Independent Reviews of New and Used Cars

Audi’s Q5 e-hybrid PHEV is a sensible premium segment mid-sized SUV choice, thinks Jonathan Crouch.

With this fundamentally improved RZ, Lexus at last gets serious about EVs. Jonathan Crouch takes a look at what’s on offer.

It’s tempting to dismiss this C8-era S6 on a number of grounds. For Audi owners, it’s not as agile as an S4 that would save you plenty. And it’s not as fast as the kind of RS 6 that wouldn’t cost that much more. And that’s before you even start to think about the talented opposition. But as soon as you do, you begin to realise that within its little market niche, this car is something quite special. It’s also a very clever contender indeed. Over 35 miles to the gallon from a car that, de-restricted, would probably reach well over 180mph? And at the same time, pulling power that would embarrass most of this model’s powerful petrol-engined rivals. So what if an RS6 from this era is faster? Or an M5 or an E63 come to that. This, in contrast, is the stealth bomber of the executive segment, the car that creeps in under the radar. The only one in its sector with diesel drive. And the only one with Audi’s S-inspired ring of confidence. Four rings in fact.

BMW’s improved iX large EV crossover gets its biggest battery in this pricey xDrive60 form.. Jonathan Crouch takes a look.

The MK2 Audi SQ5 TDI offered a fascinating glimpse into the state of the SUV building art. Okay, so shoving a hugely powerful diesel engine into a mid-sized SUV doesn’t sound like rocket science, but this is no ordinary engine and the Q5 is no ordinary vehicle. The combination of these constituents moved the genre on a good few steps. All too often with premium brands, and especially with Audi, the fast all-wheel drive estate cars already on offer are so good it leaves you wondering why you’d bother with the SUVs. This SQ5 posed just one question to that mindset: why not? With 341PS on tap, you’re never short of power and with a monstrous 700Nm of torque on tap, you won’t even need to buy a caravan; just screw a towing eye to the side of your house and drag it up the road. Seriously though, is this car a wee bit over the top? Probably. Will you love it regardless? Most definitely.