Audi gives sneek peek of A5 Sportback

AUDI has confirmed that its five-door, coupe-style A5 Sportback – the third body variant in the A5 range after the Coupe and Cabriolet – will roll on to Australian wharves early next year.

The German company today released teaser images of the model as it began to ramp up the pre-launch publicity for the newest A5, which is effectively its first five-door A4.

A photograph shows a glimpse of the rear hatch, while a sketch shows the car in profile, with its sloped rear body silhouette that Audi says will deliver “the comfort of a sedan and the versatility of an Avant”.

Audi Australia has also confirmed that the Sportback will get a choice of TDI diesel and FSI petrol engines in this market, although it did not specify capacities or other details. In Europe, five engines will be offered when the car is launched there in September.

The A5 Coupe launched recently in Australia has two petrol engines – a 2.0-litre 155kW/350Nm turbo in the TFSI quattro, and a 3.2-litre 195kW/330Nm normally aspirated V6 in the 3.2 FSI. No diesel is currently offered in the two-door coupe.

Among details revealed today, Audi said the Sportback would get a longer, 2810mm wheelbase – 59mm longer than the Coupe – and frameless doors.

It said the Sportback’s luggage capacity would be 480 litres – 25 litres more than the coupe’s and almost equal to that of the A4 Avant. This would expand to 980 litres with the rear seatbacks folded down.

Audi said that despite the coupe-like styling, the Sportback would be a “genuine four-seater boasting a full measure of comfort for driver and each passenger and ample head and legroom”.

All engines in Europe feature direct injection and meet the Euro V exhaust emission standard. Diesel versions will have particulate filters.

In A4, Audi Australia offers no fewer than three diesel variants, ranging from the 2.0-litre four-cylinder TDI to the 2.7-litre V6 TDI and the 3.0-litre V6 TDI for the quattro. The same engines are being offered in Europe in the Sportback.

The Sportback also gets Audi’s newly developed electronic stability control system with electronic differential lock on the front axle for better steering response, plus the Audi “dynamic driving system” that allows the driver to choose between three different driving modes.

Audi Australia says engine availability and pricing will be confirmed closer to launch.

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