Audi extends A5 success

The evolution of Audis is a strange one.

On the one hand there can be few cars so recognisably branded.

If it looks like an Audi, then it is an Audi, no matter how old or new the model.

When a new incarnation of the car carrying the four intersecting rings appears on the roads, forecourts and advertising hoardings it’s amazing how a few changes in headlights, swathe lines and proportions can produce something so fresh looking and new.

It’s so clever how so little can make such a difference.

Audi also specialises in estate-ifying, if there is such a word, their saloons to produce Avants and by doing so it makes the car look even more mean, moody and therefore appealing than the four-door originator.

And so it is with the A5. Until this point there hadn’t been an estate version but there is now and it is hot.

By elongating the body, the A5 looks even more menacing, sporty and present.

It looks wider as well as longer, lower and more able to suck the tarmacadam clean off the road.

Make a hexagon of the honeycomb grille, dial in some large air scoops and top the front end off with sleek LEDs and you have a stunning looking car.

Stretch the lights right across the back and introduce a rear air diffuser and the A5 Avant wouldn’t look out of place being the doctor’s car at the back of a grand prix grid on the opening lap. Nice.

This attention to design detail is transposed inside to ensure the A5’s inherent sportiness stimulates the senses of driver and passengers alike.

The dash is fully digitised, from the excellent virtual clocks, to the comprehensive centre console and touch screen even features on the fascia in front of the passenger. It’s all a feast for the eyes and idle fingers.

Sports seats take all-concerned in a fond embrace and the ergonomics have no peers.

On start up it’s difficult to tell what lies beneath. It turns out to be a super-smooth 2.0 turbo diesel that wallops out 204PS and 400Nm of torque.

This means all the sporty details are not there in vain – because it’s sporty. If you are into sprint times then 7.7 seconds to 62mph is swift but the real reward is in the mid-range where deep reserves of torque live for safe overtakes.

Drive economically and you can see 50-plus miles per gallon come up on the trip meter.

Handling is always a strong point of any Audi and the A5 Avant is no exception.

The ride is smooth and sophisticated and the body control and grip are impressive. It is a driver’s delight and you’ll always find yourself opting for the twisty route home.

Being an estate car, Avant has the extra load carrying capacity we come to expect making the Audi as practical as it is fun to drive.

Then add in luxuries, such as a Bang & Olufsen hi-fi, awesome sat nav and intuitive infotainment centre, and owners can’t fail to be very happy indeed.

I know I was with an Audi model that felt reassuringly familiar yet fresh and innovative at the same time.