Electric range boosted for PHEV
Battery improvements lengthen PHEV’S electric-only range for greater tax savings
The arrival of the sloped-roofed Q5 Sportback may have stolen the show, but Audi’s most recent round of updates to the Q5 also gave the plug-in hybrid versions of the familiar family SUV some love, by way of a larger drive battery.
Where the outgoing Q5 PHEVS had a 14.1kwh battery that was good for 26 miles on electricity alone, the latest models get a 17.9kwh pack that should manage close to 40 miles, whether you opt for the 55 TFSIE or the less potent 50 TFSIE tested here.
That will come as great news to company car drivers, first for the healthy benefit-in-kind tax savings over the equivalent Ice-only Q5 and second because their daily commutes can now be managed more comfortably in EV mode.
Both the 50 TFSIE and 55 TFSIE combine an electric motor with a 2.0-litre four-pot turbo petrol engine, but here the total output drops from 362bhp to a still-healthy 299bhp.
Foot to floor, the 0-62mph sprint can be dispatched in 6.1sec, which isn’t that far behind the SQ5 diesel performance model’s time. With a lighter foot, it will reach motorway speeds without waking the engine.
When it does fire up, the handover is subtle enough that you sometimes question what’s propelling you at any given moment, with only a few subtle visual cues on the digital dashboard.
New for 2021 is Charge driving mode (on top of the existing EV, Auto and Hybrid ones), which lets the engine charge the battery. It’s no replacement for a plug socket, but it’s handy if you’re heading into an inner-city low-emissions zone so need to top up on the move.
The added weight of the PHEV system is only really noticeable when you ask for every bit of the Q5’s dynamic potential – which arrives sooner than you might hope, compared with rivals such as the BMW X3 xdrive30e.
In all other respects, the Q5 stays as comfortable and capable as ever.
TOM MORGAN
If you have a facility to charge it and make the most of its battery, there’s an awful lot to like – and even more if you qualify for one as a company car.