SUVs have always been the quintessential choice for drivers looking for a healthy blend of versatility and dependability, coupled with achieving respectable performance. SUVs are constantly at the forefront of innovation, and plenty of manufacturers develop and produce better SUV lineups. With a bustling market comes competition, a critical aspect of a healthy industry. Cadillac and Audi are no strangers to competition, and each manufacturer hosts its respective fan base spanning millions of enthusiastic consumers. This year, many SUVs from a multitude of manufacturers have received their annual refreshes, and a whole new spark for competition has been ignited between the 2020 Cadillac XT5 vs 2020 Audi Q5. Both of these SUVs show a lot of promise, but how exactly do they compare?
Both the 2020 Cadillac XT5 and 2020 Audi Q5 are SUVs that allow up to five passengers each. Each vehicle is also offered in three distinct trims with the Cadillac XT5 including Luxury, Premium Luxury, and Sport. The three trims offered for the Audi Q5 are Premium, Premium Plus, and Prestige. By offering three trims as opposed to a multitude of trims, both vehicles provide respectable feature sets, no matter which trims you end up purchasing. In terms of pricing, you can expect to see the Cadillac XT5 and Audi Q5 starting at MSRPs of $44,095 and $43,300, respectively. This categorizes both vehicles in the same general price range with a common goal. However, the closer you look, the more these two vehicles begin to differentiate.
Interior & Cargo
As mentioned, both vehicles offer a maximum seating capacity of five passengers. It is worth noting that many critics have made mention that the Cadillac XT5 provides more leg space for the passenger situated in the middle seat. This trend of extra space continues as you’ll find significantly more cargo space inside of the XT5 opposed to the Q5. The XT5 grants you a total of 63 cu.ft once you’ve folded the seats in the rear row and 30.2 cu.ft when the seats are upright. In comparison to the Q5, there you’ll see 53.1 cu.ft with the seats down and only 25.1 cu.ft otherwise. These ultimately make the XT5 the better choice for a majority of cargo hauling, whether it’s groceries or luggage for a family vacation.
Connectivity
When looking closer at the connectivity features provided by each of the integrated infotainment centers, the XT5 provides the best value at the base level. Both vehicles feature screens with touch-capacitive controls, with the XT5 featuring an 8-inch screen, which is larger than the Q5’s 7-inch screen. Both the XT5 and Q5 have integrated Bluetooth so you may connect your Bluetooth connected devices, such as a smartphone, to your vehicle and access wireless media playback. For charging and syncing purposes, both vehicles offer USB ports situated near the infotainment center; however, the XT5 offers four ports, which is double the amount seen on the Q5. Audi’s 10-speaker sound system provides clear and vibrant audio. The XT5 includes an 8-speaker system by Bose, who is constantly ranked amongst the best speaker manufacturers.
Both vehicles allow for the integration of a 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot; however, it comes standard on the XT5 and remains an upgrade option for the Q5. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto do come standard on both vehicles, which are great to see included, especially at the base level. Apple developed CarPlay back in 2014 and was promptly followed by the Google-developed Android Auto in 2015, and they’ve been making appearances since then. CarPlay and Auto became instant successes, and manufacturers have taken notice of this. As a result, they’ve become prominent in many new vehicles today. However, as some manufacturers have made clear, CarPlay and Auto are not always guaranteed with base trims, but we commend Cadillac and Audi for including both.
CarPlay and Auto are software suites that have been developed to work in tandem with your existing smartphone, whether it be an iPhone or a wide range of Android devices. Connecting your smartphone is an easy process, and both pieces of software are intuitive and user-friendly. With CarPlay and Auto, you can make phone calls and send text messages without even taking your hand off the wheel. You’ll have full access to your virtual assistant, whether it be Google Assistant or Siri, and all of your favorite music and other media are easily accessible. If you’d like to add further functions to your infotainment system, both CarPlay and Auto each contain app stores provided by Apple and Google, respectively, and here you’ll find a plethora of apps to download.
Performance
The XT5 and the Q5 are both heavily comparable regarding general performance. Turbocharged engines are found standard on both vehicles, each of them 2.0L 4-cylinder variants. Regardless of which engine you fit inside of your XT5, it’ll be paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission that provides a smooth ride. The nine-speed transmission is likely to appeal to aspiring customers more-so than the 7-speed automatic found in the Audi Q5. The engine found inside of the XT5 produces 237 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque, which is quite comparable to the 248 hp and 273 lb-ft of torque that the Q5’s engine produces. When it comes down to general everyday performance, you’re likely to not notice the 4% increase in horsepower and a 5% increase to torque output. Both engines also receive similar fuel efficiency ratings with the XT5 coupled with AWD achieving 21 mpg city and 26 highway while the Audi Q5 gets 22 mpg city and 28 highway.
Each vehicle also offers a V6 engine that can be fitted in each vehicle. For the XT5, this engine is a 3.6L V6, which produces 310 hp and 271 lb-ft of torque. The engine you may upgrade to with the Q5 is a twin-turbo V6, which produces 349 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque. This engine is quite performant, and any owner of the Q5 should consider it. When stacking the engines side-by-side, the Q5 does retain a better V6 thanks in part to its twin-turbo nature. However, when in regards to the base models, the aforementioned 4% and 5% increase to horsepower and torque doesn’t quite make up for the omissions seen elsewhere in the vehicle, like the interior or even basic connectivity features.
The Verdict
The 2020 Cadillac XT5 and 2020 Audi Q5 are highly competitive with each other, namely due to a similar price range and similar features, at least on the surface. Although the V6 seen on the Q5 has higher performance output than the XT5’s V6, the base level tells a different story. The base trims for both vehicles bring the competition to new heights as they hold similar MSRPs and engines. What starts to differentiate the two is everything else from cargo space to entertainment and connectivity features, all of which are vital to an SUV’s success. Drivers will simply find more value in the XT5 for these three aspects alone. SUVs are well known for their versatility, and this requires each SUV to provide enough space and features to be versatile in any way. Simply put, if you’re interested in the better of the two SUVs, the XT5 checks all of the boxes and is the one to consider.
