Audi S5 Cabriolet Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Audi S5 Cabriolet
Prices: £42,245 - on the road
Insurance Group: 19 [est]
Emissions: 224g/km
Performance: 0-60mph 5.6s / Max Speed 155mph
Fuel Consumption: (combined) 29.1mpg
Safety: Twin front & side airbags, ESP, ABS
Dimensions: Length/Width/Height 4625/1854/1383mm

GRACE AND PACE

Our Rating: 7.9 / 10

Audi usually does a good convertible four-seater. The supercharged S5 Cabriolet is fast as well. Steve Walker reports.

Audi has revelled in its reputation for manufacturing the coolest four-seat convertibles you can get for vaguely sensible money and shows no intention of letting the mantle slip. The Audi Cabriolet morphed into the A4 Cabriolet and following the arrival of the A5 coupe, the baton now rests with the A5 Cabriolet. The recipe has changed little throughout the car’s evolution and is still based around a four-seater layout with a folding canvas roof but there have been numerous detail changes along the way. One of the most salient in the A5 Cabriolet is the introduction of a 3.0-litre supercharged V6 to power the range-topping S5 Cabriolet version.

The Audi 4.2-litre V8 was great fun and never lacking in brute force but engines like that are a dying breed as emissions regulations tighten and we all pay closer attention to the whirling digits on the filling station fuel pumps. There’s no denying the fun factor that’s attached to a mid-sized car with an out-sized engine, especially one as charismatic as the Audi eight-pot, but the manufacturer is confident that it can achieve much the same effect with its advanced 3.0-litre V6 and a spot of supercharging.

The 3.0-litre V6 TFSI engine has become the default powerplant for Audi’s S4 and S5 models. These reside at the high performance end of the A4 and A5 model ranges and are just one step shy of the hallowed RS models on Audi’s potency thermometer. That means that the S5 Cabriolet should be very, very quick.

There’s 328bhp being generated when the engine is fully on song and with the supercharger force-feeding it air, the unit’s maximum torque is available from 2,500 to 4,850rpm. Together with Audi’s latest quattro four-wheel-drive system and the 7-speed S tronic twin-clutch gearbox, the engine should ensure that the S5 Cabriolet is as hot as it is cool.

Any hats should be securely fastened because while the S5 Cabriolet is idling at the traffic lights, 62mph is only 5.6s away and such performance will be more easily replicated by mere mortals thanks to the idiot proof S tronic paddle shift transmission. As ever, the top speed is restricted to 155mph by which point, all but the most tightly held headgear will be long gone.

The standard A5 Cabriolet is a slick piece of design, an example of Audi sticking to its tried and tested convertible formula. In S5 form, the car’s performance credentials are more obviously highlighted with sports suspension bringing the bodywork closer to the 19" alloy wheels. Xenon headlamps are standard, as are sportier designs for the front and rear ends of the car and black brake callipers that peep out from between the spokes.

The longer wheelbase the A5 Coupe has over the A4 saloon really helps in the conversion to Cabriolet form. It boosts passenger space in the rear and creates a sizable 380-litre luggage capacity when the hood is up which falls by just 60 litres when the roof is down. The hood itself is made of fabric with Audi having decided to buck the trend for hefty folding hardtop arrangements. It lowers in a super fast 15 seconds and takes just 17 seconds to reinstate itself again if a shower hits. With both operations capable of taking place at speeds of up to 31mph, owners will be left with little excuse for not making the most of what sunshine the British weather affords.

The latest quattro all-wheel-drive system deserves special mention for the way it increases the sporting prowess of Audi’s latest performance models. They get the quattro in its asymmetrical form with a 40/60 rear-biased torque split. Keen drivers will also be intrigued by the optional sport differential which can distribute torque between the front and rear axles as well as between the two rear wheels if it detects a lack of grip. Particularly beneficial when accelerating the car through a corner, the s