you to help avoid distractions. Above this sits a pair of USB-C slots and a 12V socket.

Space in the back seats

Rear seat space is generous, with lots of kneeroom and shoulder room. Headroom should be fine for most, though those over six-feet might find things a bit tight. One minor complaint is that the rails for the seat in front force you to rest your feet off to one side slightly, which could become uncomfortable on a long journey.

There’s good width for three, but the middle seat isn’t the comfiest. The cushion feels hard and you’re perched quite high, with a huge hump to straddle your feet either side of.

Fitting a child seat is a breeze because of the space on offer, and the ISOFIX mounting points are really easy to get to, with sliding (rather than removable) covers that mean you can’t lose them.

Storage isn’t quite as good as it is up front, with small door bins and nets on the back of the seats in front, while two cup holders can be found in the centre armrest.

Boot space

The Audi A5 Saloon has a 445-litre boot as standard, but this drops to 417 litres in four-wheel drive versions and a positively pokey 331 litres in the e-Hybrid models. The space isn’t particularly deep, but it’s quite long and wide, so you should be able to fit plenty of bags inside, just note that anything taller will be pressed into the parcel shelf.

Most alternatives offer more boot space, though. The Mercedes C-Class gives you 455 litres of capacity, while the BMW 3 Series is bigger still at 480 litres - and both have more space in their respective PHEV versions, too. The Audi’s hatchback-style boot opening does make the space a bit easier to access, though.

Solid build quality and lightning fast infotainment, but the wheel-mounted controls are annoying

You can’t fault the quality inside the Audi A5 Saloon. It feels every bit the premium product you expect, with squishy plastics and solid build quality that feels like it should stand the test of time. The large section of piano black trim around the gear selector is likely to be a fingerprint magnet, though.

The design is simple yet elegant, with flowing lines and subtly different materials that make the cabin interesting without being too fussy.

However, the ultra-modern twin-screen setup rather dominates your view ahead. It’s the same setup you get in the Audi Q6 e-tron, which is a bigger car with a higher driving position. In the A5 the screens feel a bit too big and make the space feel a bit smaller than it is.

You will likely get used to this in time, to be fair, and there can be no complaints about actually using the screens. The 14.5-inch touchscreen in the centre is as fast as any tablet, so you can flick between menus quickly and easily. The graphics are a bit dark, as is the Audi way, but the display is super-sharp and easy to read.

You also get an 11.9-inch digital instrument display called ‘Virtual Cockpit’, which displays all your important driving information in an easily digestible way, and you can configure it to suit your needs, too.

On top of this, there’s a third screen ahead of the passenger on top-spec Edition 1 models. With that in place the whole dashboard is covered in screens, but it can be useful to let your passenger control some features such as the music. It’s supposed to have a privacy screen so the driver can’t see it and therefore isn’t distracted, but this didn’t appear to be at all effective in our test cars.

It’s a bit of a shame that the climate controls are all built into the touchscreen rather than physical buttons and dials, but they are permanently positioned along the bottom of the display, so at least you’re not fiddling about in menus while trying to concentrate on driving.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard-fit, and you get a wireless phone charging pad for all models too. The Sound and Vision Pack is a pricey upgrade at £2,495, but if your budget allows for it then it’s a box worth ticking, as you get a head-up display and an excellent Bang & Olufsen sound system.

If we’re being picky, the touch-sensitive steering wheel controls are really annoying. If your palm brushes them you can set things off in the car – it can be quite distracting when the volume suddenly increases in the middle of a corner, for example…

There are four engine choices in the Audi A5, starting with a pair of 2.0-litre petrols producing 150hp or 204hp. Both officially manage around 41mpg, although the 204hp version is much quicker and is the one we’d go for if you want petrol power. In everyday driving, something around 38mpg should be achievable from the 204hp car without having to try particularly hard.

The 204hp diesel makes most sense if you regularly cover long distances. Official economy is up to around 58mpg, and something in the low-50s should be realistic in mixed driving, with longer motorway journeys giving you the best chance of getting close to the official number. Quattro four-wheel drive is also available, although it comes with a small fuel-economy penalty.

There’s also an e-Hybrid plug-in hybrid version, combining a 2.0-litre petrol engine with an electric motor for 299hp and quattro four-wheel drive. Its 20.7kWh battery gives it an official electric range of up to around 70 miles which is about 60 miles in the real world. As ever with a PHEV, the spectacular official combined mpg figure doesn’t tell you much about what happens once the battery is empty - on a long journey with a discharged battery we saw around 45mpg, which is actually pretty respectable for such a powerful four-wheel-drive petrol car.

The e-Hybrid is easily the most appealing A5 for company car drivers thanks to its low CO2 emissions and much lower Benefit-in-Kind tax than the petrol or diesel versions. For private buyers who rarely charge, though, the diesel will make more sense for long-distance economy and the regular petrols cost considerably less to buy. Every A5 costs more than £40,000 when new, so all versions are liable for the expensive car supplement in years two to six of ownership, although the e-Hybrid’s low CO2 emissions mean its first-year tax bill is much lower than the combustion-only models.

Audi A5 Euro NCAP score (2024): 5/5

Adult occupant: 87%
Child occupant: 88%
Vulnerable road users: 78%
Safety assist: 77%

The Audi A5 Saloon scored the full five stars in Euro NCAP safety testing. It scored 87% and 88% in adult and child occupant protection respectively.

You get decent safety kit as standard, including parking assistance technology with a 360-degree camera. Adaptive cruise control is included on all models and includes lane departure warning and some collision avoidance tech. Top-spec Edition 1 models get extra safety features, including a system that prepares the car when it senses an imminent impact to minimise the effect on the driver.

Audi still doesn’t have a particularly strong reputation for owner satisfaction, finishing 23rd out of 30 manufacturers in the 2026 Driver Power survey. That puts it well behind BMW in fifth place and Mercedes, which topped the table altogether.

There has been one relevant UK recall affecting a very small number of early current-generation A5s. Nine cars built between November 2024 and January 2025 were recalled because an inadequate weld on the right-hand rear seat backrest could increase the risk of injury in a frontal crash when heavy luggage was being carried. The fix involves replacing the affected seat backrest.

Every new Audi comes with a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty, which is fairly typical for a premium car but looks stingy next to the much longer cover available from brands such as Lexus. Mercedes and BMW match the A5 in terms of time but allow unlimited mileage over that period.