Audi A5 Avant review

If you're familiar with Audi car models, the Audi A5 Avant we're reviewing here might throw you a bit. More specifically, its name.

To cut a long story short, the A5 Avant is the estate car version of the latest Audi A5. It's available with petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) engines, and replaces the A4 Avant. The next A4 will be an electric car, while the old A5 coupé and Sportback are no longer available. Confusing, we know.

As Audi's smallest estate car, the A5 Avant is up against the same rivals as its predecessor – chiefly the BMW 3 Series Touring and Mercedes C-Class Estate. And if you can do without a posh badge, you'll have plenty of other models to consider, starting with the Skoda Superb Estate and Volkswagen Passat Estate.

New Audi A5 Avant review video

The A5 Avant's range of petrol and diesel engines is diverse enough to satisfy most buyers and includes the performance-focused S5 Avant to rival the BMW M340i Touring. Soon, the plug-in hybrid RS5 Avant will also arrive to compete with the Mercedes-AMG C63 S E Performance PHEV and non-hybrid BMW M3 Touring. 

Below, we rate the Audi A5 Avant against the best estate cars…

Read more: Complete the What Car? Reliability Survey now and you could win a prize

What’s new

- February 2026: New RS5 and RS5 Avant revealed

- May 2025: Orders open for A5 e-hybrid, a plug-in hybrid with electric range of up to 67 miles

- November 2024: First A5 Avant customer deliveries take place

- August 2024: Orders open for A5 Avant

- July 2024: A5 Avant replaces A4 Avant with 148bhp/201bhp 2.0 TFSI petrol or 201bhp 2.0 TDI
diesel engines

You have four engine options available with the Audi A5, starting with the 2.0-litre TFSI 150 petrol engine. We’re yet to try it, but it produces 148bhp and will sprint from 0-62mph in 9.8sec. For more pace, you’ll want the 201bhp TFSI 204, which shaves the time down to 7.8sec and is only slightly slower than the BMW 320i Touring.

Company car drivers will want to consider the e-Hybrid PHEV. That version uses a 2.0-litre petrol engine and an electric motor to produce 295bhp. It has four-wheel drive and can officially travel up to 66 miles on electricity alone – a little further than the BMW 330e Touring but not quite as far as the Mercedes C300e Estate.

The diesel option – the 201bhp TDI 204 – serves up plenty of mid-range grunt for overtaking on a motorway or if you put your foot down on a winding country road. At 7.7sec, its 0-62mph time is similar to the Mercedes C220d Estate.

While most versions of the A5 Avant have rear-wheel drive, the diesel is available with Audi's quattro four-wheel-drive system, improving traction further and cutting the 0-62mph time to 6.9sec.

For maximum performance, there’s the S5 Quattro, which has a 362bhp 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine and cuts the 0-62mph sprint to 4.5sec; a match for the BMW M340i Touring but a second slower than the BMW M3 Touring. 

The S5’s engine is smooth, muscular and happy to rev all the way to the limiter, but a generous dollop of mid-range muscle means you can still cover ground very effectively at a brisk pace without having to wring out the engine.

It sounds good too. The engine note and exhaust noise are slightly louder in the sportier Dynamic mode but not so much to be antisocial or cause a drone at a cruise. In Comfort mode the engine note fades into the background.

The A5 Avant is not available with a manual gearbox – all versions come with a seven-speed automatic gearbox. If you go for S line trim or higher, you get shifter paddles on the back of the steering wheel – which also varies the effectiveness of the PHEV’s regenerative braking system.

The gearshifts are smooth and quick most of the time but you’ll need to switch into Dynamic mode to encourage it to change down a gear sooner and keep the engine response feeling more lively.

The 2.0-litre petrol uses stop-start technology while the TDI and S5 use a new mild-hybrid system (called MHEV Plus) to aid performance and fuel economy. This latest generation system allows the A5 Avant to drive on electric power alone for short distances. We managed to reach 30mph before the engine woke up.

With a smooth and quiet power delivery, the e-Hybrid is a relaxing cruiser, and makes swift progress without the engine continually kicking in when the 20.7kWh (usable) battery has charge. In fact, it’s been designed to stay in EV mode for as long as possible.

The A5 Avant is available with three suspension set-ups: Sport comes with Comfort suspension, S line and S5 Black Edition models come with a firmer, lower sports set-up, and the top-spec S5 Vorsprung has adaptive suspension (it’s optional on some other versions).

The adaptive system is firm enough to keep the car feeling tied down over undulating roads while absorbing and cushioning bumps gently most of the time. There’s the occasional thump on 20in alloy wheels, while larger speed bumps can result in occupants experiencing minor jostling in their seats. Despite its firmer billing, the S line’s Sport Suspension still rides bumps with impressive suppleness.

Handling-wise, the A5 Avant is a big improvement over the Audi A4 Avant which came before it. The steering response has been sharpened up and it turns into bends predictably, so you’ll quickly build confidence when driving spiritedly down a country road.

The sportier Dynamic drive mode adds a bit more weight and, while there still isn’t a great sense of connection with the front wheels, you soon trust the huge levels of grip.

A BMW 3 Series Touring is still a more engaging estate car to drive, with meatier steering and a more agile feel. That said, the gap between these two cars are much closer and some may find the A5’s calmer ride a worthy trade-off. 

The same is true of the S5, although the added power means you can push the limits a little higher more easily, with the ability to tuck the nose into corners and have a bit of rotation from the rear to help tighten your line.

There’s a low level of grumble from the diesel engine but it never becomes harsh, even when worked hard. Otherwise, the A5 Avant is a smooth and quiet cruiser. There’s barely any wind noise and only a minor level of road noise generated when fitted with even the largest 20in wheels, along with a slight whine from the electric motor.

Meanwhile, the brakes are strong and bring the car to a stop smoothly. The regenerative braking manages to harvest more energy when you lift off the accelerator pedal than earlier Audi systems but the braking effect remains gentle and isn’t so aggressive as to be jerky.

“Unlike in the A4 Avant, I could feel a bigger difference between Comfort and the sportier Dynamic drive mode in the A5 Avant, making switching between them to suit your mood more worthwhile.” – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

You won’t have too many issues finding a comfortable driving position in the Audi A5 Avant. The driver's seat lines up well with the controls and there’s plenty of seat adjustment, including lumbar support, to help you find your perfect driving position. Most come with manual seat adjustment, but Black Edition and Vorsprung add electric seat adjustment and the S5 adds ventilation and massage functions. 

The steering column adjusts electrically (but very slowly) so you can position the wheel to suit you, but at its lowest setting we found it obscured the top of the 11.9in digital driver's display, which could be a pain for some drivers.

Speaking of which, the driver's display sits on top of the dashboard in a curved housing, which also flows around the infotainment touchscreen so they look like one large unit. Both screens use OLED technology and the graphics are crisp and clear to look at.

Unlike in previous Audi car models, the sat-nav map cannot be shown on the driver's display – on versions without a head-up display you have to glance across at the touchscreen to check your route. Otherwise, there’s plenty of information on show, with three different customisable sections.

Most of the controls are on the 14.5in infotainment screen. There's a physical button for the drive modes and parking camera, and a knob for the volume, but little else. That means you have to adjust the temperature for the climate control system using either the Audi Assistant voice-control system or the touchscreen. On the plus side, the temperature and heated seat icons are always visible.

There are two columns of shortcut keys near the driver for major functions but they're small and difficult to aim for. Finding other features takes a while because the main screen loads up lots of icons you need to scroll through. At least the graphics are smooth and the screen responds to inputs quickly enough.

Vorsprung trim adds a 10.9in touchscreen in front of the front passenger. There's a column of shortcut keys to the left of the screen for quick access to some settings. 

Visibility from A5 Avant's driving seat is pretty clear all round. It’s easy to look around the chunky front pillars and the large side windows provide a good view out over your shoulder.

The rear headrests obscure the view out of the rear windscreen, but at least front and rear parking sensors, and a rear-view camera are standard. Both the Vorsprung trim and S5 get 360-deg cameras, plus self-adjusting matrix LED headlights that can be left on full beam without dazzling other drivers.

A Technology Pack is standard on the S5 Vorsprung and optional on other trims, and adds a head-up display (which can show sat-nav directions) and a 16-speaker Bang & Olufsen surround-sound stereo.

The S5's sports seats' headrests have built-in speakers that give sat-nav directions to the driver without interrupting music coming from other speakers.

Overall, the A5 Avant has a well-appointed interior, although there are some scratchy hollow-sounding plastics used for the centre air vent and along the centre console by the arm rest. The higher-spec cars we’ve tried have plenty of fabric material and soft-touch plastics on most surfaces up front.

There’s plenty of ambient lighting, including a strip that runs under the base of the windscreen on Vorsprung and S5 versions. The outer sections change colour to display a green sweeping effect when using the indicators (you no longer see an amber light in the door mirror casing as you did in earlier Audi models).

“Thankfully the optional second touchscreen fitted ahead of the passenger is polarised so the driver can't see what's on. I found that helpful to reduce distraction.” – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

Getting in and out of the front of the Audi A5 Avant is easy because of its wide door apertures and low sills.

Once inside you’ll find plenty of head, leg and elbow room so you're unlikely to feel cramped unless you’re remarkably tall. Even so, the larger windows in the Skoda Superb Estate and VW Passat both feel more airy inside.

You get a good amount of interior storage, including a shallow but wide tray under the adjustable armrest, two cupholders beside the gear selector and a tray for your phone with an integrated wireless phone-charger. The door bins can hold a bottle but the access area is quite restricted.

The A5 Avant is longer than the A4 Avant it replaces, resulting in a bit more rear leg room. Two six-footers in the back will find a bit more knee-space when sitting behind an equally tall pair up front, although their heads will be brushing up against the roof lining. The Passat and Superb are both more spacious in the back.

Storage amenities come in the form of rear door bins that will each fit a bottle of drink, along with nets on the backs of the front seats and two cupholders in the central armrest.

Folding down the rear seats is easy in the A5 Avant – it’s just a case of pulling the release levers positioned conveniently inside the tailgate opening so the backrests fold in one simple action. The seats fold in a 40/20/40 arrangement, giving you various options when you need to carry long loads as well as people.

The A5 Avant's boot capacity depends on the engine you go for. With a maximum of 476 litres with the TFSI 150 engine, dropping to 448 litres with the diesel and S5, it's less practical than the Mercedes C-Class Estate (490 litres) and BMW 3 Series Touring (500 litres). The Superb and Passat estates offer an even larger 690 litres.

As is often the case with PHEVs, the e-Hybrid loses its underfloor storage, so space drops to 361 litres – much less than the 510 litres offered by the PHEV versions of the Skoda Superb Estate and Volkswagen Passat. There's no dedicated space to store your charging cables either.

At least the load area is a uniform shape with a low load entrance. However, the floor doesn’t sit flush with the entrance so you have to heave items over a small load lip. All A5 Avants have a powered tailgate with a motorised parcel shelf.

“The A5 Avant is longer than its predecessor (the A4 Avant) but I still found it cosy in the back seats. You can’t stretch out like you can in a Passat or Superb Estate.” – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

As a cash purchase, the Audi A5 Avant costs around the same as the cheapest version of the BMW 3 Series Touring but slightly less than the Mercedes C-Class Estate.

It’s more expensive than the non-premium estate car rivals, including the Skoda Superb Estate and VW Passat, but is predicted to lose its value a little more slowly than a C-Class Estate, and slightly quicker than a 3 Series Touring.

If you're considering the A5 Avant as a company car, you'll be best off financially with the e-Hybrid PHEV version – although an electric car or electric SUV will be even cheaper to run tax-wise.

The A5 Avant e-Hybrid can charge at up to 11kW, which matches the Mercedes C300e Estate and is quicker than the BMW 330e Touring’s 3.6kW. A full charge of the e-Hybrid using a home EV charger is expected to take up to three and a half hours.

When it comes to fuel economy, the A5 Avant TFSI 204 is just as frugal as an equivalent BMW 320i Touring and more economical than a Mercedes C200 Estate. The TDI diesel is also slightly less economical than a C220d, while the 3 Series and Passat are not available with a diesel engine.

The A5 Avant is available with a choice of three trim levels – Sport, S line, Black Edition and Vorsprung  – while the S5 Avant is available in just Black Edition and Vorsprung.

Sport comes with plenty of standard equipment, including 18in alloy wheels, heated front seats, adaptive cruise control, three-zone climate control, wireless phone-charging and leather upholstery.

S line gets larger 19in wheels, rear privacy glass, sports seats, more aggressive exterior styling, a sportier steering wheel design and S badging.

Black Edition is very similar to S Line trim but gets more black details, the electrically-adjustable front seats and heated outer rear seats. Meanwhile, top-spec Vorsprung adds 20in wheels, Matrix LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof, a Bang and Olufsen premium sound system and that extra display in front of the passenger. 

It's hard to predict reliability for a model as new as the A5 Avant but we can tell you that Audi didn’t do amazingly in our 2025 What Car? Reliability Survey. It finished in joint 22nd place with Mercedes, out of the 30 car makers – below BMW (sixth) and Skoda (16th) but above VW (24th).

You do get a three-year, 60,000-mile manufacturer’s warranty, which isn’t quite as generous as the unlimited mileage cover you get from a BMW or Mercedes. For an extra cost, you can extend it for up to five years or 90,000 miles.

The A5 Avant has been awarded a five-star safety rating by Euro NCAP. Standard safety kit includes automatic emergency braking (AEB), lane-departure warning, traffic-sign recognition and hill-hold assist. Edition 1 adds lane-change assist.

“The S5 comes with these neat-looking OLED rear lights that you can also change the light pattern with. I think they're really snazzy.” – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

Buy it if…

- You want an estate with refined engines

- You’re after an upmarket interior

- You’d like a plug-in hybrid estate with a decent electric range

Don’t buy it if…

- Reliability is high on your priority list

- You’re after the most practical estate

- Agile handling is important to you

For all the latest reviews, advice and new car deals, sign up to the What Car? newsletter here