The Audi A5 Coupe Was Never Trying to Be a Sports Car, and Both Reviews Respect It More For That
Both reviews arrive at the same conclusion about this second-generation two-door: it was always a grand tourer wearing sporty coupe styling, not a genuine BMW 4 Series rival for outright driving thrills — and judged on those terms, it's aged into a genuinely appealing used buy.
Honest About What It's Actually For
Plenty of coupes overpromise on driving excitement they can't deliver. Reviewers keep crediting the A5 with the opposite problem — quietly excellent at comfortable, refined cruising, while never really pretending to be something sportier than that.
Specs at a Glance
| Body style | Two-door coupe (Cabriolet and four-door Sportback also offered) |
|---|---|
| Production | 2016–2024 (facelifted late 2019) |
| Engines | 35 TFSI/TDI through 45 TFSI 265 quattro, plus S5 and RS5 |
| Platform | Shares its mechanical underpinnings with the contemporary A4 saloon |
| Used price range | From around £10,000 (2016/17) to £20,000+ (2023/24) |
Full Review Summary
Top Gear
Top Gear rated the standard A5 as a GT at heart rather than an involving driver's car, praising its comfortable, high-quality interior and excellent rolling refinement over any pretence of B-road thrills — description that applies even to the S5 and RS5, which Top Gear found similarly uninvolving despite the extra power. They singled out sports suspension, standard on S Line and Black Edition trims, as tangibly worsening ride quality without materially improving how the car feels to drive, recommending either base Sport trim or a pricier Vorsprung with adaptive suspension for the best comfort. They rated the cabin as genuinely top-class, sharing its fundamental design with the A4 saloon but executed with tactile leathers, woods and metals that felt properly premium throughout.
What Car?
What Car? confirmed the steering is precise but never particularly involving, and rated ride quality on sports-suspension cars (standard on S Line and Black Edition) as noticeably firmer than the A5's otherwise relaxed character suits, again pointing buyers toward lesser trims for outright comfort. They praised interior quality as pipping its German rivals on materials, if lacking some of a Mercedes C-Class Coupe's design flair, and rated the diesel range — particularly the 2.0 TDI 190 Ultra at a claimed 68.9mpg — as the strongest choice for buyers prioritising running costs. A mid-life facelift brought revised "35/40/45 TFSI/TDI" engine naming and reshuffled trim levels into Sport, S Line and Vorsprung.
Strengths
- Genuinely excellent cabin quality and material feel
- Comfortable, refined cruising manners on non-sports-suspension trims
- Strong diesel efficiency, particularly the 2.0 TDI Ultra
- Distinctive coupe styling that's aged well
Weak points
- Steering and handling never particularly involving, even on S5/RS5
- Sports suspension trims ride firmly without a meaningful dynamic payoff
- Rear headroom tight for taller adults given the sloping roofline
- Ageing infotainment on pre-facelift (2016–2019) cars
Who It Actually Suits
Buyers who want genuine Audi cabin quality and coupe styling for relaxed, comfortable driving rather than outright engagement — and who are shopping used, given production ended in 2024. Both reviews agree base Sport trim or a well-specified Vorsprung ride noticeably better than S Line or Black Edition, worth prioritising over chasing sportier badges.