New Vauxhall Grandland X vs used Audi Q5: which is best?

If you shop at mainstream supermarkets like Tesco or Asda, you’d expect to get more for your money as opposed to doing your weekly grocery rounds at Waitrose or Marks & Spencer. Some may argue that while you pay more, you do get better quality – but when money is important, does that really mean good value?  

Apply this logic to the car world and you might be tempted to forgo a premium brand in favour of a more mainstream one because that should mean you get more equipment and a bigger engine for the same money. Take the Vauxhall Grandland X, which is a sizeable SUV and can be had in well-equipped Elite Nav guise for a little over £30,000. There aren’t really any premium SUV options that come close to that new, but if you decide to go used, suddenly your options open up.

That’s because you could have a year-old Audi Q5 instead for a similar amount to the target price of a new Grandland X. So, would you get a better-value deal by going for a brand-new Vauxhall with its longer warranty, or do you play keeping up with the Joneses and plump for a posh Audi? Read on to find out.

Vauxhall Grandland X 2.0 Turbo D Elite Nav List Price: £32,650 Target price: £30,511 Official fuel economy: 53.3mpg Emissions: 128g/km CO2 Power: 175bhp 0-62mph: 8.9sec Top speed: 131mph 

Audi Q5 2.0 TDI S Line S Tronic Price new: £42,125 Price today: £30,000* Official fuel economy: 51.4mpg Emissions: 146g/km CO2 Power: 187bhp 0-62mph: 7.9sec Top speed: 135mph 

*Price today is based on a 2018 model with average mileage and a full service history

New Vauxhall Grandland X vs used Audi Q5 – interior & equipment

If the Vauxhall was up against a more mainstream rival, then we could be a little kinder towards its slightly bland design, cheaper-feeling plastics and occasionally stodgy infotainment system. 

However, it’s competing against an Audi Q5 that has a very slick-looking dashboard, featuring some of the plushest plastics available in any car, plus a quick-witted media system that’s controlled by an easy-to-use rotary dial and conveniently arranged shortcut keys. 

You’d expect the Vauxhall to be able to win back some points by being well-equipped, and in a lot of ways it is. There’s an 8.0in infotainment system with sat-nav and full Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability, heated front seats, leather, front and rear parking sensors, blindspot monitoring, lane departure warning and automatic emergency braking.

The trouble is that the Audi exceeds the Vauxhall in most areas aside from having a slightly smaller 7.0in screen and blindspot monitoring (which was an option when new). It has brighter LED headlights as standard and even three-zone climate control, so those in the back can pick their own temperature.

New Vauxhall Grandland X vs used Audi Q5 – space & practicality

Occupant accommodation in front of the Grandland X is great and there’s plenty of adjustment in the seats and steering wheel to get comfortable, but oddments storage is remarkably limited because of a tiny glovebox and equally stingy cubbies in the centre console and doors. Rear room is reasonable rather than remarkable, but you do get a flat floor to make carrying three abreast doable. 

Whether you’re in the front or the back, the Audi Q5 soundly beats the Grandland X in all regards. You can lose all sorts of personal items in various hiding spots around the interior (there’s even a spot to put your keys up front) and adults of all sizes should have no trouble spending time together in a Q5. 

The Audi also has the biggest boot of the two, and it’s a nice square shape with an electric tailgate as standard. The Vauxhall doesn’t have that unless you opt for the even pricier Ultimate edition, but there is an adjustable boot floor to get rid of the awkward lip you’d normally have to lift items over. 

Next: What are they like to drive? >

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