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Pricey but classy and built like a tank

Thursday, 10 July 2008

EARLIER this year I tested the Audi S5 and at the time I said it was one of the most expensive and definitely the most admired car I had ever driven.
Last week I was in the new Audi A5 and while it didn’t get as many envious glances as its more expensive sibling, being a sporty two-door it did have its fair share of admirers.
Once again this is not a car for bargain hunters with a starting price of e64,900. A host of optional extras add a further e17,085, bringing the price of the model tested to a whopping e81,985.
The most expensive extra was the sat nav system with DVD which cost e4,630.
I suppose if I was buying one I could cut back on the extras, but then if you are in that money league a few extra grand probably won’t trouble you.
Despite all that luxury there are no fans of two-door cars in our house, but I will admit that it was more welcome than the two-door Fiat 500 from the previous week.
But then you could get three Fiat 500’s for the price of one A5 and have enough change left for a holiday in the sun.
The A5 is a classy looking motor, yet it’s built like a tank. You feel so safe inside in those luxury leather seats.
The only danger could be the power of all those horses under the bonnet. When you put you foot on the gas the 3.0 engine gives you massive power and it nearly lifts off, like an aeroplane.
To help you find your way around there’s the satellite navigation system. One of the settings from the previous occupant was for Croke Park, but being a Kerryman I never have any trouble finding the Jones Road venue.
The screen for the sat nav seemed to be dominated by petrol stations, which I suppose is a fairly normal requirement for a car driver, but too many petrol icons annoyed me. At times the screen resembled a bomb site in Baghdad.
I found that you needed to be careful you didn’t hit your head off the roof when getting in and while the back has plenty of room for three adults, once again I doubt if many people will use this motor to carry five people.
In the past I have often wondered aloud what it would be like to change a tyre on these huge motors. Well this time it happened; I got a puncture and couldn’t get the wheel off and had to call Audi assist.
Luckily for me the nail that came in contact with the tyre appeared to have done so close to my house. The previous night I had been showing relations the views of Dublin city from Kilakee in the Dublin mountains. The old saying is definitely true, it’s better to be born lucky than rich.
I love the radio controls in Audis, you feel like a disc jockey as you scroll up and down for the various stations. The system even gives you a list of stations recently listened to, all on a Bang & Olufsen stereo system.
Expensive yes, but if you cannot afford a new A5 have a look at others in the Audi range. With the C02 emission changes there should now be good deals in second hand cars and Audis with low mileage are always a good buy.

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