Inclement weather shows this small SUV is no fair-weather friend. A weekend deluge, which had us wishing we were aboard Noah's ark rather than inside our cars, found me comfortably piloting a 2009 Audi Q5, the marque's first compact sport-utility vehicle. The Q5 handled the unwelcome wetness well. It also handled out-of-town guests and all the stuff we had to haul. It handled everything with effortless grace. Looking like the Q7 crossover SUV's younger sibling, the Q5 plops its finely honed shell atop the A4 sedan platform. Given the Q5's DNA, it's not surprising to find that it is propelled by the A4's 270-horsepower, 3.2-liter V6, six-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission and quattro all-wheel drive. What might surprise you is how much of the A4's DNA remains. Like the A4, the Q5 is a delight to drive, with the A4's athletic dynamics filtering through largely intact. Unlike the A4, the Q5 has a higher center of gravity, so it's not quite the sporting ride its sedan donor is.
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Inclement weather shows this small SUV is no fair-weather friend. A weekend deluge, which had us wishing we were aboard Noah's ark rather than inside our cars, found me comfortably piloting a 2009 Audi Q5, the marque's first compact sport-utility vehicle.