The 2023 Q5 is a competent luxury SUV but lacks any standout traits that would make it a must-buy. Although Audi's best-seller is roomy, refined and surprisingly nimble, the small luxury SUV class is full of rivals that offer the same qualities but with superior performance and all-around excitement.
Premium Plus trim adds standard Bang & Olufsen audio system
Part of the second Audi Q5 generation introduced for 2018
What is the 2023 Audi Q5?
The 2023 Audi Q5 is a compact luxury SUV first launched in 2009 and redesigned in 2018. All-wheel drive comes standard, as does a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The available plug-in hybrid powertrain offers significantly more power and is available on all three trims (Premium, Premium Plus and Prestige), but it doesn't come cheap.
The 2022 model faced fewer rivals in the luxury compact SUV space (Mercedes-Benz and BMW exited the market), but it didn't exactly blow us away. Its increased battery size for 2022 gave it an all-electric range of 23 miles, up from 19 miles for 2021. But it came up short against front-runners including the Edmunds Top Rated Luxury SUV, the Genesis GV70 (new for 2022), and the Acura RDX (redesigned in 2019).
Spy photos on the internet seem to point to an exterior styling update for the 2023 Q5, which could help it reclaim the bold design advantage Audi brought to the compact SUV space when the Q5 debuted. But otherwise, we expect the 2023 Audi Q5 to be largely the same as the 2022 model.
Edmunds says
The Audi Q5 is a competent luxury compact SUV that's overshadowed by a number of rivals. It looks like it might get a refreshed look for 2023, so check back with Edmunds for updates as we get more information.
RepairPal Reliability Ratings are based on the actual cost, frequency, and severity of unscheduled repairs and maintenance on make/model data for select 2008-2022 vehicles. The reliability of a specific vehicle may vary depending on its maintenance and driving history, model year, trim, and features.
2023 Audi Q5 Prestige 4dr SUV AWD w/40 TFSI (2.0L 4cyl Turbo 7AM)
We now have 17,000 miles on our new Audi. We've done two trips to Florida and back, and averaged anywhere between 27.5 and 29.5mpg over the two trips.
The seats are comfortable, vision is good all around, the media screen is easy to read, heated steering wheel is a real bonus, and the sound system is great. There is plenty of room for 4 people comfortably, and their luggage. The rear … hatch opens with a slight swing of your foot under the rear bumper. The adaptive cruise control is great, once you figure out how to disable the predictive braking. The console storage compartment is is difficult to use, as the charging station platform blocks access to the storage, unless you remove your drinks from the cupholders, and then slide the charging station forward.
Since I do the majority of the driving on this car, I really appreciated the navigation system's traffic updates, as they were almost as accurate as Google maps were, and I didn't have to bother to connect to my phone each time we got in the car. Although the Audi media system can accept multiple phones being connected to it, unless you are the primary phone, it is very difficult to get your phone connected to the system. My wife would have to shut off her phone, then I could connect to the system.
There is one big surprise coming for all new model Audi owners, though: when your free Sirius/XM/Traffic update subscription expires, you lose access to several perks wrapped up in the Connect App. The biggest for me was the inability to have Sirius activate their Traffic update upgrade to my account, due to Audi restricting access to that function. The only way you can return that function to your Audi is to pay a minimum of $365 per year for the Connect app! So now, for traffic, you either pay that ridiculous fee, or resort to using Carplay again.
The parking assist system is so difficult to control that I finally figured out how to inactivate it, as it was constantly giving us alarms in multiple non-parking situations.
My wife still really likes the car(it's hers), as she isn't as worried about the lack of traffic updates as I am. She likes the feel of the seats, likes that it connects to her phone flawlessly, and feels safe driving it. So, unless we have future mechanical issues with it, we will probably stick with it for the next four to five years.
Update at 27,000 miles: The car is in the shop for a number of issues. I noticed that the Audi was taking a long time to warm up when it is cold outside(about twice as many miles driven before warmup than my Subaru). In addition, the temperature fluctuates over 30 degrees or more after it reaches the actual normal operating temperature.
We have had several black MMI screens over the last year, 3 times when the car was started, and twice while driving it. It does reset each time, but is not safe when it does so while driving using Carplay. The last time it shut down while driving, when we re-activated it, the screen looked like it did when we had the free Audi Connect subscription. That lasted until we shut the car off.
Have had numerous issues with the Adaptive Cruise control un-necessarily slowing the car from set speed, sometimes as much as 15 mph below setpoint. If there is a slope down to a bridge on the interstate, the cruise slows us down 5-10 mph, then speeds back up. The ADC also slows the speed down if there is a semi next to us, or a vehicle towing a trailer, even though those vehicles aren't crowding our lane.
The parking assist has started deciding, on it's own again, that we are trying to park when stopped at lights, and now when we are waiting to pull out into the street from business parking lots. We get all the beeps and tones, and the visual indicators that we are too close to other vehicles, even when there is no vehicle beside us.
So far the dealer has had the car for three days, and is still trying to resolve the problems.
We still really like the Audi, great mileage, comfortable ride, good visibility, and plenty of storage space.
UPDATE: At just under 45,000 miles, we still like our Audi. Comfortable ride, quiet interior, great gas mileage(31-32 highway mpg), but the tech issues still continue. Every time my wife takes the car out of the state, she ends up getting some kind of warning message, or trouble light on the dash. She calls me, and I figure out what the issue is, and it's resolved. The other issue for her is that she has gotten several check engine lights, which clears when she re-installs the gas cap. Yet my code reader didn't show any codes present from the check engine light.
Then we had trouble with the LTE system switching back to the old 3G network. The service tech couldn't fix it, so I sent them an article I found on an Audi owner's forum about how another owner's service tech fixed the problem. Doing what the article said to do fixed the issue. Prior to this info, the tech said our iphones were the problem, when they worked just fine with the MMI, we just kept getting "no network connection" warnings every time we used the car.
On the drive home, no error messages, and the LTE icon indicated full bars of service. But the next day, upon starting the car, multiple error messages about no user being set up, and problems with the MyAudi app.
Took me over an hour to play around with the MMI, having to re-activate the only once used MyAudi app to finally figure out a workaround to get rid of the multiple error messages.
Two days later, we start getting different error messages, all related to no user created. This time, it took almost 90 minutes to resolve the issue.
Now, the check engine light is on again, and doesn't go off by re-tightening the gas cap. The code reader indicates an evaporative issue, so it goes back to the dealer next week.
The service writer admitted, during the LTE issue, that Audi is changing their tech software so fast the techs can't keep up with the changes. He also did admit they see a lot of tech issues in the shop.
While right now, we intend to keep the Audi, it won't take much more tech issues for us to trade it for something else.
I also noticed on the new loaner I got that there is no native navigation any more unless you pay a subscription fee to use it. That may be fine if you live in a metropolitan area with good cell signal around you, but for people like us who live in a rural hilly area, native navigation is a must have.
2023 Q5 Quality issues
1 out of 5 stars
New 2023 Audi Q5, 03/03/2023
2023 Audi Q5 Premium Plus S line 4dr SUV AWD w/45 TFSI (2.0L 4cyl Turbo gas/electric mild hybrid 7AM)
Just days after purchasing my new Q5, the belt started whining at cold start for 10 min. Dealer found faulty alternator. Days after fixed noise back and dealer found faulty belt tensioner. Days after fix brake pedal feels loose. Dealer found faulty brake booster and replaced. Returned and brake pedal is now hard to press at start. Dealer claims normal and will get better. 1 week and no … change in the stiffness, also auto stop/start is not working anymore. Dealer claims it’s normal because it’s cold outside. Not amusing. After insisting to check they find brake booster and other brake components need to be replaced again. Auto stop/start working again “for now”, 25 days without my new car feels like I made a mistake buying this Q5 and now considering options. Audi quality has plummeted.
Audi Time
4 out of 5 stars
Tom O, 07/09/2022
2022 Audi Q5 Premium Plus S line 4dr SUV AWD w/45 TFSI (2.0L 4cyl Turbo gas/electric mild hybrid 7AM)
Bought our 2022 Audi Q5 S line 45 TFSI quattro in May of 22. Nice vehicle with a great ride. So much technology that it gets confusing if you are not a young techie. The problem we have is with the series of black buttons below the silver buttons for the AC control screen. The buttons are black with white labeling. Being that the buttons are under the silver buttons, the are not legible … during the day in the bright daylight. Buttons should have been a different color. The buttons are for parking aid, ESC, start/stop function, plus others. Poor design by Audi. Also found that the tool kit was missing the tweezers tool to get the covers off the lug bolts and the wheel locks were not included. Small things but someone did not check if these things supplied before the car went out to the customer,
5,000 Miles and need a new Engine
1 out of 5 stars
Born Lucky, not Audi lucky, 06/10/2022
2022 Audi Q5 Premium S line 4dr SUV AWD w/45 TFSI (2.0L 4cyl Turbo gas/electric mild hybrid 7AM)
I was ecstatic when I got my new 2022 Audi Q5 last fall. All in all (extended warranty, etc), I paid $60,000 for this car. There were a few little quirks initially, but nothing that I couldn't handle or work through as a new owner. April 13, 2022 and a tick, tick, tick and then the engine light appeared. I took the car to the Minneapolis Audi dealership and they told me the car … needed a new engine. Today, June 10th I got a call from Chrissy who told me the engine was in and it looks like I'll get the car back next week. Sadly, the dealership has treated me like every other customer who comes in for an oil change. No updates unless I call them, no relaxing of the loaner rules and bad luck with the loaners themselves. I really don't want the car back and can't believe I paid $60k for something I have no doubt will continue to give me issues and a dealership I will have to go to for service that will only be looking out for their bottom line.
We have a limited number of reviews for the 2023 Audi Q5, so we've included reviews for other years of the Q5 since its last redesign.
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