Audi A5 2.0 TFSI quattro: Road tested!

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Audi A5 2.0 TFSI quattro: Road tested!

Interesting road test report here with the Audi A5 2.0 TFSI quattro.

We averaged 9.5L/100km (226g/km CO2), still a good result for a 1490kg all-wheel-drive sports car. Such is its clean-revving, spring-heeled response, Audi's claimed 0-100km/h acceleration figure of 6.5 seconds is believable.

The latest-generation S Tronic gearbox grumbles less shifting down and has reduced think-time when accelerating from idle.

It's liveable enough to use as an auto for the daily grind of urban commuting. In manual mode the sharply responsive paddle or lever shifts are a sporty addiction.

Importantly, this smaller and lighter engine helps balance the A5's handling better than the bigger V6s and V8.

The 2.0 TFSI is happier to turn into corners and grip more convincingly. It also rides better because the suspension is not wound up so tightly to cope with heavier kerb weights.

And our test car achieved this on standard suspension, not the optional active dampers.