It seems everyone and their dog wants an SUV nowadays. They sit high, generally offer plenty of space, and are ideal for families. Fair enough. Spend a week with something like the 2026 Audi S5 Avant, though, and it becomes obvious how much character has quietly disappeared from everyday cars. A fast wagon still feels cooler than yet another SUV.
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This generation marks the first time the S5 badge appears on an Avant body style. It sounds like a major departure, but it is not entirely out of left field. With the latest A5 range effectively taking over the role once held by the A4, the family tree naturally pulls some Avant heritage into the S5 lineup.
Audi, of course, helped shape the modern performance wagon long before the segment became fashionable. The list of memorable examples is long as it has been building these fast models for decades. Think back to the legendary 1994 RS2. Add the B8-generation RS4 Avant. Then there was the outrageous C6 RS6 Avant, the one packing a twin-turbo 5.0-liter V10.
Against that backdrop, the S5 Avant arrives without an RS badge or headline-grabbing theatrics. And yet it still feels like part of the same lineage.
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Photos Brad Anderson/Carscoops
Just like the S5 sedan we tested a few months back, the new S5 Avant debuts with a 3.0-liter turbocharged petrol V6 with 48-volt mild-hybrid technology. It has 270 kW (362 hp) and 550 Nm (406 lb-ft) of torque, an 18 kW electric motor, and a 1.7 kWh battery pack. This engine may not be as thrilling as the V8-powered S5 of old, but it still packs a proper punch.
Australia’s family of Audi S5 Avant models starts with the Edition One version, priced from AU$102,900 (US$73,000), excluding on-road costs. However, we spent time in the better-equipped standard model, starting at AU$117,900 (US$83,600). Several options raised the price to AU$124,820 (US$88,500).
Key rivals to the new S5 Avant include the BMW M340i xDrive Touring and Mercedes-AMG C43, although to our eyes, neither of them looks as good as the Audi. However, I wasn’t convinced by the brushed aluminum-inspired exterior accents of the Grenadine red car we tested.
Spacious And Suave
Photos Brad Anderson/Carscoops
The cabin will be very familiar to anyone who has driven a new Audi launched in the past year or so. This means the dashboard includes a curved 11.9-inch digital gauge cluster and a 14.5-inch infotainment screen. Both displays are high-definition, with crisp colors and an easy-to-use interface. The standard S5 Avant also comes with a 10.9-inch passenger display, which is a AU$1,950 (US$1,400) option on the Edition One.
There’s wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, and the central display has an easy-to-follow menu structure. Interestingly, Audi has launched a refreshed OS skin in recent months in overseas markets, which adds more smartphone-like tabs. It has also updated its standard steering wheel to include scroll wheels for volume and gauge-cluster settings.
The flat-bottom steering wheel for the S5 Avant is clad in black leather and is perfectly sized and positioned. Some may not like the fact that it isn’t completely round, but I had no issues.
There’s plenty of soft-touch leather on the dash and the upper portion of the door panels, as well as several areas clad in plush black Alcantara. Like all current Audi models, hard black plastic is found on the lower half of the doors, the dashboard, and parts of the transmission tunnel, which somewhat cheapens the look.
Fortunately, Audi has absolutely nailed the front seats and the driving position. The seats offer great support, including leg and side bolsters that can be adjusted to ensure they grip you tightly whenever you’re in the mood for some sporty driving. Moreover, they offer heated, ventilated, and massaging functions. Our test car also included the optional AU$980 (US$700) Bang & Olufsen 3D sound system, which adds speakers to the headrests for an even more immersive audio experience.
Other important features of the cabin include a head-up display, 100-watt USB-C charging ports, fancy ambient lighting, diamond stitching, and three-zone climate control. No doubt the party piece of the cabin is the AU$4,990 (US$3,500) panoramic glass roof that can be turned from opaque to clear, and even includes different patterns (seen below).
Audi Australia
While the S5 Avant has a much lower roofline than many of Audi’s current SUVs, this doesn’t negatively impact space in the second row. In fact, two tall adults can fit back there in comfort although, admittedly, headroom is somewhat impacted by the thick pillars running on either side of the glass roof.
There’s plenty of storage space in the rear, too. It offers 448 liters (15.8 cubic feet) of storage, or 1,396 liters (49.2 cubic feet) with the second-row seats folded away. An Audi Q5 can fit more, but a big perk of the S5 Avant is that, as the entire car sits so low, it’s exceptionally easy to load things in and out. This proved particularly useful when I used it on a weekend camping trip.
A Driving Experience Few SUVs Can Match
Photos Brad Anderson/Carscoops
The new S5 Avant, particularly when painted in red, is quite the head-turner on the open road. But, for as good as it looks from the outside, you really need to be in the driver’s seat to fully appreciate it.
The mild-hybrid powertrain is interesting. As mentioned, there’s a 3.0-liter turbocharged six working alongside an electric motor and a battery pack. Oftentimes, while cruising through carparks, the car will happily run on electric power alone, which is obviously quite unlike some of the fiery Avants from Audi of the past.
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However, when switched into Dynamic mode, the car comes alive, and the engine itself takes charge. Off the line, Audi says the S5 Avant dusts the sprint to 100 km/h (62 mph) in just 4.5 seconds, the same as the sedan, and it felt just that quick during our tests. But, just like the sedan, the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission can be quite brutal in how it shifts under load.
There’s no questioning how the car feels off the line. However, I do question why Audi didn’t make it sound a little more thrilling, as there’s only a faint roar emanating from the exhausts, and not even any cracks or pops.
Much of my time with the S5 Avant was spent cruising on highways and open country roads, giving me an excellent opportunity to see how it performs on long road trips. The answer? Exceptionally well.
When switched into one of the tamer driving modes, it’d be easy to think you’re behind the wheel of a regular A5. Unlike the base Edition One models, the standard S5 Avant includes adjustable dampers that work wonders to improve ride quality. It doesn’t soak up bumps in the same mystifying way the new e-tron GT does, but it remains supple over speed bumps and cruises through potholes like they’re nothing.
Audi Australia
This plush feeling combines with a feeling that the S5 Avant always remains locked to the road, no doubt helped by the lower center of gravity than you’d find in an SUV. It’s obvious that Audi spent plenty of time perfecting the car on Germany’s Autobahn, making it perfect for long journeys. Perhaps the only way to improve the relaxing experience would be for Audi to make the massaging seats a little more forceful.
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Regardless of what mode you’re in, the S5 Avant’s steering is wonderfully precise and well-weighted. The front end is exceptionally sharp for a car that weighs this much, offering more than enough traction for spirited canyon carving, and there’s never ever any doubt about where the limit of grip is.
Through tight and sweeping bends, the S5 Avant feels much the same as the sedan, biting into the pavement with an exceptionally neutral handling balance. The updated quattro all-wheel-drive system helps ensure the car feels connected to the pavement, regardless of the weather. Interestingly, the S5 Avant comes standard with Pirelli P Zero tires, whereas the Edition One comes with older Goodyear Eagle F1 Supersport rubber.
How Efficient Is The S5 Avant?
Due in part to our tests skewing towards highway driving, fuel efficiency was quite respectable, ending up at 10.1 l/100 km (23.2 US mpg). However, this does fall well short of Audi’s claim of 7.2 l/100 km (32.6 US mpg), which would be exceptionally difficult to match.
One disappointing exclusion from the Australian S5 Avant is active lane centering, a feature also missing from other new-generation Audi models. Apparently, the carmaker is currently testing a system to suit local roads, and it should be made available to existing cars later this year.
During our time with the car, there was also an instance in which several of the safety systems inexplicably failed while driving, only to magically switch back on after 20 minutes. Warning messages saying the traffic sign recognition, adaptive headlights, distance warning, emergency assist, and lane departure warning all popped up on the dashboard, which wasn’t particularly reassuring.
Verdict
Audi Australia
The new Audi S5 Avant isn’t perfect, but it’s more than up to the task of continuing the brand’s estate lineage. It combines great looks with thrilling performance and all the practicality you could ever want, making it just as practical as an SUV.
For those wanting even more performance, Audi recently released the fiery RS5, which comes in sedan and Avant form and with no less than 630 hp from its plug-in hybrid powertrain. It should naturally give the BMW M3 Touring something to think about, but it will also be more expensive and in-your-face than its lesser sibling.
So, if you want a fast and poised sports estate that’s (relatively) more restrained and, in the real world, does what you ask of it, and then some, maybe you’d better off with the S5 Avant. In any case, you’ll make a splash in the sea of SUVs that have flooded our streets and have started looking increasingly the same.
