Queue up

The German marque has been missing a mid-sized SUV in their line-up and a renewed Q5 comes in to fill that gap. We queue up to drive the facelifted Audi Q5 around Lonavala

- Abhik Das

Just how important the Q range of SUVs is for Audi can be seen with a claim of 45 per cent of sales being attributed to them. For such a strong brand for the German manufacturer, the Q range of cars hasn’t seen much action in the Indian market of late. Yes the e-tron range of cars have taken centre stage for the brand this year with as many as five variants from two models and electric being the buzz word these days. However, there is still a market for internal combustion models albeit with a major void between the two Q models on sale right now. With the hard-hitters like the Q3, Q7 and even the Q5 missing in the mix and the Q2 and Q8 representing two extremes of the segment, an interim solution comes in the form of the refreshed new Q5.

The exterior of the new Q5 has obvious resemblance to the outgoing model but Audi has managed to give it a shot of botox here and a few nips and tucks there to make it more appealing till the new generation Q5 surfaces. The face of the SUV has been made distinctly different with a new vertically slatted grille while the bumpers have been slightly redesigned and new 19-inch wheels up the swagger just a tad with most of the other exterior elements remaining similar as earlier.