Audi Q5 TDi - Adventure vehicle?

[F800Adventure]

Hi all! Long time lurker but have not posted much, but wanted to throw up an idea.
I currently have a 2014 Audi Q5 TDI with about 115k miles on it and absolutely love it! Great fuel mileage (31-34mpg) and long range (routinely 550 miles to a tank) and very comfy to drive (have taken it several times on 1000 mile day trips on pavement). Has anyone ever heard of someone taking a Q5 and turning it into an overlanding rig? I know I'm not going to be traversing mountains and deep valleys but more for forest service roads and some easier to get to remote camp sites. This would be used more of a base camp with day trips on 2 wheels from there.

Current thoughts:
Little meatier tires with a 1-2in suspension lift
RTT
simple 5x8 utility trailer for motorcycles and misc. gear
???

 

[PJorgen]

An Audi? Seriously?

Just kidding, I've got a 2015 Q5 with the 2.0L gas engine and love it. I've taken it off road a few times and it's fine on dirt roads. I wouldn't take it on anything challenging, it's not made for that. Remember, it's a unibody crossover built on an A4 sedan platform. It's not a true off-roader. Taller tires would help a bit with ground clearance. A good suspension lift is gonna be $$$. Nothing is cheap for an Audi and I don't think you'd gain much.

The owner's manual for mine says the max roof load is 165lbs so that rules out a RTT in my opinion. Max weight for an un-braked trailer is 1650lbs so you're probably OK with a small utility trailer and a couple of dual sport bikes.

My recommendation? Try it out before throwing a bunch of money at it. Rent a trailer from U-Haul, borrow or buy a decent ground tent and go on a couple of trips. You'll quickly decide if it's right for you.

 

[alanymarce]

Has anyone ever heard of someone taking a Q5 and turning it into an overlanding rig? I know I'm not going to be traversing mountains and deep valleys but more for forest service roads and some easier to get to remote camp sites. This would be used more of a base camp with day trips on 2 wheels from there.

Current thoughts:
Little meatier tires with a 1-2in suspension lift
RTT
simple 5x8 utility trailer for motorcycles and misc. gear
???

Short answer - "no" (I haven't heard of anyone doing this).

Longer answer - as noted by PJorgen, try it for a few trips. You are clearly not going to be ascending rocky trails, navigating muddy swamps, etc., so perhaps it would work fine. Many years ago, with two daughters, I made some long trips (including Alberta to California and back, for example) and covered some unsurfaced forestry tracks and national park trails in an Audi Avant, and it was fine. It sounds as if it might work for you with the Q5.

If I were you I'd switch to good AT tyres, go with a lightweight standalone tent, and not lift the suspension, at least not yet. Keep the kit to a minimum and see how it goes.

PS: you are aware of ASPW's opinion on Q5s I assume...

 

[kga1978]

I went through exactly the same decision process a few years ago with a 2014 Q5. Got stuck on a rock, insurance paid a bunch of money, sold the Audi and bought a loaded Grand Cherokee Trailhawk. Never looked back.

 

[Lovetheworld]

If you know the limits and mainly are doing light offroading, it is fine. Don't take it to other continents because it will probably dislike the poor diesel.
All these SUV type cars (so not real 4x4s) do fine for the light offroad work.
It is easy to damage them as mentioned above so stay away from rocky roads.
With our 4x4, if I make a mistake, I hear a loud bang and there is no damage. In the case of the Audi you might have messed up your oil pan or whatever.

 

[F800Adventure]

These are all very good points. I had assumed that the roof load was low, but I didn't realize it was only 165lbs, but would be perfect for gear storage in a rocket box or on a rack.

It would be nice to keep the Q5 since its already paid for, but maybe I am reaching a little too far with utilizing that as my primary rig. Might need to look for something a bit more in tune with my adventuring plans.

 

[Todd780]

I know there is someone here using a Q7.

 

[Lovetheworld]

But if it is an early Q7, they are, together with the VW Touareg and the first Porsche Cayenne, pretty good at offroading. Later versions became much less.

Anyway, if you just do forest roads and want to get to remote camp sites more easily, of course it can do that.

 

[Todd780]

But if it is an early Q7, they are, together with the VW Touareg and the first Porsche Cayenne, pretty good at offroading. Later versions became much less.

Anyway, if you just do forest roads and want to get to remote camp sites more easily, of course it can do that.

Yes, I do believe it's an earlier Q7 but can not recall for sure.

 

[kga1978]

These are all very good points. I had assumed that the roof load was low, but I didn't realize it was only 165lbs, but would be perfect for gear storage in a rocket box or on a rack.

I created a platform in the back of my Q5 so we could sleep inside the car - worked pretty well and I could fit boxes underneath. The platform needs to extend past the folded down backseats, but you can definitely make it work if you're ~6ft or below. Building the platform also helps make the sleeping level - otherwise you have to park the car on a pretty big slope (which we did for the first several months we were sleeping in the back - including a three-week cross country trip).

Here's a post I made about the platform: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/pa...urn-back-your-car-into-bed-san-diego-2917603/

Same forum - some discussions when I was contemplating the Trailhawk that contains some discussion about the off-road'ability of the Q5: https://www.audiworld.com/forums/q5...9/am-i-crazy-jeep-gc-trailhawk-2916297/page2/

 

[F800Adventure]

@kga1978 That is super cool! Unfortunately I am 6ft 4" tall so it would be a snug fit, but like the idea of a platform for storage and I may be able to squeeze in diagonally...