Audi S5 Sportback – Australian pricing & specs

Audi’s very svelte and very attractive S5 Sportback went on sale last week. Audi has set the list pricing for this car at $129,300.

For your money you get the same excellent 3.0 litre supercharged V6 engine from the S4 saloon. With that comes the same power specs, too; 245kW and 440Nm of torque.

It’s a ripping engine that offers plenty of poke through the entire rev range. In the S4, at least, it’s also well matched the the 7-speed S tronic transmission. Which is a good thing, because there is no conventional manual box on offer for S5 Sportback in the Australian market.

Mr Uwe Hagen, Managing Director of Audi Australia, said “the S5 Sportback is a great addition to our unique A5 Sportback range. It is not only practical enough for daily use, it is also sporty and fun to drive.”

Audi has modest sales expectations for the S5 Sportback, hoping to to sell around 10 per month. Full details and a nice gallery of local images have been kindly offered by Audi Australia and you can see them all after the break.

Audi’s New S5 Sportback Launched In Australia

• New S5 Sportback completes A5 model range for Australia
• Characterised by efficiency, dynamism and exceptional handling
• Will contribute to overall sales of 12,000 + units in 2010

The new Audi S5 Sportback has arrived in Australia and is available immediately through the Audi national dealer network. The S5 Sportback has a manufacturer’s list price of $129,300.

The elegant coupe-like silhouette, LED headlights and the four frameless doors make the S5 Sportback a standout on the road. However, the driving dynamics of this latest model are not to be overshadowed by its style, with the potent 3.0 TFSI engine with supercharging packing 245kW of powerful punch and 440 Nm of torque between 2,900 and 5,300 rpm.

Mr Uwe Hagen, Managing Director of Audi Australia Pty Ltd, said “the S5 Sportback is a great addition to our unique A5 Sportback range. It is not only practical enough for daily use, it is also sporty and fun to drive”.

“We intend to continue to develop our excellent range of products available for the Australian market as we head towards our goal of offering 42 models globally by 2015. The S5 Sportback is the 26th model on offer in Australia at the present time,” Mr Hagen said.

“Our customers are always looking for a benchmark experience, and we intend to fulfil this with emotional, technologically-advanced products that are also efficient, the best customer experiences and a progressivelyminded way of thinking,” Mr Hagen said.

In a year that Audi celebrates its 30 years of quattro technology, it is only fitting to launch a S5 Sportback standard with the company’s class-leading quattro drivetrain.

In the year of its creation, in 1980, quattro technology was a unique idea – a hollow shaft in the transmission that transmits engine power to both the front and rear wheels with a centre differential.

The S5 Sportback not only has quattro technology as standard but gives drivers the opportunity to select a sport differential (optional) for an even more responsive dynamic drive.

The S5 Sportback will complement the existing A5 range in Australia, adding to the popular A5 Sportback, A5 Cabriolet, S5 Cabriolet, A5 Coupe and the S5 Coupe models on offer.

It is expected that the S5 Sportback will average around ten unit sales per month.

The new Audi S5 Sportback

Standard equipment:

• 18’’ alloy wheels in S design
• 3-zone deluxe automatic air conditioning
• Comfort key, full keyless entry and start
• Alcantara/Leather trim
• Anti-theft alarm
• Auto-dimming interior mirror with light & rain sensor
• Audi parking system plus, at front and rear
• Audi music interface with iPod connectivity
• Bluetooth interface, for mobile phone connectivity
• Cruise Control & Driver Information System (DIS) with colour display
• Electric seat adjustment for both front seats
• Front centre armrest
• MMI navigation plus (3rd generation) with hard drive and voice control
• Sports front seats
• Tyre pressure warning display
• Xenon headlights, adaptive, with LED daytime running lights and rear lights

Features at a glance:
Engine

• 3.0 TFSI with 245 kW
• Direct fuel injection
• Exceptional performance with exemplary efficiency
• Consumption of 9.4 litres/100km and 219 grams of CO2/100km
• Energy recuperation system

Drivetrain

• Seven-speed dual clutch S tronic
• Servotronic speed-sensitive steering
• quattro all-wheel drive standard; with sport differential for variable distribution of power to the rear wheels as an option

Chassis

• Balanced axle load distribution, lightweight construction suspension
• 18-inch aluminium wheels standard
• Optional Audi drive select dynamic control system, adaptive shock absorber control, dynamic steering and sport differential available as options

Body

• Sportback body concept with coupe-like design
•  Sporty, elegant design with flowing lines
• Large luggage compartment with two-piece cover
• 480 to 980 litres of luggage space
• Generously spacious interior with easy entry thanks to 5 doors
• Seating for 4 adults in comfort

Equipment and trim

• S model specifics: 18’’ x 8.5 alloy wheels in 5-parallel spoke S design, ‘‘S’’ specific sports suspension, Sports steering wheel in S design, multi-function in leather with paddle shift, sports seats at front, ‘‘S’’ sports seats with integrated head restraints and Silk Nappa leather trim
• MMI navigation plus: includes Audi MMI with 7-inch colour display, hard drive navigation system, radio with twin tuner, CD/DVD player and voice control

Pricing

• Priced at $129,300 (manufacturer’s list price)

Audi S5 Sportback downloads – June 2010

• General specifications (508kb PDF)
• Technical data (24kb PDF)

The new Audi S5 Sportback

• Supercharger and FSI direct fuel injection are a powerful combination
• 245 kW of power, 440 Nm of torque and exemplary efficiency
• S tronic and quattro drive standard

The new Audi S5 Sportback has arrived in Australia, completing the three in-one Sportback family (the features of a coupe, sedan and Avant in one) which began with the A5 Sportback, launched Downunder in January this year. Manufacturer’s list price for the newest S model in the Audi family is $129,300.

As with all Audi S models, the S5 Sportback strengthens Audi’s brand message of ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’. Thanks to its winning combination of efficient yet sporty performance, elegant coupe-like design with the convenience of five doors, and the solid quality of all Audi models, this new S5 Sportback bridges the gap between everyday motoring and motorsport.

This latest ‘S’ model – the top model in the A5 Sportback range – is powered by a 3.0 TFSI powerplant with a mechanically-driven supercharger (denoted by ‘T’ in TFSI), and a maximum output of 245 kW. The supercharger sits in the 90 degree V formed by the two banks of the cylinders and produces up to 0.8 bar of pressure. Two downstream intercoolers lower the temperature of the compressed intake air for improved filling of the combustion chambers.

The six-cylinder unit, which displaces 2,995 cc, embodies the Audi philosophy that performance and efficiency are not mutually exclusive but rather complement each other perfectly. The engine delivers a constant 440 Nm of torque between 2,900 and 5,300 rpm. The S5 Sportback is perfectly suited to everyday driving – it is practical, sporty and fun to drive.

The supercharged V6 unit consumes only 9.4 litres of fuel per 100 km on average – a top figure in this performance class, and emits 219 CO2 g/km.

Beneath the TFSI engine with supercharging and the standard S tronic dual-clutch transmission, there are yet more items which make the S5 Sportback a very efficient vehicle. These features include aluminium front guards, plus the latest lightweight steel construction, an on-demand engine and power steering oil pumps and energy recuperation. The recuperation system makes use of the kinetic energy during deceleration. During the coasting and braking phase, the alternator can convert the kinetic energy into electrical energy that is stored temporarily in the battery. When the five-door coupe accelerates again, the battery feeds the energy back. This improves fuel efficiency by reducing the load on the alternator, which is driven by the engine.

The S5 Sportback sprints from zero to 100 km/h in only 5.4 seconds and accelerates up to an electronically governed top speed of 250 km/h. The spontaneous response, the powerful thrust and sonorous sound make for a thrilling driving experience.

The leading position of the S5 Sportback is further underscored by its drivetrain technology. The top model comes standard with the fuel-sipping seven-speed dual-clutch S tronic transmission and quattro permanent allwheel drive with a slight rear wheel bias.

Available as an option is the sport differential which distributes the drive power in continuously variable proportions between the rear wheels. When steering into or accelerating in a curve, the majority of the torque is sent to the outside wheel, literally pushing the car into the curve. The sport differential nips any tendency toward oversteer or understeer in the bud.

With a short reaction time of under 100 milliseconds, it is even faster than the ESP stabilisation program and reacts just as effectively while coasting as it does under load.

The sport differential is a new type of rear-axle differential. A superposition gear comprising three gear wheels was added to both the left and right sides of the classic differential, rotating 10 percent faster than the drive shaft. A multi-plate clutch, actuated by an electrohydraulic actuator, provides the power connection between the shaft and the superposition gear.

When the clutch closes, it forces the higher speed of the superimposed gear onto one of the wheels. The additional torque is drawn off of the opposite wheel via the differential. In this way, almost all of the torque can be directed to one wheel. The maximum difference between the wheels is 1,800 Nm.

The secret to the effectiveness and fast reaction speed of the system lies in the proprietary Audi management software. The controller quickly recalculates the ideal distribution of the forces for each driving situation as a function of the steering angle, yaw angle, lateral acceleration, speed and other information.

The optional sport differential is integrated into the Audi drive select dynamic control system and its function can be adapted to the wishes of the driver. The “comfort” mode is primarily aimed at satisfying the demands of driving safety and stability, providing heavy damping of load changes. The “auto” mode is the balanced setting, and in “dynamic” mode the system is particularly sporty, ensuring that load changes are both agile and easily controlled.

The high-end rear-axle differential transfers the forces at the rear axle between the wheels as needed for even greater dynamism and stability.

The Audi S5 Sportback has a sports-tuned chassis. The S-design 18-inch cast aluminium wheels are shod with 245/40 tyres.

Wheels up to 20 inches are available as options. The black brake calipers are emblazoned with S5 emblems.

Servotronic speed-sensitive steering is also standard, with dynamic steering available as an option. A strut brace provides the front section of the car with additional rigidity.

A number of features also provide visual cues to the S5 Sportback’s sporty nature. The front blade and the diffuser, the single-frame grille, the air intakes, the sill strip, the spoiler lip at the rear and the four-tailpipe exhaust system all sport an exclusive design.

The side mirror housings shine in aluminium look and the xenon plus headlights with LED daytime running lights and rear lights are standard. Inside, electrically adjustable S-design sport seats covered in Silk Nappa leather, a black or silver headliner and brushed aluminium inlays point to the dynamism of this high-end model. The pointers in the instrument cluster are illuminated white, and the colour driver information system presents the S5 logo when the car is started.

A leather multifunction sport steering wheel with aluminium-look shift paddles and a sport selection switch for the S tronic highlights it’s sports nature. S5 badges adorn the door sill trims, the key, the steering wheel and the instruments.

The luxurious, climate-controlled comfort seats are available as an option. The seat coverings are available in black, brown and three two-colour combinations. Inlays are available in carbon, fine-grained birch wood and stainless steel mesh. The metallic structure comprising countless steel fibres feels slightly rough – making for a unique haptic experience.