The next instalment in my Audi Electrification adventure landed me in a Q5 Hybrid. We all know that compact crossovers are the “in” segment at the moment. Mix in luxury, and your vehicle is a sure-fire winner. Throw in “hybrid” and you're now dabbling in a backyard that has seen only one player for the last few years, the Lexus RX. Well-established and highly-regarded, the RX is no pushover and nor does Audi intend on aiming straight at it.
Instead, the Q5 Hybrid will target those that want to enjoy the drive, feel good about their green choice and, well, be cool. That's because everybody knows that nothing is hipper these days than being a new Audi owner.
As part of Audi's Electromobility Strategy, the Q5 Hybrid displays one of the many possibilities of the application of an electric motor and a battery pack. Unlike the A1 and R8 e-tron, the Q5 Hybrid offers the more common platform (we've all heard of a hybrid) but for Audi, this is the first of its kind.
Enhanced electric drive
The Q5 Hybrid will be dubbed the performance hybrid alternative in its segment. And it will work. And it will sell.
My barely-more-than-brief drive took me from the Audi Sportpark, south-east of the brand's headquarters in Ingolstadt, through a series of urban driving situations with a few opportunities to nail the throttle in between.
First, the Q5 Hybrid uses the phenomenal 2.0 TFSI 4-cylinder engine as its base of operations. On its own, this mill produces 211 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque. It, with the new 8-speed automatic transmission and the all-important quattro AWD system, would be quite the trio to make this lithe CUV a blast for fun and economical daily driving. Enter the hybrid “boost”.
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| The Q5 Hybrid displays one of the many possibilities of the application of an electric motor and a battery pack. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre/Auto123.com) |
Instead, the Q5 Hybrid will target those that want to enjoy the drive, feel good about their green choice and, well, be cool. That's because everybody knows that nothing is hipper these days than being a new Audi owner.
As part of Audi's Electromobility Strategy, the Q5 Hybrid displays one of the many possibilities of the application of an electric motor and a battery pack. Unlike the A1 and R8 e-tron, the Q5 Hybrid offers the more common platform (we've all heard of a hybrid) but for Audi, this is the first of its kind.
Enhanced electric drive
The Q5 Hybrid will be dubbed the performance hybrid alternative in its segment. And it will work. And it will sell.
My barely-more-than-brief drive took me from the Audi Sportpark, south-east of the brand's headquarters in Ingolstadt, through a series of urban driving situations with a few opportunities to nail the throttle in between.
First, the Q5 Hybrid uses the phenomenal 2.0 TFSI 4-cylinder engine as its base of operations. On its own, this mill produces 211 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque. It, with the new 8-speed automatic transmission and the all-important quattro AWD system, would be quite the trio to make this lithe CUV a blast for fun and economical daily driving. Enter the hybrid “boost”.
 |
| The Q5 Hybrid uses the phenomenal 2.0 TFSI 4-cylinder engine as its base of operations. (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre/Auto123.com) |