Audi A5 2.0 TFSI 2009 review

The race to get the top down for summer is hotting up, as Audi joins Lexus with a new-season Cabriolet. The droptop version of the A5 coupe comes with a traditional folding soft top, seats for four, class-leading luggage space and a choice of engines including a diesel.

Pricing

The A5 Cabriolet is also built to Audi's usual quality standard, weighs only 185kg more than the coupe, and is priced from $94,900 with a 2-litre petrol motor through to $112,500 with a diesel and $116,500 for a fully-loaded V6.

That's a big hike on the Lexus IS Cabrio, from $79,900, but Audi Australia is expecting no trouble in shifting plenty of its new sunshine stars and really considers the BMW 3-Series as its only serious opposition.

Soft top changes

Work on the Cabrio began with the basic A5 body, which was then strengthened in all the important areas including the base of the windscreen and below the seats. Audi decided very early to go with a soft top, rather than one of the latest folding metal designs, for a range of reasons.

"There are lots of benefits. It is light in weight, fast to open and close, and best in class for luggage. Another benefit of fabric is we can have split-fold rear seats," says Audi's product planning manager, John Roberts.

The top will operate up to 50km/h, unlike the Lexus which must be stationary, but Audi concedes the extra noise in the system by having an 'acoustic' top with an extra layer of sound proofing as an option and standard on the V6.

Equipment

The basic deal with the 2-litre engine is 155 kiloWatts of power, 17- inch alloys, keyless start, rear park radar, shift paddles for the auto and Xenon lamps; the V6 with 176 kiloWatts lifts the bar with 18- inch alloys, front parking radar, heated seats, satnav and wood inserts. All A5 Cabriolets have a seven-speed twin-clutch gearbox and quattro all-wheel drive as standard.

Driving

The A5 Cabriolet is a smooth operator. The roof works smoothly in as little as 17 seconds, the engines and transmissions are slick, the styling is elegantly effective and the quality as smooth as we expect from every new Audi.

There will eventually be an S5 Cabrio with more punch, but the diesel and V6 both showed plenty of pace during a quick introduction drive. The best thing about the diesel, apart from the fact it is the only one in the class, is the strong surge of torque which makes driving easy. The cabin space is good and the boot is huge, with the advantage of the fold-down rear seats. It's definitely a winner over the Lexus in that area.

But the Japanese car scores in the body. The Audi is reasonably rigid but you feel the smallest ripples in the road, with tremors through the seat and wheel, and there is no encouragement to go sports car quick in the A5.

Still, few people looking at the A5 Cabrio are likely to be chasing a sports car thrill, and it's a smooth new way to welcome the coming summer.

Audi A5 Cabriolet
Price: from $94,900-$116,500
Engines: 2-litre petrol, 3-litre turbodiesel, 3.2-litre V6
Power: 155kw, 176kw, 195kw
Torque: 350Nm, 500Nm, 330Nm
Transmission: seven-speed S tronic manu-matic, quattro all-wheel drive
Performance: 0-100km/h, 6.4-73s
Economy: 6.8-9.5L/100km
Emissions: 179-226grams/km CO2