I've been test driving cars alot recently on my off days just for fun and today I stopped by the Audi dealer. I was intending to drive an A5 (wanted to feel the difference between my car and the 2.0t to see if I could deal with the hp decrease) and told the salesman as much. He seemed to think it would be better to sample a beautiful white S5 6MT instead and who the hell was I to argue???

I took some pics this time to liven up my story!



IMPRESSIONS:

The first thing I noticed was the sound. It was an understated growl but with a basso profundo quality you could feel in your chest. I know the 4.2 V8 is on the way out but I honestly can't see preferring the SC V6 over this engine even if it is faster. The V8 is just that good! Secondly, as I slid behind the driver's seat I realized that the steering wheel had MANUAL adjustments for up/down/in/out which surprised me in a car that stickered for $63k!!!

I snicked the six-speed shifter in first and we set off. Gear selection was smooth, if a bit notchy, but the clutch had a soft engagement that made it feel artificial somehow. I'm used to the 600 lb leg-press I have to do in my Infiniti so this clutch took some getting used to. The revs rise quickly in this car and, combined with the weird clutch feel, my first couple runs through the gears were a bit amateurish I must admit. Eventually I got settled in and could focus on the experience.

INTERIOR:



The car I got to drive had the red leather interior with CF trim. All I can say is: WOW. This thing has the class to put my poor ol' G37 to shame! Interestingly the door plastics were hard to the touch but still exuded quality. The Nappa leather seats were butter-smooth and felt like a million bucks on my backside. Other interior features included a button-type parking brake (which I did not like), a beautiful brushed aluminum starter button, and black cloth headliner (no alcantara unfortunately). The nav screen was on the small side IMO and the map screens were slightly disappointing (good resolution but unimpressive graphical design). The Audi MMI was very cool and allowed for numerous functions through the nav screen (though I was more focused on the drive so I didn't play around with it much).

I loved the gauges and the info screen in between was top notch. The smell was heavenly as well. I can't tell you how bad I wanted to sign the papers for that car right then and there but, alas, it wasn't meant to be.

PERFORMANCE:

The salesman was a really cool guy and he gave me plenty of leeway when it came time to open up the taps. I worked in a couple of highway on-ramp acclerations as well as some tight turns on my 20 minute test drive. The interesting thing about this car is that the power feels comparable to my G37's but the sound makes it seem like you are going much faster. In all honesty, my seat-o-the-pants dyno says that this car is quick but not amazing. The redline sits at 7k rpm and I wrung it out to that number in the first 3 gears several times so I can safely say I got to experience all she had to offer. Again it was impressive, but just marginally faster than my car.

The steering feel was a bit muted and artificial but very quick and very precise. I didn't get to do any full-on braking but the binders felt more than adequate in the stops I did make. In the short time I had with the car I can basically describe its performance as impressive, but not anything noticeably greater than the other cars in this class (G37/IS350/335i/etc). The thing that struck me most was the experience itself. This car just feels like its in a higher class than those other cars even if it doesn't necessarily perform any better.



FEATURES:

My tester was fully loaded and, manual steering adjustments notwithstanding, there were an impressive array of features including rain sensing wipers, two SD card slots, seat heaters with 6 adjustments, a panoramic tilting roof, and blind-spot indicators in the mirrors. Seat-coolers were conspicuous by their absence, however.

COMFORT:

The S5 is a fairly large car on the outside but that doesn't translate to the interior. The car is every bit as cramped as my G37 and the trunk is only deeper but no wider. The seats felt amazing but were a bit confining to my admittedly wide girth. Still, they were an order of magnitude more comfy than the sport seats in my Infiniti and they too have thigh extenders. The contols all fall right into your grasp as your hand rests on the shift-knob, eliminating the need to reach for buttons as you have to in both the IS and G37. I personally like the look of dash-mounted buttons better, but there is no arguing against the superior ergonomics of Audi's design. Of particular surprise to me was the use of some hard plastics in this car. While certainly unobtrusive, it was nonetheless interesting to note.



CONCLUSION:

All in all, I was blown away by this car. The looks alone are worth the asking price but the Audi is so much more than that. You get a visceral thrill rowing through the gears and listening to that amazing V8 soundtrack. The smells of expensive leather permeate your nostrils as the blare of the Bang and Olufsen stereo echoes in your ears. Visual delights abound, from the crystal clear instrumentation to the high-res nav screen to the polished aluminum and CF accents. Tactile touches such as the smooth Nappa leather and the chunky steering wheel/shift knob bathe your senses in the glow of extravagance. I loved this car. LOVED it. It really is that good.


Me, looking fat but happy!!!

I guess I will try to sample the A5 again one of these days, but I'm afraid the S5 has ruined it for me. Just as I suspect the salesman intended....

 

Audi knows what's up with interiors. BMW and Mercedes should take note.

 

Thanks for the review. I thought about a S5 ... but still ended up with a 6MT G37 (athens blue).

Now ... with the RS5 being revealed at the Geneva Autoshow ... if that car ever shows up in North America ... I might have to go down to an Audi dealer to check that baby out!

 

The S5 gives me wood.

That is all.

 

If I didn't prefer 4 doors the S5 would be my next car

 

I need to try one of these out.

 

I love the way that car looks. Thanks for the review.

 

The A5/S5 is a relatively large car with long doors considering it's a two-door coupe, but the design hides the size pretty well (esp. with the dark colors).

Glad you like the S5, though.

 

i absolutely agree with you about the feel of the car

 

 

Congrats on getting to drive one!

 

So Eric, no Toyota

Nice review. I've always loved Audi for "not being BMW" and the 5 series has been on the short list once I live someplace that isn't 67 miles long and 15 miles at its widest.

 

That's a pretty damn good review, almost sounds like your writing for a magazine article. Very nice!

 

Same here. Still deciding if I want to go A5 2.0T and chip it, or S5. Guess it really depends how much of a commuter I want

 

The S5 is sex on wheels. Sadly, I won't allow myself to test drive that puppy until I'm ready to purchase. I respect your will power @Majin.

Its at the top of my next car list right under the E92 M3, but that ignorant price tag on the S5 will most likely push me towards the M3.

S5 Looks & Interior vs. M3 Performance.

 

+1 Great write up dood. I really enjoyed your reviews. And your description of the engine sound making it feel faster than it is, I can totally imagine that.

Out of all the cars in it's class, I think the S5 has the best combo of exterior/interior looks. I think if I was in the market for such a car, even with less performance than an in-class rival, I'd take the S5 just for the looks/feel/sound of the experience.

 

I love Audis

 

nuff said.

 

20 minute test drive?!?!?!

 

I would definitely wait for V6 SC to come out... I was very disappointed with the way V8 handle.

Good luck finding S5 now days though.. My manager is been telling me that we might start marking these car because of the shortage.

White on red is the sex!

 

that is one long test drive for sure!

 

Yeah I got about 20 mins in the car. We took it through some new neighborhood development first, then out onto 295 where we got on and off twice. It really didn't seem long to me but it was definitely 20 mins or so.

 

No kidding, that's probably the reason I went for Audi over other car makers. The interiors in the other cars (BMW, Mercedes) simply feel cheap in comparison.

 

As much as I love the interior in my Audi, I had a different viewpoint about the others interiors. I didn't necessarily think the bimmer or merc interiors were cheap, but their arrangement and organization was certainly way under par compared to Audi. And of course they didn't look that great either.

 

although I could never pull the trigger on it, white on black for me, always. And no, that's not an interracial thing.

 

Really boils down to how much you plan on modding the 2.0T. If you're only going to chip and do some minor things like exhaust. I'd say get the S5 then. If you want to ever do more, then get the A5 and have fun modding the crap out of it.

But a chipped A5 with 330+ lb-ft of torque is certainly still :drool worthy.

 

Precisely my thoughts. The C-class was just cheap though. The 3-series was nice, but too flat - all the controls were too far. Audi was just right. The one complaint I have with my A4's interior is that the A/C defroster buttons are awkward to reach when the car is in Park.

 

Have you driven an M3? How does the sound compare? I love the S5....i wanted one so bad when they were coming out..but, when I saw the pricing and realized that was M3 territory i decided to buy the latter.
I admittedly haven't driven one but I think they look like sex on wheels and have a lot of "prescence". And honestly, who uses the performance of most of these cars....I drive my M3 like a granny.......most of the time

 

btw....BUY ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

The M3 is next on my "to-drive" list...

 

This whole time I was thinking that the A5/S5 were in the same class as the BMW 6/M6......? aren't they the same size?

 

20 minute or 40 minute test drive?

Will you have to stop for gas? :wink:

 

Not really, the S5 is quite a bit smaller than the M6 as far as I'm aware. I saw a white S5 pass me on the highway the other day, the car has amazing lines and looks great with tint.

Edit: It looks like the M6 is about 10 inches longer than the S5, not sure about interior dimensions but the M6 is most likely bigger

 

I know what you mean...

I will take any s5 on any combo besides red exterior.

We had a Daytona Gray (special color) with black interior... that was the sickest S5 I seen so far.

 

Such a perfect color combo and beautiful car.

White on Red > *

 

ive seen a few around. very nice looking car

 

I think the IS-F & M3 would be a good comparo, aside from the fact that the IS-F is AT only.. it would still be nice to get your thoughts if test drive them.

 

Nice write up. I test drove the A5 S-line 3 times and I agree with all that you said to the T. The (I believe) 268 HP V6 feels more powerful than that but you can tell the car is a porker. The ride is a bit on the plush side. I think you alluded to that a bit when you commented on the steering. With all it's minor flaws and royal price tag if I had the money I would buy one in a minute.

 

My good friend has an S5 so I'm in it all the time (I've driven it a number of times too). It's a fantastic car and one of my favorite on sale today.

Here's my comparison between the S5 and my M3 in case anyone is interested:

Performance: I find the S5 to be a better competitor to the 335i versus my M3 personally. The S5 has excellent performance but the M3 is definitely sharper, more high strung, and faster overall. The S5 is more relaxed but the limits are lower and feels a bit heavier/duller.

Gas Mileage: We both get equally awful gas mileage - we both average about 17mpg in mixed driving on most fill-ups. Why these two low displacement V8's get such bad gas mileage, I don't understand.

Sound: The S5 has a deeper rumble and sounds better on startup/idle than the M3. I like the S5's low RPM rumble, but I do like the M3's note in the higher rev range. When reeving higher, that's where the S5 exhaust goes quieter and you hear a strange whine of the engine (almost like a supercharger) overtake the exhaust. Both sound fantastic though - one of the reasons why V8's are some of the best engines in the world.

Interior: The materials and overall layout of the S5 are better, but both are pretty good. I prefer the M3's seats but both are excellent. MMC and iDrive are pretty similar. The only major issue I have with the S5 is the electronic parking brake - it's a little annoying with a manual transmission and seems prone to break.

Interior space: The S5 is actually quite small inside, although it does have a large presence outside. The backseat is definitely smaller than my M3's and the large front seats make it feel really claustrophobic in back. Both coupes are good for 2 people and occasionally more (not for long distances)

Styling: Completely subjective, but both have a great presence on the road.

Overall, the S5 is a great car. It's a great (more expensive) alternative to the 335i coupe, but I'd say if you care more about performance, I'd recommend the M3.

Here's a crappy picture of our cars together:

 

Car and driver 2008 lightning lap Virginia international

G37 Sport $44115 3:17.5

Audi S5 $58990 3:14.6

3 seconds is hardly what I would call a shame.