August arrival for Audi Q5 Sportback

AUDI Australia has announced details of its inaugural Q5 Sportback coupe-SUV range, which features the option of online purchasing, a five-year service plan and the choice of mild hybrids in two diesels and a petrol engine.

The two Q5 variants and an SQ5 performance SUV, built in Mexico at a factory that derives all its power from solar panels, will launch here in August priced from $77,700 plus on-road costs.

The Sportback trio are additional to the Q5 range and will expand the model to 11 variants.

Audi unveiled the Q5 Sportback in Europe last year and promptly received strong interest from Australian buyers.

Audi Australia managing director Paul Sansom said the five-door Sportback style “has met a perfect match in the extraordinarily popular Q5 SUV”.

“We have had very high levels of customer interest in the Q5 Sportback range since it was first unveiled last year, and we're pleased to now be delivering on its promise,” he said.

“The Q5 Sportback looks set to begin a successful new era for the Q5 range."

The Q5 Sportback is distinguished by its coupe-like tail that follows the lines of the Q3 and e-tron Sportback. It retains Audi’s signature ‘singleframe’ grille flanked by LED or matrix LED headlights.

Its profile shows the third side glass tapering sharply to the rear to end with a dramatically sloping rear window and high-mounted bumper.

Tail-lights can be optioned as OLED units that display a warning signal to drivers following within 2m by creating a choreographed sequence of flashing lights.

Audi will specify all the Q5 Sportback models with the S line exterior styling, including honeycomb pattern grille, trapezoidal front bumper design with matt-aluminium inserts, S line rear spoiler and diffuser with selenite silver trim, as well as S line badging.

The diesel-engined SQ5 Sportback 40 TDI will open the model range with a $77,700 price before on-road costs and the Sportback 45 TFSI petrol is priced at $86,300. The SQ5 will be $110,900, plus costs.

The 40 and 45 feature mild hybrid electric vehicle (MHEV) technology for efficiency and additional performance and have a seven-speed S Tiptronic transmission with Audi’s quattro all-wheel drive system.

Under the bonnet of the Q5 40 TDI is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel rated at 150kW/400Nm that gives the Q5 a 0-100km/h sprint time of 7.6 seconds.

Audi claims it has an “exceptional long-distance range” because of its 5.4 litres/100km average and 70-litre fuel tank that gives it a theoretical range of more than 1250 km.

The Q5 Sportback 45 TFSI has a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine with MHEV, developing 183kW/370Nm for a sprint time of 6.3 seconds.

Audi’s premium performance Q5 is the SQ5 Sportback that arrives with a 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine featuring 48-volt MHEV system and electric-powered compressor (EPC) to produce 251kW/700Nm.

The engine delivers a flat torque band with its full strength between 1750rpm and 3250rpm. The early power delivery, attributable in part to the forced-air electric compressor, gives it a 0-100km/h time of only 5.1 seconds.

The efficiency gains provided by the MHEV system also gives it a 7.1L/100km fuel average.

Audi said the fitment of an actuator in the exhaust system gives the V6 “a distinctive and sonorous sound” that can be controlled via Audi drive select.

To reduce emissions, the two diesel engines have a twin-dosing technology of two SCR catalytic converters working together. The first of these is behind the exhaust manifold where it also functions as a particulate filter, while the second is located further away from the engine under the vehicle floor.

Audi said both catalytic converters complement each other because they cover different operating situations and exhaust gas temperature windows. The SCR catalytic converters are fed by AdBlue urea solution via a large tank.

The emissions systems allow both diesels to return levels “substantially below” the latest Euro 6d emissions standards, which also stipulate a dramatic reduction in NOx emissions on the WLTP real-world test cycle, Audi said.

The SQ5 mates its V6 engine with an eight-speed tiptronic transmission that feeds drive through the quattro system to all wheels.

It has a self-locking centre differential that is able to direct 40 per cent of the torque to the front axle and 60 per cent to the rear in normal driving conditions, with up to 85 per cent directed to the rear wheels if conditions demand. Optional is a sport differential that can direct almost 100 per cent of torque to either rear wheel.

The SQ5 also gets standard adaptive suspension with damper control that gives it a 30mm lower ride height than the Q5 Sportback. Air suspension, that adjusts the ride height through five levels depending on the driving situation, is optional.

Safety features include a five-star ANCAP rating, eight airbags, AEB with pedestrian detection, driver attention assist, side assist and lane assist (with lane change warning), exit warning, hill-descent control, rear cross-traffic alert, hill-hold assist, park assist, parking system plus with reversing camera, tyre-pressure monitor and pre-sense basic/rear, as well as intelligent 360-degree cameras.

The Q5 Sportback 45 TFSI quattro and SQ5 Sportback TDI also include adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist as standard.

Cabin features include Android Auto and wireless Apple CarPlay, Virtual Cockpit Plus with a 10.1-inch high-resolution touchscreen, wireless phone charging, two simultaneous Bluetooth connections, Digital DAB+ radio and four USB outlets (two in the rear).

All Q5s have an embedded SIM card for connectivity including integrated online traffic, weather, fuel prices, parking information, destination send-to-car and Google Maps. It also has a service request to the dealer and an emergency call function.

The new trio build on the cabin features of the other Q5 versions but add high-end items including sports front seats and heated auto-folding mirrors with auto dimming and reverse dipping.

S line appointments include black cloth headlining, aluminium trim inlays, black gloss surfaces in black gloss and illuminated door sills.

In the 45 TFSI, standard kit includes fine Nappa leather upholstery with diamond stitching for the seats including the front sports seats, inlays in matt brushed aluminium, stainless steel pedals and contrasting stitching. It also gets a sliding and reclining rear seat.

Despite the coupe roof line, the luggage compartment is 510 litres – just 10 litres less than the SUV bodystyle – while also offering “substantial” headroom for all occupants.

The SQ5 Sportback TDI features the same level of specification as the recently introduced SQ5 TDI, with the exception of a new 21-inch turbine alloy wheel design.

Audi will offer the Sportbacks in a selection of nine exterior colours and a variety of interior colour schemes.

It will also have a comprehensive Audi five-year service plan package priced at $3140 for the two Sportbacks, and $3170 for the SQ5.

Option packages are also available, including the Comfort package (40 TDI) and Technik package (40 TDI and 45 TFSI).

The Q5 Sportback and SQ5 Sportback TDI are made at Audi’s San José Chiapa site in Mexico, which derives 100 per cent of its power from renewable energy resources, generated by a photovoltaic plant in Chihuahua, Mexico.

Buyers will also be able to buy the new Sportback on order through the Audi online purchase platform.