Audi A5 Cabriolet review

This is a quiet, comfortable, calm car that in no way encourages you to drive quickly. You can feel the structure shake and shimmy a bit through the steering column, but for the most part it rides well, doesn’t roll through bends and steers precisely. Sits exceptionally well on the motorway – of course there's more road noise than in the coupe because, well, the roof is made of canvas instead of metal, but it’s really not bad. We wouldn’t hesitate to drive one of these things down to the South of France in one go, but when we arrived we’d kick ourselves for not having bought a 4 Series Convertible instead for the twisty mountain roads. It’s more of a driver’s car – better handling and more engaging.  

WHAT ENGINES CAN YOU GET?

Like Mercedes and BMW, beyond whether it’s powered by petrol or diesel, the badge on the back of your Audi seldom reflects exactly what engine lives under the bonnet.

There are four engines to choose from in the A5 Cabriolet – three petrols and one diesel, all 2.0-litres. The line-up goes 35 TFSI, 40 TFSI, 40 TDI and finally 45 TFSI. TFSI means petrol, TDI means diesel, and the number indicates how much power the engine produces. The diesel and 45 petrol get ‘quattro’ all-wheel drive – the others are front-wheel drive – and all A5s get a seven-speed automatic gearbox as standard.  

The one you want is the 40 TFSI. It’s quick enough – 204bhp means 0-62mph in 7.5 seconds – reasonably frugal (40mpg claimed) and very refined. Well suited to the A5’s languid character.

DO THEY DO A FAST ONE?

The 45 TFSI is pretty quick. But no, Audi doesn’t do a properly fast A5 Cabriolet to rival the BMW M4 Convertible. Meanwhile the A5 Coupe can be had as both an S5, with a 3.0-litre six-cylinder diesel engine and 340bhp, or an RS5, with a 2.9-litre six-cylinder petrol and 450bhp. But we’re not upset – the A5 Cabriolet is a cruiser that would in no way benefit from big power. The existing engine line-up does the job just fine.