dr Dunkel

I think its a good thing that Audi still builds Audis. Great cars and they should stick to their formula as they do that so well. Audi should not try to build a Mercedes or a BMW as there already are companies around that does that som much better than Audi would do.

Lexus must be the best example of how things work out when you try to mimic others. You always seem to end up with a product that almost is on par with the former generation of what you are trying to copy.

chonkoa

I agree, Audi should focus on building an Audi, and forget about trying to match the experience of a BMW. When Audi focuses on producing a BMW-like driving experience then it leaves people with no choice but to compare it to the ultimate player in that game.
I love Audi for being Audi and giving us a different kind of driving feel, not for coming close to BMW-like performance.
For a BMW driving experience, I simply drive a BMW.

Giannis

but only a fool presumes that speed and fun are always the same.
well said!

Other than that, the A/S5 seems to be a little overated. Audi should have paid more attention to the driving dynamics. Other than that, the car is great!

Yannis

Why? A5 fails to match when you judge it as a BMW , when you judge it as an Audi things are different.

Someone who likes Audi's approach to making a well build , safe and fast/effective coupe might also say that 3er coupe fails to match A5.

YoUhimhER

totally agree, some people just prefer good interior over driving performance, and that's precisely why bmw fans like bmw because it delivers fun driving experience they seek.

i'd say audi does have the capability of building a car that's on par with bmw in terms of driving pleasure, if we look at r8 and rs4, previous gen rs6 as examples, because these cars are not compromised like the audi's regular line-up, but also note that these cars have an uncompromising price-tag.

btw, i am a little disappointed at the a5. audi shouldn't have claimed so boldly that this is goin to be match or beat bmw at its own game.

Ultimate Car Guy

Thats the problem!

Audi is purposely out there to try and beat BMW in it's own game. Even their former Chairman, Martin Winterkorn has said "we will beat BMW in their own game". If you make a claim such as that, then you would expect your products to reflect it. But unfortunately it's just not beeting BMW on "it's own game" i.e driving dynamics.

The S5/A5 isn't a bad car, in fact i believe it's a good car overall. But Audi has billed it as something that would really challenge BMW dynamics- it's the reason why they developed the MLP architecture in the first place.

Yannis

A8 beats 7 series in driving dynamics. Same goes for TT against Z4 and S3 against 130i so i would wait and see a comparison of the two cars before saying which beats which.

Ultimate Car Guy

Fair enough. Let's wait and see for the side-by-side comparisons.

Centurion

It is still a bit early to jump to conclusion. There are still some major magazines who are yet t o test the car like CarandDriver and Motor Trend. My theory is that the car suffers from the typical Audi syndrome. Good driving dynamics but not as exiting or thrilling to drive as a Bimmer or Porsche.

RICHBOY

It's really sad that you can only look at the new 3 series from one perspective in order to praise it! I really hope BMW has it in them to offer up something other than driving dynamics considering their only a few classes where they can still make such claims. O well cheers to the X5 at least!