The 2018 Audi S5 Cabriolet feels light and balanced as its Quattro all-wheel-drive system digs into the pavement on a twisty mountain road. I glance down at the Virtual Cockpit display and see an upcoming hairpin turn on the map.
I can’t figure out what I like better, the S5 Cabriolet’s easy handling or its impressive technology.
Then I discover that the seats also include a massage function, perfect for long highway cruises, especially when accompanied by music playing over the 20-speaker Bang and Olufsen stereo.
So many things to like, but as Audi includes them all in the S5 Cabriolet, there’s no need to make a choice.
Most of the S5 Cabriolet’s style update can be seen in the refined grille design. LED headlights come standard.
Wayne Cunningham/RoadshowAudi gives the S5 Cabriolet, a compact convertible four-seater, a major and much-needed update for the 2018 model year, improving power, removing weight and juicing up the cabin with its latest impressive suite of technology.
While still running a turbocharged 3-liter V6 engine, horsepower goes up to 354, 21 more than the previous generation, with torque at 369 pound-feet. That power hits all four wheels through an eight speed automatic transmission. Audi’s Quattro all-wheel-drive system defaults to a 40/60 front/rear torque split, and can shift torque as needed or lock its center differential to ensure power.
Efficiency technologies, such as idle-stop, also lead to fuel economy gains over the previous generation. The new S5 Cabriolet comes in at 20 mpg city and 29 mpg highway, although I only averaged 21.9 mpg due to liberal use of the throttle. That’s a 2- to 3-mpg gain over the older S5 Cabriolet.
Along with more power, the S5 Cabriolet receives a styling change similar to that given to other newer Audi models. To the untrained eye, it looks similar to the previous generation, but the grille takes on a more defined style, pushing out from the front of the car. Standard LED headlights deliver bright white coverage at night, while running lights give the car a unique expression.
Diamond-patterned seat stitching gives the interior a luxury look, and I particularly like the svelte design of the sport seats, which surely shaves overall weight. Finding the massage function for the seats while I drove was a pleasant surprise. Even better, I later find out that these seats come standard in the S5 Cabriolet. Although the car comes with two rows, it’s a four-seater, with the rear only designed for two passengers.
The real showpiece in the S5 Cabriolet, one of Audi’s recent big hits, is the Virtual Cockpit, which comes in the completely worthwhile $2,600 Navigation package. The system makes use of a large LCD in place of a traditional instrument cluster along with a center LCD on the dashboard. I could switch the instrument cluster display between a satellite-view map, large virtual gauges, audio, and trip information. It’s a beautiful display and makes it easy to keep my eyes centered on the road.
Audi’s Virtual Cockpit, finding its way into most Audi models, puts the map right in front of the driver.
Wayne Cunningham/RoadshowVirtual Cockpit limits inputs to what I can do through voice or steering wheel-mounted thumb controls. The center screen, with its associated dial and switchgear on the console, lets me enter destinations manually or with a quick online search using the car’s own 4G/LTE data connection. It also supports digging into the music collection on my connected iPhone or making hands-free phone calls.
The S5 Cabriolet leverages its data connection not only for online destination search, but also for real-time fuel prices and parking availability.
Audi also manages to build in support for both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, despite the lack of a touchscreen. Using the console-mounted dial may not be optimal for this interface, but it works. And switching between Apple CarPlay and the S5 Cabriolet’s built-in infotainment requires going through an extra couple of screens.
