AUDI S5

S4 gets a new name - and potentially a greater focus on driver rewards

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When we road tested the Audi Q6 E-tron, Ingolstadt's all-new electric SUV, it appeared to be a product of a new, different kind of Audi. One that stepped up its game in terms of driving dynamics, but took the rock-solid interior quality that has long typified the brand and traded it for a ruthlessly modern, screen-heavy approach.

Audi is on a launch blitz at the moment and just months after the Q6 come the new A5 and its sporty derivative, the S5. In a sense, the A5 and Q6 are polar opposites within the Audi line-up, because it doesn't get much more traditional than a compact exec with a range of petrol and diesel engines.

So was the somewhat un-Audi Q6 a one-off, riding on the coat-tails of its Porsche Macan sibling model, or has Audi really turned a corner? A road test will reveal all, and we've gone straight for the S5, with its 362bhp hybridised V6 and four-wheel drive.

DESIGN & ENGINEERING

★★★★☆

PROS Subtly elegant design; wide range of powertrains, including this V6; interesting use of electrification

CONS Heavy; lack of spec choice for the S5 in the UK

In case you had somehow missed the news after Audi's recent barrage of new model launches, it has shaken up its naming convention. EVs now get even numbers, while piston cars get odd numbers. In other words, what used to be known as the A4 is now the A5. Later this year, Audi will launch a similarly sized EV that will carry on the A4 name. Meanwhile, the old A5 Coupé and Convertible are being discontinued. The new A5 Saloon simultaneously also replaces the old A5 Sportback, because instead of a traditional bootlid, the new one has a hatchback.