Audi S5: Quick Test

When you think of car companies with emotional and evocative designs, it's probably the famed Italian marques, rather than any German company, that comes to mind. Well, Audi is attempting to change that by adding a dose of Italian flair to its already excellent German engineering. How exactly? By having an Italian named Walter de'Silva as the company's chief designer.

The Audi S5 is one of de'Silva's newest designs, and according to the designer himself, it's his most beautiful. While de'Silva's portfolio is impressive, one look at the S5 will convince you that he's right. This car is his masterpiece.

But the S5 is about more than just good looks. It’s also the first car to employ Audi's Modular Longitudinal Platform, which moves the front axle forward to improve weight distribution. This helps immensely in ridding the car of the nose-heavy handling that has afflicted past Audis.

The S5's performance is outstanding. It has so much grip it's actually difficult to launch, but the engine pulls strongly from anywhere on the tach. And except for the rock-star R8, this is Audi's best handling production car. It's even better than the mighty RS4 - by a wide margin. The brakes have excellent feel and benefit from Audi's well-known four-wheel-drive stability.

As mentioned earlier, the S5 is without doubt one of the world's most beautiful coupes. It's simply stunning. The interior offers typical Audi quality, now with great design as an added bonus.

With a solid, vault-like structure, the S5 has a good ride/handling compromise. As a coupe, this car definitely favors the front-seat passengers. If you're going to be riding with someone else, remember to call shotgun so you don't have to fold yourself into the cramped backseat.

The S5 definitely leans toward safety with its moves. It's still fun and adjustable, but it wants to protect you from your own foolishness. Other safety technology includes a full complement of airbags, excellent defeatable stability control and, of course, Quattro

Interestingly positioned between BMW 335i and M3 in both performance and price, the S5 is a lot of car for the money. It's a great option for anyone put off by the ubiquity of BMW's coupes.

When it comes to gas mileage, let's be real. You're just not going to see great numbers from a 354 hp performance car, but direct injection does its part to keep the S5's thirst at levels that should be acceptable to those who can afford the car in the first place.

The S5 is not the most fun car to throw around at the track. It's reluctant to rotate, and with Quattro, it's difficult to break traction. It likes an orderly and efficient line through the corners. Still, it makes behaving like an adult not all that bad.

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Audi S5

Performance
- Acceleration: Difficult to launch due to all that grip - pulls strongly from anywhere on the tach
- Handling: THE best handling Audi (excluding the R8) by a mile - finally more options than just understeer
- Braking: Excellent feel, stability, and effectiveness

Design
- Exterior: A candidate for world's most beautiful coupe, just stunning
- Interior: Typical Audi levels of quality now, with great design as well

Utility
- Comfort: Good ride/handling compromise - solid, vault-like structure
- Space: Great in the front, not so much in the rear

Safety
- Dynamics: Definitely leans toward safety with its moves, but still fun and adjustable
- Technology: All the airbags - excellent stability control that can be defeated - and of course, Quattro

Value
- Price: Sits in an interesting valley between 335i and M3 in both performance and price - a lot of car for the money
- Mileage: Direct injection does its part to keep the thirst of the V8 at acceptable levels given its performance

Emotional Appeal
- Heart thumpin' factor: Just looking at it gets your pulse racing, driving it is a bonus - stunning car
- Fun to spank: It's reluctant to rotate, and with Quattro, it's difficult to break traction, so not the most fun car to spank

SPECIFICATIONS

Layout: Front engine / all-wheel drive

Engine: 4.2 liter, DOHC V8
Power (SAE): 354 hp @ 6800 rpm
Torque: 325 lbs-ft @ 3500 rpm
Redline: 7000 rpm
Gearbox: 6 speed manual
Curb Weight: 3891 lbs.
0-60 mph: 4.9 sec.
1/4 mile: 13.3 sec.
Top Speed: 155 mph (electronically limited)
Mileage: 14 city / 21 highway
Base Price: $50,500
Competitors: BMW 335i, Mercedes-Benz CLK550