The Audi SQ5 excels when it comes to interior quality, refinement and outright pace, and the practical body means it makes a great family car. However it’s not particularly exciting to drive, nor is the petrol engine as economical as the previous-generation diesel version. It’s also quite pricey, especially if you tick any boxes on the options list - a Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 is better value, more fun to drive and just as refined at high speeds. Just days after our first drive of the new Audi SQ5 in Germany, we’ve managed to get our hands on a UK model here in Britain. The original hot SUV accounted for as many as one in five of all Q5 sales, despite its hefty price and high running costs, but how will the new one fare on our notoriously broken roads? One look at the huge 21-inch alloy wheels fitted to our test car (a £1,500 extra) and you might be thinking that there’s no way this sporty Audi SUV can ride well on UK tarmac. But there’s more to the SQ5 than meets the eye.

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Audi SQ5

Audi SQ5 TDI • Best 4x4s and SUVs on sale 15 While the SQ5 feels unsettled at speed - just like its Q5 brother - it actually handles pretty well around town, and soaks up potholes much better than you might imagine. It’s still no Mercedes GLC, but the Audi is calm and quiet at cruising speeds, too, helping it feel relaxed on longer journeys. That’s if you want it to be, of course - this is a performance car after all. A TDI diesel version will replace the existing car later in the year, but the new SQ5 launches with a ‘cleaner’ new petrol engine to begin with. The turbocharged V6 gets 349bhp and 500Nm of torque, and with a heavy right foot it wakes up with a roar. It’s not the most characterful motor, though: the Jaguar F-Pace’s V6 is sweeter. The old SQ5 TDI continually shocked and stunned with its seemingly endless wave of torque, but the more frantic petrol engine in the second-generation car needs to be worked much harder for the same returns. Performance isn’t lacking, however, as the SQ5 takes just 5.4 seconds to go from 0-62mph. The eight-speed automatic gearbox is up to the task, shifting quickly when you’re accelerating. It’s not as responsive as a dual-clutch box when you’re driving normally, feeling reluctant to change down when you really need it to. 15 Sadly, even though the Audi is very quick in a straight line, it’s not particularly agile in the corners. The steering is light and has little feedback, and it often feels as though the wheels are moving around but there’s nothing coming back through the steering.