The A5 Cabriolet’s considerable mass means that the less powerful engines in the range are going to have to work hard to motivate it. But the 3.0 TDI engine feels particularly well suited to the car, delivering appropriately effortless performance and impressive refinement.
It’s quick, too. Despite our best efforts at MIRA, we couldn’t match Audi’s claimed 6.4sec 0-62mph time. But our best effort of 7.1sec for a proper 0-60 is still respectably rapid for a two-tonne diesel cabriolet.
The gearbox is one of the finest implementations of DSG we’ve encountered so far. Our only real criticism is with Audi’s attempts to synthesise the idle creep of a torque converter for parking manoeuvres; the car lurches if the accelerator is applied with the car already moving at low speeds.
Although braking is decent enough for everyday use, it’s worth noting that the anti-lock system seems to be very aggressive when asked to perform an emergency stop, allowing the wheels to lock enough to leave black lines on the road surface.
As it shares all of its major suspension components with the A5 coupé, you would be justified in expecting the drop-top to put in a similarly composed dynamic performance. The fact that our test car categorically didn’t is due, in large part, to the overly firm sports suspension that comes with S-Line trim, plus the upgraded 19-inch alloys it was wearing.
The problem is torsional rigidity. The body can be felt flexing over bumps and undulations, with noticeable scuttle shake manifesting itself as vibrations in the steering column and a trembling rear-view mirror. It’s a problem at low speeds in town and over uneven country lanes, and it’s bad enough to become the car’s defining dynamic characteristic on most surfaces.
The high-geared steering requires small inputs, turn-in is keen and grip levels are high, with the car possessing a level of agility far away from the stodginess of the old A4 Cabriolet.
