Audi has been on a tear, first kicked into hyperdrive by the landbreaking success of the original Quattro coupe and rally car -

photo courtesy of picturesdepot.com m

Despite some bumps in the road along the way, today they are firmly in the Big Three of the upscale general market previously dominated by BMW and Mercedes-Benz. In fact, in terms of market share by units sold or turnover, Audi has already established itself as number one or two in the two biggest automotive markets in the world, the USA and China. 

Today they are known for the latest technology, especially in the area of diesel engineering and all-wheel drive, pioneered in that famous, all conquering Quattro; and clean, well thought out design, both externally and in the dash.

I had the opportunity to live with the A5 TDi S Line for several days and many hundreds of miles.

Audi press picture

A hatchback sedan, the lines are sleek yet sober. Its sedan profile helps it cruise under the radar, with just a hint of sportiness in its sloping rear roofline which, as we'll see  shortly, also helps it swallow a ton of luggage. The practicality of a soccer mom car without the stigma - joy!

My time and miles were with the S Line model, described by Audi UK as a trim package that "starts with an enhanced sport suspension - whilst other features include striking S line body styling to the front bumper, side skirts and rear diffuser, 18” alloy wheels and Xenon headlights with LED daytime running lights. Lastly, the discreet placement of the S line badge on the wings completes the look."

In the US diesels still have a bit of a stigma of being slow and plodding, but in Europe technological advances and wider popularity have definitely gone a long way towards making turbodiesels interesting to drive.

My mission with the A5 was simple - transport three people and LOTS of luggage from London Heathrow area to the Scottish seaside.

With a stop in the Lake District along the way, the A5 acquitted itself quite admirably on both motorways and narrow, sometimes rutted B roads, and even the occasional unmapped farm roads where the pavement ran out -

It looks paved, doesn't it?  It did to me too, going into it and following the GPS...

Surprise!

yep, the road did end...without warning...

Discretion being the better part of valour, I beat a hasty retreat, and the A5 and I soon found ourselves back on more modern, civilized roads, though I'm sure the suspension would have been perfectly up to the task should I have insisted on pushing onward...We did have responsibilities, afterall.

Did I mention we had three people AND lots and lots of luggage?

Yep.

All of that, in here -

Plus three large adults, in comfort, for hundreds of miles...Amazing.

I had the choice of some station wagons, or even SUV's. I'm glad I took the A5 Sportback.

Modern Audis are renowned for their clean, well designed dashes, and this one was no exception -

Aesthetically pleasing, with high quality parts and switchgear, nothing felt "cheap" or flimsy.

Layout was simple and easy to learn. Whether it is intuitive depends on how your intuition was trained, what generation you belong to.

We made it safely and comfortably to Carnoustie, and were able to relax after the long day.

Anyone that has driven in Scotland knows the roads are even narrower than in England, with a strange way of suddenly going from a two way street to remaining a two way street, but wide enough only for one car (the sidewalks have this strangeway of periodically jutting out into the street, alternatively from opposing sides...) Not to mention parking...yep, I'm glad I had the smallish sedan and not the long station wagon or hulking SUV.

Of course, this being PuristSPro, we had to have a gratuitous wrist shot, right?

A long day's journey into night...

A5 TDi S-Line

Likes: small overall size yet cavernous interior, able to swallow tons of luggage and still carry large passengers in comfort due to flexible configuration of seats and the long hatchback.

well designed easy to figure out dash and controls, with nice haptics.

Decent ride - not too soft, not too hard.

Wishes: a bit sportier, both in terms of power, and perhaps a slightly stiffer, sportier suspension setting. But then, I didn't get the sporty model...(S8 experience coming soon, WHOA NELLY!)

 Good night!