Audi Q2 review ~ station of gear

For:

Surprisingly spacious, impressive safety kit, lots of personalisation, stylish and well built

Our Rating:

Against:

Price, firm ride on larger wheels and sport suspension, best features are optional extras

2016

Audi's small SUV brings a new degree of style, class, and cool to the class with loads of big car features, but at a price

Audi only really had to turn up with the Q2 to have a hit in this sector. Other than the MINI Countryman, the small SUV sector is dominated by sub-premium cars like the Nissan Juke, Peugeot 2008 and Renault Captur.

The Q2 offers a level of style, class and big-car features rivals don’t have – but it comes at a price. The range is expensive to start with, but most of the more desirable bits of kit are options.

The Q2 interior is spacious enough for four adults to travel comfortably with a decent boot, while the quality is good where you see and touch.

The drive is good, too – responsive controls and surefooted handling combine with a comfy ride unless you go for the sportiest set-up and biggest wheels.

6 Jun, 2016

The Audi Q2 interior very much follows the lead of the A3, but with a few funkier options that are designed to appeal to younger buyers. There’s a splash of colour across the dash that can match the exterior colour, while inserts on the seats can lift what would otherwise be a pretty conservative design.

The Q2’s interior quality is impressive, especially against rival small SUVs and many other cars at the price, too. There are soft plastics where you see and touch most, although Audi will admit to saving money where you won’t notice it. Every Q2 gets a dash-top screen although you have to head for the options list to fill it with interesting stuff like sat-nav. And if you really want to push the boat out, you can opt for Audi’s impressive 12.3-inch Virtual Cockpit – a TFT dash display that replaces conventional dials and gives you further options to personalise what you can see.

Key to the tech available is the VW Group’s MQB platform that sits under the Q2 and many other Audi, VW, Skoda and SEAT models, making it easier and more cost effective to add tech.

Personalisation is key outside, too – SE and Sport models feature darker cladding around the wheels and sills with S line turning it body colour. And there are 12 colours to choose from with contrasting roof shades, too.

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A real stand-out feature of the Q2 is it’s C-pillar ‘floating blade’ that’s not unlike the side panels found on the R8 supercar. It comes in differing shades of grey in SE and Sport models, a brighter silver on S line cars. But you can choose various options ranging from a dark colour to make the roof look as though it’s floating or even carbon fibre for a sportier style. It’s not just for design, either – the floating blade has aerodynamic properties, too.

Allloy wheel sizes range from 16-inch on SE cars, 17s on Sports and 18s on S line models. Optional 19s are also available, but beware that the bigger the wheel, the bigger the bumps you’ll feel, especially in the back and on Sports rather than Comfort suspension.

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

Part of the big car features available on the Q2 is a 700 watt Bang and Olufsen audio system that, on our test, was both punchy and detailed – well worth considering if you like your music.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are also on the menu, as is a range of Audi Connect apps that can provide information on the car remotely and even let you programme the navigation from your smartphone.

• Apple CarPlay: Everything you need to know

You can also opt for the full Audi Multi Media Interface (MMI) system with its big wheel control in between the front seats and its touch pad control. And if you either opt for nav or get one of the higher-spec cars with it as standard, it’s worth considering the (also optional) 12.3-inch Virtual Cockpit, which will let you display full width mapping in the instrument binnacle directly in front of you.

Audi uses the phrase ‘go-kart feel’ to describe the Q2, a phrase it’s borrowed from MINI. Although the Q2 doesn’t feel as quick to respond as the MINI Countryman, it offers a better blend of sharp handling and a comfortable ride.

• MINI Countryman review

The Q2 steering comes from the hot Audi S3 model and it feels meaty enough to put a smile on your face. And in spite of the car’s short wheelbase and high centre of gravity, there’s not too much body roll when you go around corners – that’s helped by the car’s wide track.

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Image 11 of 12

Most importantly, the ride is pretty good – you always feel connected to the road and the Q2 doesn’t exactly dismiss bumps and potholes, but unless you have the S line’s 18-inch wheels and the sportier of the two suspension set-ups things stay pretty comfortable. Be aware that the ride is slightly more fidgety in the back of the car, though.

The 1.4-litre engine is sweet revving and quiet when you’re cruising on the motorway. It’s also got enough firepower to fulfil the car’s sporty brief. We drove a car with the new seven-speed DSG dual-clutch auto gearbox, which is claimed to improve efficiency. That being the case, it’s an excellent choice as it’s quick to react and works smoothly, even when you kick down. And you can take control yourself with paddles behind the steering wheel.

Among all the high tech options, you can get adaptive dampers and Audi Drive Select, which will sharpen the steering and gearbox responses, and firm up the adaptive dampers if they’re fitted.

Although much of the Q2 tech is on the options list, there’s plenty of advanced safety kit as standard. Audi’s pre sense safety kit is standard, which includes Autonomous Emergency Braking and will also put the anchors on if it spots a pedestrian stepping out in front of the car.

Other big car options include adaptive cruise control, lane departure warnings and lane keep assistance, plus traffic sign recognition and alerts if there’s traffic coming when you’re reversing.

Engines

We drove the more powerful of the two petrol engines with 148bhp, the other one being the excellent 114bhp three-cylinder 1.0-litre engine. A 2.0-litre petrol with 188bhp and Quattro all-wheel drive will arrive next year, as will a Quattro option on this 1.4. Alternatively there are two diesels, a 114bhp 1.6 and 148bhp 2.0-litre that you can also order four-wheel drive from launch.

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Image 8 of 12

The 1.4 is likely to be the most popular choice and it’s a sweet engine with and eager nature. Although the Q2 is no sports car, there’s plenty of poke on offer – enough to get from 0-62mph in around 8.5secs – while it revs smoothly and is quiet when you want it to be, too.

The S tronic gearbox is a nice partner, too – this dual-clutch seven-speed unit reacts quickly and smoothly and can be given a sportier bent if you select the optional Audi drive select system. That’ll also firm up the (also optional) adaptive dampers and tweak the steering to make it more direct.

The Audi Q2 comes with an impressive roster of safety kit as standard, plus some super-advanced stuff that’s on the options list.

Audi’s pre sense safety kit is standard, which includes Autonomous Emergency Braking and will also put the anchors on if it spots a pedestrian stepping out in front of the car.

Other big car options include adaptive cruise control, lane departure warnings and lane keep assistance, plus traffic sign recognition and alerts if there’s traffic coming when you’re reversing.

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Image 7 of 12

Plus, of course, there is set to be the usual array of airbags as well as standard traction and stability controls and anti-lock brakes.

Warranty

The standard Audi warranty lasts for three years or 60,000 miles, although the mileage cap is removed in years one and two.

Servicing

Audi service schedules tend to range from 9,000 miles for minor checks to 19,000 miles for a full service. To keep a check on costs, Audi dealers will sell you one of many fixed-price deals, including Audi Complete.

The Q2 interior is relatively spacious considering its small footprint – Audi claims similar interior space to an A3 and we wouldn’t argue. Of course, the higher roofline and more upright seating positions help, but you actually sit slightly lower in the Q2 than you do in other small SUVs, helping to give the car the ‘go kart feel’ that Audi keeps mentioning.

Size

At 4121mm long, the Q2 is 167mm longer than an Audi A1 and 116mm shorter than an A3. Among SUVs, it’s a smidge shorter than a Nissan Juke and the best part of a school ruler shorter than its big brother, Audi’s Q3. So we can safely say it qualifies as a small SUV.

And the problem with small SUVs is they can look a bit dumpy, while a short wheelbase and high centre of gravity combination can play havoc with ride and handling. Thankfully, Audi seems to have come to terms with both.

Leg room, head room & passenger space

Front seats have loads of adjustment so the very smallest and the very tallest drivers will be able to get comfortable, especially with a steering wheel that adjusts up and down, as well as in and out. Headroom is good, too, even in the rear where Audi’s designers have worked hard to keep the roofline low for a sportier look – there’s a distinct hollowing out of the roofline at the back but a six foot passenger can sit behind a six foot driver in reasonable comfort. Your knees will just about be brushing the back of the front seats, but you won’t have to splay your legs out.

Passengers of a more average height will have no complaints in the back, unless they’re asked to sit in the middle of the back row. As usual, that’s a raw deal: narrow, hard and with less space for feet.

In spite of the rear doors looking small, they open wide enough to make getting in and out easy enough, which should also help with loading small children into child seats.

Boot

Visibility is good all round in spite of a fairly shallow rear screen at the back. However, the boot door (which can be powered for another tick on the options list) opens wide to reveal plenty of space. At 405-litres (rising to 1.050 litres with the rear seats folded) it’s bigger than an A3’s, only 15-litres off a Q3’s, but some way shy of a Countryman’s 450-litres.

The boot floor can be raised slightly so the floor is flat when the seats fold, and you can also opt for a 40/20/40 split for easy through loading of longer items.

Storage is reasonable inside, too, with decent-sized door bins and glove box, plus handy storage for cups or phones in between the seats – there’s also a slot to rest the key in – of course you can have the Q2 with a keyless system where you don’t have to put a key into the ignition.

A selection of economical VW Group engines should ensure that the Q2 delivers reasonable economy. The 1.4-litre TFSI petrol delivers an impressive 60.1mpg in the A3, along with just 109g/km of CO2, while the smaller 1.0-litre claims 62.8mpg and 104g/km. With similar dimensions, we'd expect the Q2 to deliver fairly close to these figures - and diesels will be more economical still.

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