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Ingolstadt has enjoyed playing around with the letters and numbers that accompany the Q5 badging on the back of an Audi Q5 in the last few years. But perhaps it should brandish just one word underneath the rear lights: success.

The Q5 is Audi’s best-seller (taking 17% of the German brand's global sales in 2024) and can be seen across multiple continents, fulfilling the needs of family SUV owners worldwide.

This new-generation model sits on the new Premium Platform Combustion (PPC) platform, which it shares with the new Audi A5 and Audi A6 saloons and estates.

Unlike those cars, the Q5 isn't offered with a pure combustion engine. It comes with either a 2.0-litre petrol or 2.0-litre diesel engine with a mild-hybrid system. Two plug-in hybrid powertrains are planned for the future too.

And there's a 3.0-litre petrol V6-engined sports model called the Audi SQ5, which gets its own separate review.

Audi’s renewed investment in these powertrains and this model point to larger electric transition plans for the company, which focus on the slower than anticipated uptake of electric cars.

Verdict

Model tested:

Rating:

Audi Q5

A case of evolution over revolution for this mid-sized SUV, which isn’t really a bad thing.

Good

Handsome, understated looks

Practical interior. Certainly large enough for a family

Impressive on-board tech

Bad

Some odd interior ergonomics

Relatively expensive compared with rivals

DESIGN & STYLING

Pros

Evolutionary styling won’t shock current customers

Sportback variant offers a bit of variety

Cons

Will be too close to other Audi designs for some customers’ tastes

It’s a case of evolution over revolution with this latest Q5. It retains the same stance as the outgoing model, while it’s barely any larger in terms of width and height.

Sport models (read cheapest) get 19in alloy wheels, while S Line (middle) and Edition 1 (top) get 20in and 21in alloys respectively. This makes enough of a difference to the lineup to warrant spec choices away from simply interior tech bits.

The Q5 Sportback variant returns too. This slope-roofed, coupé-inspired variant was first introduced in 2021 and in continental Europe it actually outsells the regular SUV.

The difference in space between SUV and Sportback is minimal, to the point that we would suggest it only makes a difference should you regularly be ferrying tall people in the back.

INTERIOR

Pros

Screens are fast, logical and up-to-date

Material quality largely good

Cons

Heating controls on the touchscreen

The interior is very familiar from the other Audi models that sit on the new PPC platform.

That means there’s an 11.9in Virtual Cockpit behind the steering wheel and a 14.5in touchscreen in the middle.

Spring for the Edition 1 model and you also get the Passenger Display, a secondary touchscreen measuring 10.9in. It can be used to alter the sat-nav (inbuilt or with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto) and a few other things.

It allows the front passenger to make some decisions, alleviating the need for the driver to take their eyes off the road. It can also be used to watch videos, invisibly to the driver.

The climate controls are on the big central screen. There’s a bar at the bottom that's shown permanently, and it all works quickly, but you will still find yourself prodding and guessing rather than feeling and knowing.

There are a few peculiarities to be found. There’s an entire control panel where you would typically find the window switches. The foglight controls can be found there, for instance, so if the driver pulls the door closed using this, instead of the handle, they will very likely turn the foglights on.

Material quality is broadly good. Scratchy surfaces are very minimal. But the drive selector for the gearbox is tiny and nicked straight from the Skoda Enyaq. While the gearshift paddles behind the steering wheel are small and made from cheap-feeling plastic.

Practicality has improved from the old Q5. The wheelbase is a touch longer, which has freed up a bit of leg space for rear seat passengers. An adult can sit behind an adult driver with ease and the rear seats can be moved lengthways and tilted, aiding flexibility.

Boot space is 520 litres – roughly the same as before – or 515 with the Sportback bodystyle.

ENGINES & PERFORMANCE

Pros

Neither engine feels wheezy

Should prove economical

Cons

Integration of mild-hybrid system could be smoother

The two engines will look very familiar to anyone who has browsed a Volkswagen Group configurator in the past five or so years.

The diesel is the one to go for. It doles out effortless slugs of torque that work well with the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. The integration of the three driveline elements is weighted in favour of the diesel engine, because of its relaxed nature.

The petrol engine needs to rev a fair bit to get going and the gearbox feels the need to shuffle numbers a bit too much for a truly relaxed ride, whereas the diesel just seems to glide on by.

Both units have a mild-hybrid system. This comprises a pair of electric motors (one on the engine, one on the automatic gearbox) and a 1.7kWh battery. This adds 24bhp and apparently allows for some electric-only running.

When you’re motoring along, it works pretty seamlessly, but the integration isn’t so smooth when you're stopping.

Occasionally there's just a touch of guesswork to the brakes. The feedback is inconsistent and sometimes it's hard to judge how much force is needed to get onto the disc.

RIDE & HANDLING

Pros

Optional adaptive air suspension delivers accommodating ride

Cons

We’re yet to try it with the standard suspension

So far we've been able to drive only Q5s with air suspension, which will be a £1725 option in the UK and only on top-spec cars.

Both petrol and diesel variants coped with smooth Spanish roads wonderfully.

Comfort mode – with everything dialled back – is smooth, pliant and amenable to demands of the road. It planes out nearly all potholes but isn’t so soft that it throws you down an elevation change only to have you bounce out the other side. Whether it can do it on a cold, wet Tuesday night in Stoke remains to be seen.

The steering, much like with the SQ5, is a touch light but does give some feedback.

The Q5 isn’t the last word in dynamic prowess but is broadly more enjoyable than the class average. Importantly, it’s easy to place, which is because, at 1900mm across it's hardly slimeline, albeit marginally less wide than the Mercedes-Benz GLC or BMW X3.

VERDICT

Verdict

Model tested:

Rating:

Audi Q5

A case of evolution over revolution for this mid-sized SUV, which isn’t really a bad thing.

Good

Handsome, understated looks

Practical interior. Certainly large enough for a family

Impressive on-board tech

Bad

Some odd interior ergonomics

Relatively expensive compared with rivals

The Q5 is a good car, then, and a very natural selection in a sea of other premium mid-size SUVs.

The Edition 1 car tested here is, as you might imagine, pricey, but bottom-spec Sport models offer a useful £10,000 discount.

Basically, a Q5 could fit into most people’s lifestyles with ease, and the families who flocked to the old Q5 won’t be disappointed.

Murray Scullion

Title: Digital editor

Murray has been a journalist for more than a decade. During that time he’s written for magazines, newspapers and websites, but he now finds himself as Autocar’s digital editor.

He leads the output of the website and contributes to all other digital aspects, including the social media channels, podcasts and videos. During his time he has reviewed cars ranging from £50 - £500,000, including Austin Allegros and Ferrari 812 Superfasts. He has also interviewed F1 megastars, knows his PCPs from his HPs and has written, researched and experimented with behavioural surplus and driverless technology.

Murray graduated from the University of Derby with a BA in Journalism in 2014 and has previously written for Classic Car Weekly, Modern Classics Magazine, buyacar.co.uk, parkers.co.uk and CAR Magazine, as well as carmagazine.co.uk.