| A Week at the Wheel | Cambs, England | Audi S5 |

Inside & Out:

Low slung and wide, the A5's shape is quite a departure for Audi and heads turn wherever the S5 goes. It looks refreshingly different, but it is still unmistakably an Audi. The grille dominates the front end; large alloys and the shoulder-line the profile and the quad pipes adorning the broad rear end hint at the sporting intent. The LED daytime running lights give it added presence but the S5's basic stance means it hardly needs them.

Class leading interiors are par for the course in Audi's line up and the S5 makes up for a basic lack of space in the rear by offering plenty of quality and ergonomic excellence with lots of room up front and a huge boot. The MMI system makes a welcome appearance, though it's a shame the steering wheel and seats from the RS4 didn't make it too.

Engine & Transmission:

Audi's 4.2-litre V8 engine is becoming a familiar friend found in many of its cars. This derivative is a close relative to the engine found in the RS4 and R8 and shares many of their technologies and construction. At 349bhp it is some way short of the two performance icons but it's a generous figure nonetheless and the linear and torquey nature remains.

At idle the burble from the four exhaust pipes hints at the performance on tap and on the move the flexibility and punch doesn't leave the driver feeling short-changed. The 0-62mph benchmark is dispatched in 5.1 seconds and the S5 feels easily powerful enough to slam into the 155mph limiter on the autobahn. The six-speed 'box houses well-judged ratios and the shift action is quick enough but it isn't quite as tactile as Audi's other sporting efforts.

Ride & Handling:

Over the last few years Audi has transformed and developed a range of more driver-focused sporting offerings, in S and RS guises at least. For us the RS4 was the dawning of a new age so the expectation that the S5 should be as equally capable seemed a safe assumption. In practice, it isn't the case and it's almost immediately obvious from the moment you take the helm. Whereas the RS4 has a thick, sculpted wheel that's a joy to hold the S5 has an altogether more flimsy feel. This may be superficiality, but as first impressions go it's an accurate indicator of the rest of the car.

There is precious little feel through the rim and what there is usually feels like corruption due to road surfaces and power transmission rather than a form of informative communication. Steering aside the quattro transmission does a fine job of distributing the power and the placement of the engine further back in the chassis does help alleviate the understeer of past fast Audis, even if it does cause the pedals to be offset somewhat.

Outright grip is never in doubt, but the Audi does lack a cultured damping regime and the clinical nature of the S5 is a serious limitation when compared to a BMW 3 Series Coupé. At 70% effort the S5 is fine and it should be easy for most people to drive quickly, but when pushed further it runs out of talent too quickly. Occasionally there are glimpses of the ability that bewitched us in the RS4 but it feels almost like Audi has held a little back, perhaps for an RS5?

Equipment, Economy & Value for Money:

It's clear that the Audi S5 is a premium car and it is priced accordingly but it is aligned with rivals' pricing and the quality and design on offer is not matched anywhere else this side of £50k. Equipment levels aren't the most generous; cruise control and Bluetooth connectivity should be standard on a car of this type, but both are found on the options list, and they aren't cheap either.

A thrifty nature can never be expected of a big car fitted with a large V8 petrol engine and so it proves in the S5's case where we struggled to muster more than 20mpg from it on average. In fairness this reflects Audi's claimed figures, but given the compromises of the S5's sporty facets it's a hard figure to swallow when the diesel version travels almost twice as far on the same quantity of fuel.

Overall:

Audi's S5 is a great "image" car. It's great to be in and it's great to be seen in courtesy of the class leading looks and interior. However, keen drivers will be left wishing for more as the softer nature doesn't deliver what the S moniker may suggest. Saying that, for many the S5's additional class and more relaxed GT nature will make it preferable to the BMW alternative. For us, the package makes more sense as a diesel, though a harder core sporting version is surely in the offing and it would only be such an RS5-type derivative that would sway us away from the 3.0 TDI Sport.