First glimpse of Audi A5 Sportback
* Hatchback-style five-door * Should cost less than A5 coupe * Lower than A4, but practical...
Audi has released details of an all-new model, the Audi A5 Sportback.
The five-door model is based on the A5 coupe, but has a more practical five-door body. Audi says it's 'as emotional and elegant as a coupe, as comfortable as a sedan (saloon) and as practical as an Avant'.
It's essentially an upmarket hatchback part-way between the A5 coupe and the A4 Avant in carrying capacity and practicality. It has a coupe-style roofline and rear end design, but Audi promises a 480-litre boot and 980 litres of load space with the rear seats folded.
Audi has released a photo that shows a glimpse of the rear-end styling, along with a sketch that shows how the overall shape will look. Despite an overall height that's lower than the Audi A4 saloon, Audi says the A5 Sportback has comparable head- and legroom.
Five engines will be on offer from launch: 2.0 TFSI (211bhp) and 3.2 V6 (265bhp) petrols and 2.0 TDI (170bhp), 2.7 TDI (190bhp) and 3.0 V6 TDI (240bhp) diesels.
The 3.2 and 3.0 TDI V6s both come with four-wheel drive and the 2.0 TDI has a stop-start system to save fuel. A further entry-level model will follow in mid-2010.
Deliveries of the Audi A5 Sportback will start in October. UK prices have yet to be confirmed, but we expect the Sportback will cost less than the equivalent A5 coupe model.
