2020 Audi Q5 vs 2017

What's the difference?

In 2019, from a range boasting more than a dozen different models, the mid-size luxury Q5 SUV was Audi Australia’s best seller.

Right-sized for the city, yet large enough for the highway, its appeal is partially underpinned by a premium, but not over-the-top price list stretching from around $65,000 to just over $90K.

We spent a week behind the wheel of the second-from-the-top 45 TFSI Sport to see if this Q5’s Vorsprung and Durch match its Technik.

Okay, this whole SUV thing is getting out of hand, and Audi is on the front line of a new car market assault that’s rapidly knocking conventional sedans and hatches into the weeds.

In March this year, at the Geneva motor show, Audi’s chairman, Rupert Stadler, was asked by our very own Matt Campbell, whether there were any more gaps to be filled in the brand’s SUV line-up.

There’s already a Q2, Q3, Q5, and Q7, with the Q8 shown in concept form and on track for production next year.

In response, Stadler simply said, “Definitely. Believe me, we will fill the gaps.” And it looks like he means business, with 2019 likely to see the arrival of a coupe-style Q4, and all-electric ‘e-tron’ Q6.

But with all this furious niche-plugging going on, the Q5 quietly remains the backbone of Audi’s determined push into the wonderful world of SUVs.

And this particular Q5 is an ‘S line Black’ limited edition. A total of 70 are scheduled to come to Australia, and a week behind the wheel gave us a chance to reacquaint ourselves with this evergreen premium mid-sizer.