Audi teased the all-new A5 on July 12. Three days later, the first pictures of the A4-replacing model have surfaced online, with the most likely source being a story published by Ars Technica.
Offline at the moment of reporting, said article can still be accessed in cached form. Before going into all things A5, we should mention that Audi plans to launch more than 20 new models through 2025, of which more than 10 are said to be all-electric affairs.
"The Audi A6 e-tron will follow at the end of July," said chief exec Gernot Dollner, "and the new Audi Q5 in the fall.” According to the big kahuna, "the new Audi A5 family represents the beginning of the next generation of combustion engines." What about said engines, though?
Ars Technica learned that Ingolstadt's favorite son had optimized the 2.0-liter turbo I4 for superior efficiency under partial load. The 3.0-liter turbo V6 will return to the S5, packing 362 horsepower as opposed to 268 ponies for the four-cylinder lump. Both mills feature variable-geometry turbochargers, and the EA888 now operates on the Miller cycle instead of the traditional Otto combustion cycle.
Photo: Audi
The 2.0-liter engine of the A5 is connected to an S tronic dual-clutch tranny with seven forward ratios. It will come in either front- or all-wheel drive, whereas the V6-powered S5 is exclusively quattro. Unlike the outgoing S5 coupe, convertible, and sedan, the newcomer uses a dual-clutch box rather than a torque-converter auto.
While on the subject of mechanical bits and bobs, Audi has developed the new A5 on a new platform. Enter the PPC, which is the short way of saying Premium Platform Combustion. This architecture doesn't share any hardware with the Premium Platform Electric of the Q6 e-tron, but the PPE's electronic architecture carries over.
Said electronic architecture is described as being a future-proof setup that can be used throughout the Volkswagen Group. No fewer than four powerful computers are said to make up the A5's digital nervous system, while the Audi Q6 e-tron rocks five of them. The computers are dubbed HCP1 through HCP5, with HCP standing for High-performance Computing Platform.
Photo: Audi
Gifted with the battery-electric utility vehicle's Digital Stage infotainment system, the A5 can be optioned with a third screen for the front passenger. Technological highlights further include augmented reality for the head-up display and organic light-emitting diodes rather than your usual LEDs for the digital instrument cluster, central touchscreen, and the passenger display.
Best described as evolutionary from the standpoint of exterior and interior design, the 2025 Audi A5 further sweetens the deal with mild-hybrid assistance in the form of an electric motor fed by a small battery. The motor in question packs 24 horsepower and 170 pound-feet (230 Nm), and it can handle low-speed maneuvering without any help from the ICE.
America isn't getting the mild-hybrid stuff, though, and the US market will also have to make do without the 2.0-liter TDI turbo diesel inline-four mill. Animated effects from the OLED taillights aren't going to happen either due to archaic federal vehicle regulations. Avant wagons aren't coming stateside either.
Photo: Audi
Oh, and another thing. Ars Technica has also learned that US customers will be presented with leather upholstery from the outset, whereas Europe gets cloth seats. First deliveries? Make that "next spring or summer" for the US market.
The RS 4 Avant-replacing RS 5 Avant should go live "in a couple of years," but alas, Audi does not intend to bring any A4-series longroofs to the United States market. Our spy photographers captured plenty of prototypes doing their thing on the public roads of Germany and at the Green Hell, with the new RS 5 Avant being a plug-in hybrid with 2.9-liter TFSI muscle underhood.
It's primary rival is the Mercedes-AMG C 63 S E Performance. Its 2.0-liter turbo I4-based powertrain is rated at 671 ponies and 752 pound-feet (1,020 pound-feet) of tire-shredding torque. With the RS 5 packing a twin-turbo V6, there is a chance that Audi Sport will get close or even match said max output figures.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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