Audi A5 Cabriolet Review

Audi 5 Cabriolet

The Audi A5 Cabriolet is real feast for the eyes thanks to its sleek body and convertible roof. It also boasts a refined interior cabin that is packed with innovative technology.

Overall Verdict

The Audi A5 Cabriolet is a beautiful machine. Teaming sleek, sumptuous styling with punchy engines and a fantastic array of standard tech makes for a top tier driving experience. This drop-top Audi A5 variation is sporty yet still offers as much practicality as the hard-top A5 Sportback, so it’s a possible option for small families too. 

Good looks aside, driving the A5 Cabriolet is quite an experience. The petrol engines are smooth whilst the diesel options are a little more prone to vibrations, but still really pack a punch. For many, the top petrol engine pick is the less expensive 40 TSFI 2.0-litre turbo whilst the 40 TDI quattro diesel engine is the most powerful overall.

Audi has honed the handling so you can reign in the powerful engines with ease. Entry models are kitted out with a six speed manual gearbox, but automatic transmission is recommended. The mid-range models are equipped with a seven speed twin-clutch automatic transmission. Not all models have Audi's signature quattro all-wheel drive but it's well worth the added cost, and Adaptive Cruise Control is also worth chucking into the mix while you're at it.

Audi's are renowned for their gorgeous interiors - the A5 Cabriolet certainly doesn't disappoint. The MMI infotainment system with Bluetooth interface is just a fraction less impressive than BMW's iDrive but is cracking nevertheless.

Unlike many convertible cars, you won't need to compromise on space in exchange for rolling back that hood. The boot space is impressive, boasting 380 litres of space, reducing to a still very reasonable 320 litres when the roof is down. There are two rear seats and the headroom is a bit squished for even an average adult, but this is to be expected with a convertible - it ain't advertised as a people carrier!

When it comes to emissions and fuel economy, the A5 Cabriolet boasts pretty decent stats. Audi claim a combined mpg of 43.5 (more like 35mpg in real life conditions) and the cleanest engine emits 127g of CO2 g/km, which is just marginally higher than the greenest 4 Series and the same as the C Class, so it's nothing to be sniffed at.

Giving the Mercedes C Class Cabriolet and the BMW 4 Series Convertible a run for their money, this Audi A5 Cabriolet review shows that this set of wheels is a strong contender in the open-top car category. If you’re in the market for a new car, you may want to make it a brand new Audi A5 Cabriolet.

If you're deliberating between models, be sure to check some of our comparison posts. The A4 doesn't come in a convertible model, but if that isn't a dealbreaker, see our Audi A4 vs A5 post.

Available Trims

The Audi A5 Cabriolet in its second generation is available in three trims: Sport, S Line, and Vorsprung. Let’s take a closer look at what each trim level offers.

Sport

The entry-level Sport trim has received raving reviews from motoring experts far and wide. On the outside, it comes with 18” ‘5-arm star’ design alloy wheels, Xenon headlights with LED daytime-running lights. Step inside and you can melt into front sport seats in Twin leather. The Comfort Dynamic suspension smoothens the ride and it also comes with MMI Navigation with Audi Sound System

S Line

The next step up is the popular S Line trim which has larger 19” ‘5-parallel-spoke’ design alloy wheels and LED headlights (front and rear),and dynamic rear indicators. The sporty front seats are dressed in your choice of Leather or Alcantara and decorated with an ‘S’ embossed logo. Sports suspension is also included.

Vorsprung

The ultimate trim level for the Audi A5 is Vorsprung. Kitted out with 20” ‘5 star-design’ alloy wheels, matrix LED headlights, heated front sport seats in Fine Nappa leather, and adaptive comfort suspension, this trim practically has the full she-bang. It also comes with the Audi Virtual Cockpit at no extra cost.

Read on for more information in our detailed interior, practicality and driving review sections or head over to our Audi A5 Cabriolet lease deals page to see how much you can save on on a leased car.

Exterior

When that soft-top is down, the Audi A5 Cabriolet is a machine to behold. Based on the Audi A4 which is also praised for its good looks, there are no complaints in this department.

The body is constructed using a lightweight and smart-looking aluminium hybrid and the fabric roof is a multi-layered ‘acoustic’ hood which can be opened at the click of a button.

First impressions are important and the A5 Cabriolet looks sleek and premium.

Driving Experience

Like others in the A5 range, the A5 Cabriolet offers a superb driving experience. Let’s take a closer look at how Audi have achieved this first-rate drive.

Engine

Although there aren’t as many engine options as the A5 Coupe, you’re hardly short on choice. There are 16 versions available, starting with the 187bhp 2.0-litre manual TFSI petrol all the way along the 349bhp 3.0-litre TFSI quattro.

The engines are surprisingly quiet, with only a small amount of vibration at low speeds. The petrol engine options are much smoother than their diesel engine counterparts.

Many have commented that it’s not worth going for the most powerful petrol engine, the 45 TFSI quattro with seven-speed automatic S tronic. Compared to the 40 TFSI 2.0-litre turbo petrol engine, there isn’t a great noticeable difference in speed.

Out of all of the engine options, the 40 TDI diesel is hailed as the most ferocious.

Performance

The older A5 Cabriolet model was lumbered with slow steering that ruined the thrill of racing with the roof down. It has since had a makeover so it feels far more agile and speedy!

Depending on your engine type, the A5 Cabriolet can do 0-60 mph anywhere between 4.9 and 8.1 seconds. The basic 40 TFSI S Tronic 2.0-litre petrol engine can do 0-60mph in 7.9 seconds with the diesel alternative lagging behind just a touch!

Driving Position

Unless you are Peter Crouch, you shouldn’t struggle to find a good driving position. 

Electrically adjustable lumbar support and a steering wheel that can be moved up and down as well as nearer or closer to the driver means that you’ve got plenty of adjustment features to tweak your seat to that exact right sweet driving spot.

Handling

If you’re torn between the A5 Coupe and this A5 Cabriolet, you should know that the A5 Coupe offers a much sharper drive - the weight of the folding roof on the Cabriolet affects the handling compared to its lighter Coupe sister.

That said, the Cabriolet does have highly impressive body control. Audi has struck a good balance between comfort and control but not all engines come with Audi quattro four-wheel drive as standard, which does make a big difference. The steering has a nice weight to it and the grip is limpet-like.

If you do fancy amping it up, however,  you can add on Adaptive Dampers for an extra £600.

Suspension

This is where the A5 Cabriolet has an edge over the Mercedes-Benz C-Class Cabriolet - in Comfort mode, available on the entry-level trim, the suspension is soft, soft, soft.

Even though it comes with a higher price tag, the S Line suspension is actually more firm that most drivers appreciate.

Audi A5 Cabriolet Interior

For one of the more premium cars from a premium brand, you’ve obviously got high hopes for the interior. How does it fare?

Styling

You won’t see any tacky plastics in this Audi. The quality of the interior materials is exactly what you’d hope for from a premium manufacturer.

Depending on your trim choice, the dashboard will be covered in faux aluminium or matte black wood. Audi have taken an uncluttered, minimalist approach to the A5 dash design so you can concentrate on the great driving experience instead of fumbling around for one of a hundred controls.

You’ve got loads of personalisation options to make the interior feel unique to you.

Tech

All variations on the A5 Cabriolet come with a 7-inch colour infotainment screen, DAB radio,  Bluetooth, sat nav, three-zone climate control, and front and rear parking sensors. 

The crisp infotainment screen is mounted in the centre of the dashboard and can be controlled using a rotary dial between the front passenger seats rather than a touchscreen, which is far less distracting!

If you’re feeling flush, the Audi Virtual Cockpit is highly recommended. The 12.3-inch screen assumes the position of the standard analogue instruments. It is pricey, but boy is it worth it. If you were to go with the Vorsprung trim, it comes as standard.

Practicality

Knowing how practical the car is always useful but let’s be honest - you’re looking at a car review for an Audi convertible. You’re probably not overly fussed if the boot can hold suitcases for a family of 5 or if you can transport an entire flat’s worth of IKEA flat pack furniture comfortably. The A5 Cabriolet is, however, surprisingly practical! 

Dimensions

If you need to measure up for your driveway or parking space at work, the Audi A5 Cabriolet dimensions are as follows:

• Length: 4,626 - 4,640mm
• Width: 2,020 - 2,029mm
• Height: 1,380 - 1,383mm
• Wheelbase: 2,765mm

It’s ever so slightly smaller than the Mercedes C Class if that matters to you, but really not by much.

Boot Size

The Audi A5 Cabriolet boot size is nothing to be sniffed at. It can hold 380 litres, which does drop to 320 litres if you have the roof down. It has more space than the BMW 4 Series or the C Class but not as much as the A5 Coupe, which can hold 465 litres.

Even with the loss of space from a folded roof, the A5 Cabriolet still boasts more boot space than your average supermini which is great if you need to stock up on trade show equipment, a set of golf clubs, or chuck the kid’s school/lunch/sports/whatever other bags in there.

You can generate extra space by folding the rear seats down - they fold 40/20/40, leaving the gentlest of slopes so your bags won’t go skidding all over the joint if they’re in the extended loading bay. When you fold down these seats, the storage expands to a fairly generous 750 litres.

Passenger Room

In terms of passenger room, there is plenty of room upfront for tall adults, but even an average sized adult might give their head a knock on the sloping roof on the back - which is why you want a convertible, so you can put the roof down and have infinite head space!

When the A5 Cabriolet was remodelled, the cabin layout was adjusted so your backseat passengers don’t have to endure awkward and uncomfortable shoulder bashing for a long haul journey anymore.

With only 2 rear seats, there’s more than enough room for your bright-eyed and bushy-tailed Jack and Jill to sit, but you have to leave your third child at home.

Audi A5 Passenger Space

Safety Features

The A5 Cabriolet hasn’t undergone a Euro NCAP crash test yet, but the Coupe got a 5 star rating and 89% for adult occupancy, so the Cabriolet should yield similar results. 

With the basic Sport trim, you’ve got hill hold function, autonomous emergency braking, multiple airbags, height adjustable front seatbelts, electronic stabilisation control, and loads more. If you’re interested in adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring or lane departure warning, you’ll need to pay extra.

Running Costs

Once you’ve totalled up all your added extras, the A5 Cabriolet can set you back a pretty penny. So, how much will it cost you day-to-day to run it?

MPG

With a combined mpg of 43.5, the A5 Cabriolet is one of the class-leaders in terms of fuel economy. Honest John says it’s more like 34.4 mpg on average in the real world. 

The extra weight of the A5 Cabriolet compared to the A5 Coupe means that the Coupe is the more fuel-efficient of the A5 range.

CO2 Emissions

The greenest option for the A5 Cabriolet is the Sport 40 TDI Sport 5dr S Tronic which emits 127g/km of CO2. If you’re looking at this as an option for a company car, this places you in the 29% tax band.

At the higher end of the spectrum, you’ve got the Vorsprung 45 TFSI quattro 5dr S Tronic which emits 159g/km, which places you in the 35% company car tax band.

Insurance Group

Less secure from theft than the coupe as a result of the folding roof and because of the extra cost to repair in the event of a crash, insuring the Cabriolet is a tad pricier.

Rather than falling into group 26, the minimum is group 30 for 2.0-litre TDI, then 33 for the 2.0-litre petrol.

Reliability

Audi reliability hasn’t been praised too highly by experts, scoring fairly poorly in a lot of tests. The Reliability Index has not covered the Cabriolet, but the A5 Sportback received a poor rating of 165 (with an average car scoring 100 and a higher score being poorer), so a similar score can be expected for the Cabriolet.

Warranty

From new, all Audi models come with a 3 year/60,000 mile Audi warranty. This is fine, but mainstream manufacturers like Kia and Hyundai offer much longer standard warranties, so it does give you a little more food for thought about Audi’s reliability!

The warranty is of less concern if you are leasing, as your lease will usually be up by the end of the 3 year coverage, so you wouldn’t have to worry about any issues beyond this point - you can just trade it in for a shiny new model.

You can pay for an extended warranty, but this is pretty pricey and perhaps not worth it.

Servicing

The A5 Cabriolet needs servicing every 12 months or 10,000 miles, whichever happens to come first.

Every 2 years or 20,000 miles, it’ll need a more comprehensive service.

Audi offer two types of service schedule:

• Fixed, which is every 9,000 miles or every year.

• Flexible, which is up to 19,000 miles or every two years.

The Flexible schedule is recommended for long-distance drivers and Fixed is more for lower-mileage motorists.