MkIX

Hi:

I've been admiring Audi products for years now. My current ride is 10 years old (Passat V6 wagon with a 2.8 litre Audi V6 engine) so its getting long in the tooth. It's time for me to think seriously about getting a new vehicle.

So here's where I am; I really like the Q5 but my wife finds the ride just a little too harsh. The truth is that I also notice that the Q5's ride is firm. The Avant on the other hand rides more like my Passat...albeit a Passat with delightfully precise road manners. But it has so little ground clearance.

I've been following and posting to the Q5 segment of this forum for the past few months. Today I thought I'd ask for comments from the A4 segment. I'd be interested in reading comments from the A4 crowd on the merits of the Avant vs the Q5.

Thanks in advance.

Stevelev

Both very nice cars. That said, unless you're going off road, my first question would be why is clearance an issue ? Having owned 2 avants and driving both in winter conditions with lots of snow, both the B6 A4 (modded heavily with BT etc.) and the S4 avant were lowered on coils and I still had no issue driving in a foot of snow (albeit with Dunlop Wintersport M3's). The avant is extremely versatile and will certainly be more fun to drive compared to the Q5 with higher centre of balance. My GF is in the same boat requiring to replace her A4 early in the New Year spring - she'll probably end up with the Q5 due to the seating position being better for her sometimes ailing back ...

Good luck choosing !

MkIX

Stevelev:

Thanks for your comments.

I live in an urban centre so generally clearance isn't an issue. However, I have a good friend who lives on a private road well out of town. I'd like to be able to get to his place in February without too much fuss.

I fear, however, that I may be getting swept up in the current North American CUV frenzy. I guess that's why I'm probing this section of the Audi forum. I want to make an effort to balance passion and logic. Passion says 'Audi', perhaps logic says 'Avant'???

MkIX

I should add that a sedan is out of the question. I put piles of stuff (toys) in the back of my current wagon. So a big hatch with lots of cargo space is mandatory.

Stevelev

Makes sense to me. My recent passion versus logic car decision had me choose a TT over a Cayman. Enough room in the TT coupe to carry 2 sets of golf clubs, a waterski, weekend worth of clothing, food cooler and an 18L jug of water. Quattro and a set of winter "shoes" allows me to avoid the requirement for a "winter beater" ...

No question the Avant has lots of space. If you're trying to carry a tall box then maybe the larger opening in the Q5 would be of benefit.

flew66

I found the whole Canadian pricing of Avant and Q5 very interesting. We were also looking at the Avant and Q5 earlier this year. The Q5 is by far the most popular / best selling Audi's right now. However, despite the Q5's popularity, a similarly equipped Q5 is actually cheaper than an Avant. Moreover, Q5 has standard rear parking sensors and Avant doesn't.
2011 A4 Avant Premium: $47,200
2011 Q5 2.0T Premium + Sunroof + AMI + BiXenon: $45,250
2011 A4 Avant Premium Plus: $49,400
2011 Q5 2.0T Premium Plus + Panoramic Sunroof: $47,600
There is quite a market segment overlap right now and Audi Canada's "pricing strategy" is destroying the Avant's market share completely. Having said that, if you found a dealer who actually has an Avant in stock, you probably can get quite a bit of discount as they are not moving them at all.

plg_cp

Can't get the Q5 in manual transmission. That's a deal-breaker right there.

Stevelev

Really ??!? I can understand saying that about a sport sedan or coupe (although DSG is awesome) but a C/SUV ?

WpgAvant

Can't get the Avant in manual either.

jfo

I went through the same decision process, but between the sedan and the CUV. Then I took a closer look at the Avant and bought it. It performs like the sedan but has more than enough room for me, and I don't really plan to go offroad. Even though the Q5 looks nice, it seems that all CUV's look about the same, with no visual interest. No offense meant to the Q5 owners!