damnitBobby

I just wanted to write a brief review of my 2018 SQ5. I drove 4.5 hours away to a dealer in another state to get this exact spec car because I am picky about my options. I have about 1,000 miles on it so far. It is my new daily driver and I will be driving it roughly 18-20k miles per year.

Exterior: So far I'm really liking the exterior and my color choice. In the beginning it was a draw between Navarra Blue and Ibis White. I just came from a Oceanic Blue Scion FR-S and that color is very similar to Navarra Blue so in the interest of change I decided to get a different color. Fake exhaust tips don't bother me on this type of car at all, in fact so much easier to keep clean! If this were my weekend sports car then I would want real exhaust tips for sure. Love the dynamic taillights they look so cool from behind. Got my front two windows tinted 35% per the installer. Love the 21" wheels glad I got them I feel they give the car much more presence vs the 20" wheels.

Interior: Love the interior. The carbon trim looks much better in person so glad I went with that! The seats are comfortable while they do feel a little thin they didn't bother me at all on my 4.5 hour trip home. Love the diamond stitch look gives it a nice premium touch. The only negative I can think of is the cup holders aren't in the best position, but I keep my water bottles in the door pockets anyways. Audi did a great job insulating the cabin because this car is quiet inside. The flat bottom steering wheel is nice, really gives the car a special feel.

Engine/Transmission: This things sounds so good from the inside! It has nice growl and throaty sound. At first I thought the noise was synthetically played through the speakers but apparently that's not the case and it's all real sound. I haven't even got a chance to hear it from the outside but my brother says it sounds good in dynamic mode. The turbo lag is definitely there when you are in Comfort or Auto mode. If you put it in Dynamic mode it is better though, not as noticeable. I think the ZF 8 speed is a fantastic gearbox. It's so much smoother and less clunky than the Mercedes gearbox in my previous '17 GLS550. And love how responsive it is when using the paddles really a fantastic transmission overall. I want to take this thing to the drag strip later this year to see what kind of numbers it puts down. I feel like it can manage a low 13 second time.

Air Suspension: So far I drive in Dynamic mode when I'm scooting around the city and switch to Auto or Comfort when I get to my highway stretches. Love the softness of Comfort mode this thing rides amazing for being on 21" wheels! Overall it rides better than my previous Mercedes. Less sloppy and car doesn't wobble in comfort mode. Overall it just has better control while still being comfortable. I just hope this suspension is reliable in the future.

Technology: The MMI is definitely a better infotainment system vs the Mercedes Command. Absolutely hated the Command system. Love the virtual cockpit the screen is crisp and bright. I didn't get the driver assistance package because I always turned that crap off on my Mercedes. It felt too controlling. The only driver assistance I really appreciate is the blind spot monitor. I was also pleasantly surprised that the sound system sounds as good as it does.

Overall I wanted a jack of all trades daily driver. Something that was quick, looked good, sounded good, had room for 5, had a usable trunk, and got at least decent fuel mileage. I think the SQ5 does all of these things very well.

I've only got crappy iPhone pictures to share.

AndroidRobot

I like the Ibis white in those pictures more than I thought. Mine is Navarra Blue which I'm sure you had a look it in person. It's good to see so many people here from Texas (seemingly), if I had to guess you bought the car in OK? The summer tires you have on there now will need to be swapped when it gets colder per Pirelli, I love their grip/look yet hate how there are no all season 255/40 R21 tires out there. What color interior did you get?

robfarmer

Congrats and thanks for sharing!

damnitBobby

The car was actually purchased in Louisiana. And when I got there they had a Navarra Blue SQ5 on the showroom floor. Definitely looked good but I told myself I won't be doing blue twice in a row. As far as the interior I went with Fine Nappa black leather with rock gray stitching. I thought about the red leather but seemed a little too flashy for my taste.

I've only used summer tires on all of my vehicles and never swapped them during the winter. Is this something specific to these Pirelli tires?

AndroidRobot

Here's a screenshot from their website. It's highly recommended you don't run them in cooler temperatures, otherwise they can suffer from cracking. Considering the stock tires are $400 a piece to replace winter tires would be cheaper to put on it it saves the summer ones. Granted YMMV with how they perform and last difficult my cooler conditions.

cakasky

Your car looks really good, thanks for sharing your opinions.

paperbridge

Looks fantastic. Congrats!

Thanks for the detailed write up also.

SoonerJohn

For what it's worth, I've been running Pirelli summer tires year round in Dallas for the last 6 years without ever having any issues. (2012-2014 on BMW 335i, and 2015 to present on my Q5). It is my intent to run the summer tires all the time on my SQ5 once it arrives (hopefully early December).

AndroidRobot

How cold does it get where you live? Does it stay below freezing for an extended duration? Do you drive during the coldest times of day? Are there are micro cracks on your tires ?

benjaminnicholas

Agreed. Dallas might freeze once or twice a season, but I've run Pirelli's year around (Scorpion Verde) on my Porsche and BMW without issue.

If I were in Chicago, that'd be a different story