2025 Audi S5 and A5 first drive: Five-door is the new four-door

Audi provided flights from Washignton, DC, to Denver and accommodation so Ars could drive the A5 and S5, as well as the Q5 and SQ5. Ars does not accept paid editorial content. ASPEN, Colo.—The SUV might be the dominant design in the American automobile market, but it hasn't completely taken over. At Audi, there is still life in the sedan. The old A4 four-door is no more—at least for a while or until Audi redoes its nomenclature yet again. If you want a small Audi four-door, you need to step down to the A3. Five doors is where it's at, with the 2025 A5. Like the new Q5 SUV, which you may have read about last week, the new A5 uses an all-new vehicle architecture from Audi called PPC (for premium platform combustion). PPC will give rise to a wide range of new vehicles from Audi, Porsche, and the other premium VW Group stablemates, and it takes a meaningful step into the future with advanced new electronics, making this a true software-defined vehicle. Under the hood There will be two versions at launch. The regular A5 features a 2.0 L four-cylinder turbocharged, direct-injection engine driving all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, and generates 268 hp (200 kW) and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm). That's a pretty large power and torque bump compared to the outgoing A5 Sportback, in part thanks to a new variable geometry turbocharger that replaces the old twin-scroll blower. Jonathan Gitlin The A5 in particular is a very anodyne shape. It's almost as if it's a generative AI's idea of an Audi sedan. The A5 in particular is a very anodyne shape. It's almost as if it's a generative AI's idea of an Audi sedan. Jonathan Gitlin Jonathan Gitlin Disc-like alloy wheels are good for fuel efficiency. Disc-like alloy wheels are good for fuel efficiency. Jonathan Gitlin Jonathan Gitlin OLED taillights are available on the Prestige trim, but unlike in other markets, they are not allowed to be animated while the vehicle is in motion in the US. OLED taillights are available on the Prestige trim, but unlike in other markets, they are not allowed to be animated while the vehicle is in motion in the US. Jonathan Gitlin Disc-like alloy wheels are good for fuel efficiency. Jonathan Gitlin OLED taillights are available on the Prestige trim, but unlike in other markets, they are not allowed to be animated while the vehicle is in motion in the US. Jonathan Gitlin Audi says that the new A5 has much more precise steering thanks to mounting the rack directly to the unibody, plus a stiffer antiroll bar. There's also more front camber and stiffer front axles. A brake-based differential slows the inside rear wheel during cornering for a tighter turning radius. The other version is the S5, which gets a couple more cylinders, among other upgrades. Its 3.0 L V6 engine—also coupled to an all-wheel drive seven-speed DCT, albeit with some reinforcement against torque—gives the S5 a more meaningful 362 hp (270 kW) and 406 lb-ft (550 Nm). That's a more modest bump to the specs of the previous S5 than the four-cylinder car, although one that still shaves a couple of tenths off the 0–60 time. The S5 also benefits from some suspension upgrades compared to the regular A5. The car is almost an inch (20 mm) lower in terms of ride height, and there is optional air suspension with adaptive dampers that offers a more comfortable Comfort mode and a firmer Dynamic mode than the old S5.