The new Adventure - Audi Q5 PHEV
Discussion
Those of you who read my previous thread https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... will know that my last car was a bit of a basket case.- the sort of thing that used to be called a 'Friday afternoon car', although robots don't get sloppy as the weekend approaches.
So, what to replace it with?
Things I like:
RWD
Low
Roomy
Able to cruise for several hours and feel comfortable
Petrol
Things I don't like:
High cars / SUVs
Front wheel drive
Diesel
So, the obvious solution would be a 5-series estate, but after the last car, BMW was not an option. Another E-Class, maybe? Well, they're nearly all Diesels, and Petrol is either woefully under-powered or AMG-engined, and AMG is not a good option in terms of fuel burn, and in terms of Mrs Magnum being able to drive it.
This left me looking at SUVs. After trying a few, surprisingly for me, the Audi Q5 seemed the best choice - comfier and roomier than the GLC, and way better inside than the RAV 4. Oh, and the Q5 drives surprisingly well for its size too.
I've now purchased a Q5 50 TFSIe, in a nice bland anonymous dark grey. Sorry, no pictures yet. I'm five days and 550 miles into ownership.
First impressions:
- I have to go slower through bends than in my old 3-series or my Boxster
- It's superbly comfortable for spending several hours in
- The fuel economy is impressive - 40mpg on Petrol only on motorway cruising, and 45mpg yesterday using Hybrid mode on congested local roads and motoryway over about 120 miles (and the battery wasn't full to start that journey)
- The Audi MMI system is miles ahead of the BMW iDrive system
- F**k me, public EV chargers are f**king expensive
- The kids love the extra space and the pan roof
I've just ordered 4x Michelin Cross-Climates to go on next weekend, as home roads don't get salted / cleared during winter.
More updates to come as I start to get used to something completely different to anything I've owned before.
So, what to replace it with?
Things I like:
RWD
Low
Roomy
Able to cruise for several hours and feel comfortable
Petrol
Things I don't like:
High cars / SUVs
Front wheel drive
Diesel
So, the obvious solution would be a 5-series estate, but after the last car, BMW was not an option. Another E-Class, maybe? Well, they're nearly all Diesels, and Petrol is either woefully under-powered or AMG-engined, and AMG is not a good option in terms of fuel burn, and in terms of Mrs Magnum being able to drive it.
This left me looking at SUVs. After trying a few, surprisingly for me, the Audi Q5 seemed the best choice - comfier and roomier than the GLC, and way better inside than the RAV 4. Oh, and the Q5 drives surprisingly well for its size too.
I've now purchased a Q5 50 TFSIe, in a nice bland anonymous dark grey. Sorry, no pictures yet. I'm five days and 550 miles into ownership.
First impressions:
- I have to go slower through bends than in my old 3-series or my Boxster
- It's superbly comfortable for spending several hours in
- The fuel economy is impressive - 40mpg on Petrol only on motorway cruising, and 45mpg yesterday using Hybrid mode on congested local roads and motoryway over about 120 miles (and the battery wasn't full to start that journey)
- The Audi MMI system is miles ahead of the BMW iDrive system
- F**k me, public EV chargers are f**king expensive
- The kids love the extra space and the pan roof
I've just ordered 4x Michelin Cross-Climates to go on next weekend, as home roads don't get salted / cleared during winter.
More updates to come as I start to get used to something completely different to anything I've owned before.
Can agree with getting the Q5, not a bad steer. I've driven 5 of my Dads Q5's - albeit all 2.0TDI and all Daytona Grey which I imagine is what yours is.
Lots of growing room in the car for the little ones - and I mean you shouldn't have any problems running out of legroom as its one of the few cars I can actually sit behind my dad in (6ft11 and 6ft6.5 respectively).
Although similarly to you with your last car he is starting to look at alternative brands due to the terrible service and sales departments... an almost guaranteed sale and they cant even get that.
Lots of growing room in the car for the little ones - and I mean you shouldn't have any problems running out of legroom as its one of the few cars I can actually sit behind my dad in (6ft11 and 6ft6.5 respectively).
Although similarly to you with your last car he is starting to look at alternative brands due to the terrible service and sales departments... an almost guaranteed sale and they cant even get that.
Indeed, plenty of growing room. Took the wife and kids on a 320 mile round trip yesterday - they all loved the comfort and space factor.
Turned in 40 mpg on motorway cruising, despite the weight of the batteries that weren't really doing much on the motorway cruising part of the journey.
It's booked in for a set of nice new Michelin All-Seasons on Saturday, to replace the Continental summer tyres currently fitted.
Turned in 40 mpg on motorway cruising, despite the weight of the batteries that weren't really doing much on the motorway cruising part of the journey.
It's booked in for a set of nice new Michelin All-Seasons on Saturday, to replace the Continental summer tyres currently fitted.
Well, 3 weeks and 1,500 miles in now. It's been treated to a set of Michelin Cross-Climates, although performed shockingly well on our untreated local roads on the Conti Summer tyres that were fitted a couple of weeks back when we had a few cm of snow.
Most local journeys can be done on battery, without waking the petrol engine. This should be good for the life expectancy of the petrol side of things.
Longer journeys will see better than 40mpg on Petrol, with the car in 'battery hold' mode, which is pretty good for a big bus.
The wife & kids love it, as they've got more room than in my old car, or in her 220i Active Tourer.
Comfort for long drives is, to say the least, impressive. It's also incredibly chilled and seems to encourage me to take things easy, which can only be a good thing when considering the number of speed cameras I drive through on motorway commutes.
Most local journeys can be done on battery, without waking the petrol engine. This should be good for the life expectancy of the petrol side of things.
Longer journeys will see better than 40mpg on Petrol, with the car in 'battery hold' mode, which is pretty good for a big bus.
The wife & kids love it, as they've got more room than in my old car, or in her 220i Active Tourer.
Comfort for long drives is, to say the least, impressive. It's also incredibly chilled and seems to encourage me to take things easy, which can only be a good thing when considering the number of speed cameras I drive through on motorway commutes.
Edited by Magnum 475 on Friday 2nd May 09:04
Time for a 6 month & 7000 miles update.
Things to report: zero.
It's just happily getting on with things. Even if something goes wrong today, it will have gone longer than my previous car ever managed without something breaking.
In terms of economy, working out costs of electricity and petrol, it's working out to the cash equivalent of around 50mpg. Local journeys are done purely on battery, and longer journeys in Hybrid mode.
Interestingly, on a few roads near home I can make better progress in this than I can in my Boxster, 'cause when I'm driving the Q5 I can see over the hedges and know what's coming the other way, whereas in the Boxster I have to go slowly just in case something's coming.
Handling wise, it's a bit of a barge. But ride quality is superb which is frankly more important considering the state of our roads.
So, 6 months in things are looking good for the Q5. Ideal family bus and remarkably good wafting car. Also very affordable to run so far.
Things to report: zero.
It's just happily getting on with things. Even if something goes wrong today, it will have gone longer than my previous car ever managed without something breaking.
In terms of economy, working out costs of electricity and petrol, it's working out to the cash equivalent of around 50mpg. Local journeys are done purely on battery, and longer journeys in Hybrid mode.
Interestingly, on a few roads near home I can make better progress in this than I can in my Boxster, 'cause when I'm driving the Q5 I can see over the hedges and know what's coming the other way, whereas in the Boxster I have to go slowly just in case something's coming.
Handling wise, it's a bit of a barge. But ride quality is superb which is frankly more important considering the state of our roads.
So, 6 months in things are looking good for the Q5. Ideal family bus and remarkably good wafting car. Also very affordable to run so far.
Magnum 475 said:
Time for a 6 month & 7000 miles update.
Things to report: zero.
It's just happily getting on with things. Even if something goes wrong today, it will have gone longer than my previous car ever managed without something breaking.
In terms of economy, working out costs of electricity and petrol, it's working out to the cash equivalent of around 50mpg. Local journeys are done purely on battery, and longer journeys in Hybrid mode.
Interestingly, on a few roads near home I can make better progress in this than I can in my Boxster, 'cause when I'm driving the Q5 I can see over the hedges and know what's coming the other way, whereas in the Boxster I have to go slowly just in case something's coming.
Handling wise, it's a bit of a barge. But ride quality is superb which is frankly more important considering the state of our roads.
So, 6 months in things are looking good for the Q5. Ideal family bus and remarkably good wafting car. Also very affordable to run so far.
Interested in understanding how this sort of car works for longer drives as I'm currently running a diesel and debating diesel v PHEV for my next carThings to report: zero.
It's just happily getting on with things. Even if something goes wrong today, it will have gone longer than my previous car ever managed without something breaking.
In terms of economy, working out costs of electricity and petrol, it's working out to the cash equivalent of around 50mpg. Local journeys are done purely on battery, and longer journeys in Hybrid mode.
Interestingly, on a few roads near home I can make better progress in this than I can in my Boxster, 'cause when I'm driving the Q5 I can see over the hedges and know what's coming the other way, whereas in the Boxster I have to go slowly just in case something's coming.
Handling wise, it's a bit of a barge. But ride quality is superb which is frankly more important considering the state of our roads.
So, 6 months in things are looking good for the Q5. Ideal family bus and remarkably good wafting car. Also very affordable to run so far.
Most of my trips are long, commute is a 120 mile round trip twice a week
Do you do trips similar to that and if so how does the car "work"? Likely to be too far to drive on electricity alone, and using only petrol the cost/economy/performance likely to be worse than a diesel. I assume it uses some sort of smart "mix" of the two but in that scenario how long would it take for the battery to go flat?
macron said:
Any pics?!?!
Not yet! I did take a couple using my phone just after I bought it. Then Mrs Magnum drove over my phone (accidentally), after it slipped out of my pocket as I was extracting myself from the Boxster!flight147z said:
Interested in understanding how this sort of car works for longer drives as I'm currently running a diesel and debating diesel v PHEV for my next car
Most of my trips are long, commute is a 120 mile round trip twice a week
Do you do trips similar to that and if so how does the car "work"? Likely to be too far to drive on electricity alone, and using only petrol the cost/economy/performance likely to be worse than a diesel. I assume it uses some sort of smart "mix" of the two but in that scenario how long would it take for the battery to go flat?
I'm currently doing a 120-ish mile commute to work at the moment. If I leave the house and put it in 'Battery Hold' mode, which will use and re-charge the battery, it gives me about 43mpg on a motorway run. If I use 'Hybrid', that goes up to 50ish mpg - but I need somewhere to recharge when I get to my hotel. That's fine except for the few times when all the hotel chargers are all in use. What I usually do is drive up in 'Battery Hold', commute from site to hotel / back in EV mode, then drive home in 'Battery Hold'. Sometimes I'll charge on site if i get in early enough to grab a charge point, then move to the normal car park when it's charged - only takes an hour or so as the battery isn't huge.Most of my trips are long, commute is a 120 mile round trip twice a week
Do you do trips similar to that and if so how does the car "work"? Likely to be too far to drive on electricity alone, and using only petrol the cost/economy/performance likely to be worse than a diesel. I assume it uses some sort of smart "mix" of the two but in that scenario how long would it take for the battery to go flat?
For a big-ish bus that runs on petrol, I'm not complaining at these numbers.
Magnum 475 said:
macron said:
Any pics?!?!
Not yet! I did take a couple using my phone just after I bought it. Then Mrs Magnum drove over my phone (accidentally), after it slipped out of my pocket as I was extracting myself from the Boxster!flight147z said:
Interested in understanding how this sort of car works for longer drives as I'm currently running a diesel and debating diesel v PHEV for my next car
Most of my trips are long, commute is a 120 mile round trip twice a week
Do you do trips similar to that and if so how does the car "work"? Likely to be too far to drive on electricity alone, and using only petrol the cost/economy/performance likely to be worse than a diesel. I assume it uses some sort of smart "mix" of the two but in that scenario how long would it take for the battery to go flat?
I'm currently doing a 120-ish mile commute to work at the moment. If I leave the house and put it in 'Battery Hold' mode, which will use and re-charge the battery, it gives me about 43mpg on a motorway run. If I use 'Hybrid', that goes up to 50ish mpg - but I need somewhere to recharge when I get to my hotel. That's fine except for the few times when all the hotel chargers are all in use. What I usually do is drive up in 'Battery Hold', commute from site to hotel / back in EV mode, then drive home in 'Battery Hold'. Sometimes I'll charge on site if i get in early enough to grab a charge point, then move to the normal car park when it's charged - only takes an hour or so as the battery isn't huge.Most of my trips are long, commute is a 120 mile round trip twice a week
Do you do trips similar to that and if so how does the car "work"? Likely to be too far to drive on electricity alone, and using only petrol the cost/economy/performance likely to be worse than a diesel. I assume it uses some sort of smart "mix" of the two but in that scenario how long would it take for the battery to go flat?
For a big-ish bus that runs on petrol, I'm not complaining at these numbers.
To be honest I'd assumed they were smarter than that and could figure it out for themselves what to do. Not sure I could be bothered with changing modes whilst I'm driving and having to think about that, I would also lose patience with charging it twice every day. I think I'd be better off sticking with ICE or going over to BEV...
flight147z said:
Ah thanks
To be honest I'd assumed they were smarter than that and could figure it out for themselves what to do. Not sure I could be bothered with changing modes whilst I'm driving and having to think about that, I would also lose patience with charging it twice every day. I think I'd be better off sticking with ICE or going over to BEV...
It can, and will, if you set your destination using the Nav. It then aims to arrive at the destination with about 10% battery. But I know where I’m going, and prefer using Apple Car Play. I certainly don’t charge twice a day - if I’m doing a local commute I’ll see about 30 miles on battery, which costs me <£2 to charge at home. For work, when I’m away, I can commute between the site & the hotel a few times without charging, then try to grab one of the low-cost chargers on site before I head home.To be honest I'd assumed they were smarter than that and could figure it out for themselves what to do. Not sure I could be bothered with changing modes whilst I'm driving and having to think about that, I would also lose patience with charging it twice every day. I think I'd be better off sticking with ICE or going over to BEV...
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