The newly redesigned 2010 Audi A5 is as beautiful to drive as it is to look at. Short of forking over the cash for the likes of an R8 or something in the same league, the A5 is arguably one of the nicest sports coupes in the Audi lineup. Like all other Audi’s, it’s capable of doing everything a sports car is needed for, but is it worth your money? Coming in at around $36,000 for the base model, it may very well be.
What’s the Good News?
Well, the Audi A5 is almost all good news. There are two options for what you can get under the hood, although there are some quirks attached. Audi’s 2.0 L turbocharged engine, the same one they’ve rammed into the A4, makes its way into the A5 as well. The V6 from previous generations is still available to order with the car, but if you’re looking for a manual transmission, you won’t find it in the V6. The 2.0T is available in both manual and automatic and the V6 is automatic only. However, that’s not a big downside. The 2.0T is one hell of a powerful engine and reigns in 211 horsepower and if you’re considering getting the V6 just for the extra juice, don’t. Once you go automatic, you’re going down a dangerous road.
Standard on all newer Audi’s is also the all wheel drive drivetrain. It’s this little feature that Audi makes standard that puts it ahead of all of the other rear wheel drive sports cars that try to compete.
The A5 has the right looks inside and out, and with the 2.0T under the hood and an all wheel drive system in place, things look pretty good for your money thus far.
Where Does it Go Down Hill?
We hate to have a negative section to the A5 review, but it’s inevitable.
Audi has been introducing a new powered steering system that has been trying to improve gas mileage by adding some assist to the already useful power steering. Unfortunately though, things haven’t gone all to plan. The A5′s steering isn’t the friendliest in the world and around corners, it feels fairly sterile. With all the power under the hood, the almost self-driving steering takes all of the fun right out of driving.
Couple the shoddy steering with the fact that in the convertible models of the A5 there is no hard top option and you have the makings of an “almost” sports car. Audi had everything on track and with a few modifications they thought would make the drive nicer, they fell short and ended up with what they did.
Conclusion
The sleek looks turn heads as you drive down the road, and the monster under the bonnet will keep your neighbors awake at night, and if you can look past the sometimes questionable Audi workmanship, you’ll find an almost perfect car. Whether or not you want to buy a used A4 or something of similar caliber as the A5 for a comparable price still of course remains to be seen, but if you’ve got the cash, it’s hard to find a better deal than the A5 for a new 2010 sports car.
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