Audi A5 Coupe (2007-2016)
The Audi A5 Coupe is stylish and desirable - but neither the most high-tech or exciting car
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
Weaknesses
This Audi A5 is a sporty-looking coupe that was replaced by a new version in 2016. It's still handsome, though and the fact there's a newer verion available means that there are plenty of good value used Audi A5 offers to choose from.
It shares mechanical parts with the Audi A4 family car, but is designed to look more stylish, with only two doors. Audi has a reputation for well-designed interiors, but this A5 feels notably older than the company's current range and feels it. Its dated and cluttered dashboard looks like it comes from another era compared with the clean design and high-tech luxury of the new Audi A5 Coupe and rivals such as the BMW 4 Series and Mercedes C-Class coupe.
The A5 does have plenty of room inside for front-seat passengers but those in the rear have less headroom because of the sloping roof.
A more practical version, called the A5 Sportback, was also available, mixing the A5 Coupe’s curvy design with two additional rear doors and a hatchback bootlid. Another model in the range, the two-door Audi A5 convertible is also available for top-down driving.
On the road, the Audi A5 is relatively comfortable on poor road surfaces in entry-level SE trim (sporty S line models are more uncomfortable because they have harder suspension). It’s stable in corners, where it doesn’t lean too much or lose grip, even at high speeds. However, the A5 lacks the fun factor of the BMW 4 Series, which makes you feel more involved as a driver. The BMW darts left or right more quickly when you steer and allows you to feel the precise angle of the tyre and its remaining grip through the steering wheel.
The diesel versions feel powerful and have impressive economy figures but the smaller petrol engines seem slower in comparison and have higher running costs. More powerful petrol models - including the Audi S5 and super-fast Audi RS5 - give you sports car-style acceleration with even higher running costs.
Four-wheel drive is optional on several models, badged quattro, and is standard on the more powerful versions, and offers more control on slippery surfaces. These cars are also available with the slick 'S tronic' automatic gearbox, which is smoother and quieter than the 'multitronic' automatic gearbox on non-quattro A5 models.
The A5 hasn't been independently crash tested, but it’s based on the A4 saloon which scored a full five stars when it was assessed.
Last Updated
Key facts
Warranty: 3 years, 60,000 miles | Boot size: 455-litres |
Width: 1854mm | Length: 4626mm |
Height: 1372mm | Road tax (min to max): £0-£870 |
Best Audi A5 for...
Audi A5 History
- March 2007 Audi A5 launched in the UK starting from £30,175
- August 2007 3.2 FSI petrol and 2.7 TDI diesel engines join the range
- October 2007 1.8 TFSI petrol engine added to the range in Sport trim
- July 2008 2.0 TFSI replaces 1.8 TFSI engine
- November 2008 New 2.0 TDI diesel added to the range with 53mpg claimed economy
- July 2011 Audi A5 is updated with tweaked lights, bumpers and interior, as well as more efficient engines. The A5 Sportback gets the option of three rear seats.
- February 2012 Frugal A5 TDIe version added to the range with claimed economy of up to 64.2mpg
- March 2014 Audi A5 TDI Ultra launched
- May 2016 Audi A5 SE discontinued
Understanding Audi A5 car names
- A5
- Engine
- 2.0 TFSI
- Trim
- S line
- Driven wheels
- quattro
- Gearbox
- S tronic
- Engine
- Each model name shows the engine size in litres, followed by a series of letters that indicate whether uses petrol (TFSI) or diesel (TDI).
- Trim
- The higher the trim level, the more equipment is fitted as standard. The Audi A5 range starts at SE, moves up to S line and at the top of the range is Black Edition Plus. There’s a slight difference for the A5 Sportback where SE trim is replaced by SE Technik.
- Driven wheels
- Four-wheel drive Audi A5s are badged 'quattro'.
- Gearbox
- Buyers can choose between a manual gearbox and automatic options. Quattro four-wheel drive cars have a more sophisticated gearbox called S tronic that changes gear more quickly. Other models have a 'multitronic' gearbox, which is less smooth.
Audi A5 Engines
Petrol - 1.8 TFSI, 2.0 TFSI, 3.0 TFSI (S5) and 4.2 FSI (RS5)
Diesel - 2.0 TDI Ultra, 2.0 TDI and 3.0 TDI
The Audi A5 coupe might be an old design, but the engines were updated throughout the car’s life to improve performance and economy.
Diesel engines offer the best mix of these two elements. The least-powerful 2.0-litre TDI Ultra is economy-focused, and has an official fuel economy figure of 67mpg. Like most other cars on sale, you should expect this to be lower with real-world driving. With 163hp, it doesn’t feel slow, but a more powerful version of the engine - with 190hp - offers more power which cuts the 0-62mph acceleration time by 0.5sec to 7.5sec. It still has a claimed fuel economy of just over 60mpg and is available with four-wheel drive.
If you want a diesel engine to match the car’s sporty looks, though, the 3.0-litre TDI has 245hp and accelerates from 0-62mph in 5.7sec - considerably quicker. It’s only available as a quattro, with four-wheel drive, and cost around £4,000 more new. Official fuel economy drops to 45mpg.
The least powerful petrol engines don’t feel as strong as the diesels unless you work them hard, even though both the 1.8-litre and 2.0-litre versions have similar levels of power as their diesel equivalents. Official fuel economy figures are considerably worse, by almost 20mpg and real-world driving will lower them even further,
If you’re buying the Audi S5 with the top-of-the-range 3.0-litre, 333 horsepower engine, then fuel economy is unlikely to be top of your priority list. The 0-62mph acceleration time of 4.9sec will help distract you from the frequent fill-ups that a 36mpg car requires.
Fuel economy | Power | Acceleration | top speed | |
1.8 TFSI | 48.7mpg | 177hp | 7.9 secs | 143mph |
2.0 TFSI | 41.5mpg | 230hp | 6.4 secs | 155mph |
3.0 TFSI S5 | 35.8mpg | 328hp | 4.9 secs | 155mph |
2.0 TDI Ultra | 67.3mpg | 163hp | 8.3 secs | 140mph |
2.0 TDI 190 | 60.1mpg | 190hp | 7.5 secs | 149mph |
3.0 TDI | 45mpg | 245hp | 5.7 secs | 155mph |
Audi A5 Trims
SE, S line, Black Edition Plus
Considering that official Audi A5 prices started at almost £30,000, it’s disappointing that the car didn’t come with sat-nav as standard. But that’s the only real complaint about equipment levels on the car.
In cheapest SE specification, the A5 is fitted with 17-inch alloy wheels, leather seats, heated front seats, a 10-speaker sound system, parking sensors and three-zone climate control, which allows you to set different air temperatures for each of the front passengers and the rear occupants.
For around £2,000 more, S line trim added sat-nav, along with higher-quality leather on upgraded sports seats, which offer more side support. Headlights are brighter xenon versions, and the car looks sportier with chunky add-ons to the A5’s side and bumpers. It’s fitted with larger 18-inch alloy wheels and also has sports suspension fitted, which is meant to make the car even more stable when cornering but also makes the ride harder and less comfortable.
Black Edition plus added around £1,500 to the cost of the Audi A5, increasing the size of the alloy wheels to 19 inches, and upgrading the stereo to a Bang & Olufsen system. There are black panels in place of aluminium ones inside the car. Outside, the mirrors, grille and other body parts are also in black.
Audi A5 Reliability and warranty
Audi might trade on its reputation for quality German engineering, but its three-year warranty isn’t particularly generous because it’s limited to 60,000 miles: if you drive further within the first three years then your cover immediately stops. You can pay to extend the warranty to five years and 90,000 miles, though.
Not enough A5 owners responded to the Auto Express Driver Power satisfaction survey for the car to be ranked. Those that did reply were generally impressed with the car’s build quality but some complained of unexplained rattles in the bodywork.
Aftermarket warranty companies, which cover cars once they are outside the manufacturer warranty period don’t rate the reliability of older A5s. Warranty Direct ranks the A5 as the least reliable coupe in a limited list of 11, below two Alfa Romeos. Warrantywise puts older Audis just below average when it comes to reliability.
Some early Audi A5s, built before 2012 and fitted with 2.0-litre petrol engines had a problem which meant that they used vast amounts of oil, which regularly needed topping up. It’s unlikely you’ll come across one of these now with this issue as they should have been repaired free of charge under a special programme launched by Audi.
Used Audi A5
With only a limited number of people willing to sacrifice the practicality of a four-door family car for a more expensive two-door coupe, these cars can lose a lot of value and the A5 is no exception. New models typically lost more than half of their list price in the first three years. And with deep discounts on offer before the car was phased out, those used prices have dropped lower, which is good news for second-hand buyers.
S line trim suits the Audi A5 well, with high equipment levels and sportier looking additions to the outside. However, its suspension is harder, which means that the car is more uncomfortable over poor roads, so some may prefer to look for an Audi A5 SE with lots of options fitted.
If you’re buying a petrol model built before 2012, you can check with Audi to see if it was affected by the excessive oil consumption issue that cost some owners hundreds of pounds in oil top-ups, and ensure that it has been fixed.
Prices below show typical buyacar discounts for our pick of new and used models. Scroll down further for the very latest new Audi A5 deals or search for all new and used Audi A5 offers.
List price | buyacar new | 1 year old | 2 years old | 3 years old | ||
Best for performance | Price | £43,790 | £36,089 | £38,190 | £32,895 | £26,490 |
Save | 18% | 13% | 25% | 40% | ||
Best for families | Price | £35,410 | £29,059 | £23,900* | £22,990* | £19,870* |
Save | 18% | 33% | 35% | 46% | ||
Best for economy | Price | £31,590 | n/a | £21,170 | £18,870 | £17,355 |
Save | n/a | 33% | 40% | 45% |
Prices correct at time of publication, *equivalent model
Other Editions
- Audi A5 (2016-present)Luxury, style, comfort and a little sportiness: that's the recipe for the Audi A5 coupe
- Audi A5 Sportback (2017-present) Offering space and style, the Audi A5 Sportback is a coupe for families