Upcoming third-generation Q5 will be the last before Audi goes fully-electric.
The next Audi Q5 has been spied undergoing on-road assessment in the hands of Audi engineers, ahead of its anticipated launch in 2023.
The larger Q7’s introduction in 2006 made Audi into an SUV market force and the Q5, originally launched in 2009, cemented its position as one of the most popular premium SUV car makers.
Despite Audi now offering 11 different SUV models, the Q5 remains incredibly popular. Globally, there isn’t a single Audi nameplate that sells in higher volumes, with nearly 300,000 deliveries worldwide in 2021 making it not just the German manufacturer’s most popular Q-badged model, but also its biggest seller outright.
Audi’s rival to the BMW X3 and Mercedes GLE is almost ready to receive its third instalment and our latest spy shots suggest Audi won’t mess with the Q5 formula too much.
We can expect an evolutionary design language for the Q5, rather than an all-out clean-sheet rethink. Our pictures of development prototypes reveal a car that’s still based around a large octagonal grille flanked by slim headlights, but its nose appears taller and more squared off, for a tougher look. Stronger shoulders will be complemented by a rear end that features a full-width LED lighting bar more in-line with the firm’s all-electric e-tron models, instead of the current Q5’s split tail-lights.
The next Q5 looks slightly larger than the current-generation car. A longer wheelbase should create more room in the cabin. In contrast to the evolutionary exterior, a next-generation cabin layout with brand-new infotainment and switchgear is feasible. Audi has never been a manufacturer that has stood still from generation to generation when it comes to its cabin architectures.
The brand has already electrified the Q5 nameplate with the arrival of the MEB-based Q5 e-tron in China. But conforming to Audi’s electrification strategy in Europe, there’ll be no next-generation Q5 EV. Instead, the new car will remain on a combustion-engined platform, with an evolution of the brand’s current MLB architecture employed for the next model. However, we can expect substantial upgrades for the platform, because it will host one final generation of combustion-engined models for Europe, described to Automotive Daily by technical boss Oliver Hoffman as “the best” Audi has ever launched.
At the time, Hoffman was outlining the technical basis of the next-generation A4 to us – a car also due in 2023 on the updated MLB architecture. Fundamental to the platform’s new offering will be an updated version of the Volkswagen Group’s well known EA888 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, with 48-volt mild-hybrid technology and revised turbo systems.
Mild-hybrid tech is not new on the Q5; it was introduced as part of the car’s facelift in 2020. However, the powerful SQ5 diesel aside, which uses a 48-volt system, regular MHEV versions of the current Q5 feature a less advanced 12-volt set-up. The 48-volt tech would expand the car’s engine-off coasting and electric-boost capabilities from fleeting moments to being a key part of the driving experience, improving performance and fuel economy.
Diesel power remains popular in the Q5, and an updated 2.0-litre TDI option – also with a new development of the 48-volt tech offered on the current model – will almost certainly arrive as part of the offering. We can expect the SQ5 to stick around for another generation, too, also embracing 48-volt tech but allied to a turbocharged 3.0-litre V6, likely to develop more than 260kW.
Electrification will play a starring role in the next-generation car, too, but beyond the expanded mild-hybrid offering, plug-in hybrid tech is as far as the Q5 will extend.
James Brodie