Zune

I’ve had my Navarra Blue SQ5 now for a little over two weeks and absolutely love it (couple of photos attached). I traded in my previous 2015 Glacier White SQ5 (which I loved as well), but this new one improves on it in almost every way (almost!). Mine has the Technik package, as well as the sport differential & air suspension. As with many others, there was a significant delay in receiving the vehicle — ordered in mid-February & delivered in first week of August. Dealership threw in AudiCare for free & an additional $750 discount. From the time of build completion to delivery (London, Ontario, Canada via Halifax, Nova Scotia) was about two and a half weeks. Just thought I’d share a few thoughts for those still waiting or debating on pulling the trigger on a purchase…

PROS

Beautiful styling — Unlike some others, I definitely think this is a strong evolutionary change in styling by Audi, especially given that the old Q5 lineup looks eerily like the Mercedes GLC

Technology - huge improvement over my previous one; Virtual Cockpit is totally cool, the MMI interface is much faster & intuitive; Apple CarPlay works seamlessly

Build quality - definite improvement; I’d read a post a while back about an “owner” claiming they felt the build quality was cheaper-feeling than the previous generation. Totally disagree. The tactile feel of the buttons, *****, and click wheels is superior to my previous vehicle IMO & the vehicle has a very stable & solid feel generally. The air suspension really is amazing -- a very noticeable change in the sporty/tighter feel of Dynamic mode & the "cushier" ride of Comfort mode.

Sound system - The new 19 speaker Bang & Olufsen is phenomenal; the old one was excellent, but this one is a huge improvement

Milano leather sport seats - I loved the Nappa smooth leather seats in my old vehicle, but I opted for the Milano leather seats for this one for the seat ventilation feature (i.e. my wife has it in her Acura MDX & I loved it). Seats are definitely firmer and “sportier” than the Nappa version, & the leather has a more grainy & luxurious feel. Looks like it will keep its “like new” finish longer than the Nappa, but time will tell.

Color - LOVE the Navarra Blue. It is definitely darker than I’d anticipated, but the color depth is excellent & almost changes color in different light. Only drawback is that minor marring shows up much easier in bright sunlight than on my previous white car (I refuse to machine polish it until next spring...too much work!!)


CONS

Turbo lag - it is definitely there. Very subtle but noticeable. The supercharged 3.0 in my old vehicle had great responsiveness from a stop or at lower RPM, but this new one shows an ever so slight delay (yes, even in Sport/dynamic mode). Responsiveness as RPM increase though is noticeably improved, likely due to the increased torque in that range

Auto Start/Stop system - Call me an EcoTerrorist if you like, but I hate that feature (have hated it ever since it showed up on my wife’s MDX). Even worse is the fact you can’t turn it off permanently…must turn it off every time I start up the vehicle. My dealer had said the feature was inactive when driving the car in Sport/Dynamic mode (which I always do), but that is not the case. It may not activate as often in this mode, but definitely still does occasionally.

Not sure if any of you are into detailing, but just thought I’d put in a plug for CarPro’s Hydro2 sealant. In the past I’ve mainly used BlackFire Wet Diamond All Finish sealant & overlaid it with BlackFire Midnight Sun wax, and had great results with that combo. I was looking for something a little less labour intensive for this new vehicle, & a friend recommended the Hydro2. It is VERY easy & quick to use (spray on/spray off), & leaves a beautiful glossy longlasting finish. Unfortunately my dealership “washed” the car before pickup & left some minor marring on the clear coat (i.e. they use an automated “spinning brush” car wash in their dealership). It’s fairly minor & not worth machine polishing for now, but more noticeable on the darker colour than on my old Glacier White SQ5. If you’re due to pick up your vehicle & you’re obsessive about marring like I am, might be worthwhile asking your dealer NOT to clean the vehicle before pickup & doing it yourself.

Cheers,

Al