2020 Audi A5 Cabriolet 45TFSI S Line Stronic
A5 convertible is my favourite convertible, there, I’ve said it.
Audi has managed to combine the right amount of class and elegance, with technology and safety. It is all hidden away under a veneer of restrained respectability. I say veneer, because you won’t be spinning wheels in yobbo-infused fog, but you’ll still manage to get to 100 in 6.5 seconds.
What makes A5 Cabriolet a True GT?
Grand tourers transported gentlemen, in great style, over great distances.
There was often no roof, and gloved hands would grip steering wheels in a booze-fuelled haze. Luggage would be tied to the rear, and running boards carried tools needed to make quick repairs.
Massive engines belched out fumes, getting little better than 10MPG
Those halcyon days might seem like capped and goggled perfection, but roads were unsealed, and you wore thick coats to protect from vile weather. Biting winds, chocking dust, and drenching rain, put hair on the chests of the passengers, even the women.
How things have changed.
A5 Cabriolet needs no ball-busting power plant. Its 2.0L turbo petrol engine runs like a fine Swiss watch. Vibration is all but banished.
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What’s new on the outside?
The body is lithe and sexy. The 2020 model has been gently touched up here and there. The grille has been subtly tweaked, and is now flanked by a sharp set of fully automatic LED Matrix headlights. They bathe the road ahead in the brightest of romantic moonlight. Anyone coming towards it is politely placed in pools of dimmed light.
You can drive anywhere you wish, anytime you wish, as fast as you wish.
As the less fortunate follow you, they’ll see a new set of tail lights, with gentle sweeping indicators. And, as you pass, massive 19” wheels make the body look even longer than it actually is. Tyres are a mere smear of rubber on the alloys. As the A5 Cabriolet moves, it looks like its running on the rims. The effect is mesmerising.
It would be remiss of me to move inside without mentioning to drop-dead gorgeous rag top.
A5 Cabriolet has kept the mohair look going throughout its life, and is all the classier for it. A press of the button sees the glass window at the back swing upwards. The deck lid hinges back, and the roof performs a beautiful ballet before the decklid lowers gracefully back in to place. Meanwhile, the windows that had dropped ever so slightly, raise themselves in a well choreographed dénouement.
There is nothing precocious or jarring about the delicious exterior.
Above: This Week’s VIDEO Car Review – 2020 Audi A5 QUATTRO Cabriolet 45TFSI S Line Stronic
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2020 Audi A5 Cabriolet 45TFSI S Line S-tronic
The flight deck is fabulous.
A5 Cabriolet has the cockpit of a private jet, with just a hint of super-yacht salon.
Much of the previous model was retained. The mid-life make-over merely added to perfection. Front seats have vents at neck level to waft warm air on frosty evenings. There is a draft excluder in the boot. It is well worth deploying as the temperature drops, even though widows up, roof down, there is almost no air movement. It really is quite remarkable.
Audi has dispatched the old infotainment system to the bin in the basement. In its place is a high-resolution touch screen. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto is by USB, unlike other Audis that connect wirelessly. You still have the option of normal Bluetooth of course.
You input your commands by voice or touch. The diabolical command system that once lived between the front seats has also been ditched, and good riddance to it.
Leather is butter soft, and there are lashings of matte wood and aluminium for good measure.
Of course, you have a digital dashboard, and an HUD projected on the windscreen, but surely the the pièce de resistance are the seatbelts. They contain 3 little dots, each containing a mic. Here, your voice is carried into the system with no background noise. Callers will hear no wind or traffic noise even if you are travelling alfresco. It is genius. And, no gentleman’s carriage would be complete without a little arm that presents the seatbelt to you so you don’t have to break a nail reaching behind.
The back seats are snug, and are accessed by tipping the front seatbacks forward. If you need more room, a button will slide the seats forward. It doesn’t always slide back to the right spot, but if it doesn’t, your position is stored in memory. Touch the button and it completely resets itself.
Rear seats fold down, just in case your skis won’t quite fit in the boot.
Only 4 persons of refined disposition will find a pew, and when they do, they’ll be cocooned in a comfort no human has a right to expect.
What’s A5 Cabriolet like to drive?
A5 Cabriolet is what I’d describe as refined, in every sense.
This open top GT is no pale pastiche. The light and airy cabin is indicative of the drive experience, and it is definitely an experience.
The drive modes fettle the throttle, transmission, steering, and suspension. One setting will even allow the driver to specify his own taste. The 7-speed DSG shows Audi’s engineering prowess to its best. You might find very slow driving challenging as the clutches grab and release, but there is automated parking to take the strain away if you feel an attack of the vapors coming on.
Otherwise seamless gear changes, are snappy in sport mode, but comfort mode is my choice du jour. Leave the paddle shifters as decoration. The Audi does a great job without your help thanks very much.
As you wend your through rolling green hills, as we did, you can’t help but feel very slightly smug.
Driving A5 Cabriolet through the Australian countryside.
We took the M5 to the Picton turnoff en route to the old Razorback Road. This track was once the main road from Sydney to Canberra, and on to Melbs.
On the highway, A5 Cabriolet keeps you within the lanes, stops you from changing lanes into oncoming traffic, and will brake if it thinks things are about to go tits-up.
See here at Audi Australia for full specifications
As the inimitable David Brown and I turned off the M5, the sense of satisfaction gave way to mounting anticipation. We stopped briefly in the pretty town of Picton to take in some sights, just as the Victorians world have done. We marveled at the superb viaduct that still carries rail traffic including the odd steam powered train. In fact, as we recorded our film, tooting could be heard. Sadly, it finished up on the cutting room floor.
We left tarmac for a less salubrious surface, and even the comfort mode couldn’t help. This goat track was simply appalling, but the scenery was spectacular. By now of course, the cabin was sealed.
We passed an even older road, by now impassable. We weren’t tempted to press our luck further.
Soon, the pot-holed gravel gave way to pot-holed bitumen. Despite the uncooperative surface, the twists and sweeping bends were monumental. QUATTRO AWD grips like a fat kid on candy! By now, the cabin was once again open to the sun.
It was getting late and the sun had started to slip from view, and with it the last of the warmth. We deployed the draft excluder, and activated the seat warming and air scarves.
Once again, we hurtled down the M5, and although the roof was down, we were as warm as toast.
There was more than enough power, and the suspension was incredibly smooth. Had we the inclination and time, we could easily have kept going, but alas.
Conclusion:
I love convertibles, and always have.
A5 Cabriolet does everything perfectly. It can cross continents in regal splendour as easily as it crosses a suburb for a spot of shopping. Not only that, it can park itself once it gets where it is going.
Trips to the bowser are relatively few.
A5 Cabriolet is charismatic, sexy, even a little naughty. It makes a country drive, a true event.
2020 Audi A5 Cabriolet 45 TFSI quattro S line
Price: $93,400
Drivetrain 45 TFSI quattro / 7-speed S tronic
Power 183 kW at 5,000 – 6,500 rpm
Torque 370 Nm at 1,600 – 4,300 rpm
Acceleration 0-100 km/h in 6.5 seconds
Fuel consumption 7.4 litres per 100km
Exterior colour Navarra blue, metallic
Interior colour Atlas beige
Options
Metallic paint $1,990
Extended upholstery package $780
Inlays in oak, natural grey $520
As tested $96,690