The Audi Q5 has had a major update for 2025, now riding on the marque’s new Premium Platform Combustion (PPC) platform.
There was a time when you couldn’t swing a valet ticket in Orchard without spotting an Audi Q5. It was Audi Singapore’s golden child and its best-selling SUV, second only to the venerable A4 in total sales.
But with age comes competition, and as rivals raced ahead with newer offerings, the Q5 began to feel like yesterday’s news.
Well, not anymore.
The new Q5 is finally here. It’s slated to arrive in Singapore by the end of the year, and judging by our early drive, it might just be worth the wait.
Built on Audi’s all-new Premium Platform Combustion (PPC), the Q5 is essentially a love letter to internal combustion. A heartfelt one, inked with every trick Audi has learnt over decades of petrol-powered poetry.
It’s a smooth operator
The Q5 debuts a new mild-hybrid system called MHEV Plus. It packs a 1.7kWh LFP battery and a 48V system that feeds a starter-generator delivering 24 bhp and 230 Nm of torque. It also powers the air-con compressor, so you can enjoy full-blast cooling even when the engine naps.
Curiously, the A5 Sedan (built on the same platform) misses out on this. Make of that what you will.
What you do notice immediately is the space. The PPC architecture has freed up more shoulder and legroom, while the boot swells to a respectable 520 litres.
Rear passengers can slide and tilt their seats to taste, though the raised transmission tunnel might make the middle seat less popular.
Singapore will get both FWD and quattro variants of the Q5, each powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder producing 201 bhp and 340 Nm. The FWD gets to 100 km/h in 8.6 seconds, but the quattro knocks that down to a more athletic 7.2 seconds.
And for those asking, the 362 bhp SQ5 is also en route.
Still an Audi at Heart
If you’re worried Audi might have gone overboard with the design, don’t. The Q5’s look is clean, mature and unmistakably Audi. You get the familiar singleframe grille, LED matrix headlamps with eight light signatures, and wheels ranging from 18 to 21 inches. Our test car wore the largest set, and they’re stunners.
At the back, a sleek light bar with 266 segments spans the tailgate. And in a clever safety touch, the brake lights reflect off the rear windscreen to give trailing drivers more warning. Smart and subtle. Again, classic Audi.
Take Command
The interior’s party piece is the Digital Stage: a curved display that merges a 14.5-inch infotainment screen and an 11.9-inch driver’s display into one cohesive unit.
It runs on Android Automotive OS and, to Audi’s credit, it works beautifully. Logical menus, useful shortcuts, and an ever-present climate panel mean you won’t be fumbling through submenus.
Our test car came with the optional passenger screen, a 10.9-inch display that, truthfully, feels more show than substance. Still, it’s there if your co-driver needs a distraction, or to assist with navigation duties.
Not everything hits the mark though. The haptic steering wheel controls, for instance, lack tactile feedback and are too easy to activate accidentally. Bring back the old-school clickers, please.
There’s a head-up display too, though not the fancy Augmented Reality version found in Audi’s PPE-based EVs. Blame the ICE packaging constraints. Still, what’s here works well enough.
Cabin quality is generally high, with leather, wood and soft-touch plastics where they matter. That said, lower portions of the dash and doors feature harder materials that feel less premium. The Bang & Olufsen sound system, with its 16 speakers and 685 watts, is a saving grace and sounds absolutely divine.
Smooth, Sorted, Surprisingly Plush
On the road, the Q5 feels grown-up. There’s a polish to the ride that wasn’t present in earlier versions. It’s quiet, poised, and easy to pilot through city traffic or sweeping highways. Progressive steering is standard, which explains why it’s weighty at low speeds but lightens up naturally as you go faster. Confidence-inspiring stuff.
The 2.0 TFSI engine punches above its weight, with eager acceleration and seamless gear changes from the 7-speed S tronic box. Cruising at 130 km/h through Hungary and Austria, the Q5 felt utterly unbothered, a proper long-distance cruiser.
Much of that composure comes down to the air suspension fitted to our test unit. It gave the Q5 a wafting, big-car feel, ironing out bumps with the ease of a segment above.
Singapore-bound cars will make do with passive steel springs, though even those will benefit from Frequency Selective Damping (FSD) tech that smooths out harsher surfaces.
Excited for one?
In a segment packed with players like the BMW X3, Mercedes-Benz GLC, Range Rover Velar, and Lexus NX, the Q5 manages to carve its own lane. There’s an effortlessness to the way it carries itself with quiet confidence.
If you want something that’s as good to drive as it is to live with, and you appreciate a touch of restraint in your daily ride, the Audi Q5 quattro is shaping up to be a class act.
Technical Specifications
Audi Q5 Quattro
Engine: 2-litre in-line 4, Turbocharged
Drivetrain: Quattro All-Wheel Drive
Power: 204 bhp
Torque: 340 Nm
Gearbox: 7-Speed (A) S Tronic
0-100km/h: 7.2 seconds (claimed)
Fuel Tank Capacity: 65 litres
Fuel Economy: TBC
Photo Credits: Sean Loo (@auto.driven)
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