Towing with Audi Q5

[rando]

Hello,

Wondered if any one is towing with the Audi Q5 or has an opinion on it.
Its tow capacity is 4400 lbs. If you are towing with this SUV/crossover
would appreciate any feedback. I am currently towing a Flying Cloud Bambi
19 footer which is never loaded down with fluids in the tanks and a minimum
of items on board. Airstream shows a 4500 weight GVWR on the trailer with
a carrying capacity of about 700 lbs. Unloaded, it is supposed to be about
3,800 lbs. Also use the Reese WD hitch which is quite good as well as a brake controller for the trailer brakes which I would also outfit on the Q5
My wife will not drive our Dodge RAM 1500 but really likes the Q5. As we
use the trailer about 7-10 times a year, but would like her to have something she is comfortable driving...... of course we have or know about all of the alternatives out there, so really looking for Q5 feedback and not recommendations of other vehicles.

Rando

[mutcth]

Going by the numbers, I think your limiting factor is going to be tongue weight (and likely tow vehicle payload.) Audi's website lists a max tongue weight of 440 lbs (10% of the max tow capacity.) The empty tongue weight of your trailer is around 510 lbs according to the Airstream brochure I just looked at.

I would contact Andy Thomson at CanAm RV in Ontario (he's on the forums as Andrew T or call him at his dealership) to see if they have set up a Q5 for towing; they set up a lot of "different" vehicles for towing. The Q5 is indeed rather nice...

Tom

[Road Ruler]

Edmunds Report here... 2009 Audi Q5 Review and Specs



There are probably not a lot of forum members here towing with a rare Q5 but that is not to saw it would not do a great job.

Your vehicle is in the same class as other highly rated tow vehicles like the BMW X3 and Cadilac SRX.

Check out posts by forum member "Andrew T". He has set up and writes about vehicles in the same class as your Q. Good luck with your research.

[2airishuman]

Originally Posted by rando

Hello,Wondered if any one is towing with the Audi Q5 or has an opinion on it...

go to either of the MAIN audi forums and read/ask questions...

(quattroworld or audiworld)

u will find several (5 or 6) guys who have the 5/towing set up.

they (vag) have IMPROVED how the receiver attaches to the rails on this unibody,

compared to the q7/trex/cayenne, the attachment looks more secure, but it's still hidden.

so once installed the receiver isn't easy to inspect and might be questionable with w/d applied.

the 5 has an intelligent/traction-abs/HIGHcenter/rollover/sway control and hill decent gizmo...

like a lot of newer vehicles.

IF u don't have a 5 yet, be sure to order it WITH the receiver/wiring included.

it's about an 8-900$ option when factory (port) installed but 2500-3000$ if added afterward...

there is a curt/aftermarket receiver that tacks onto the bottom, it's BUTT ugly and requires welding/cutting 2 fit.

here's a link to some of the oem receiver details and pix.

receiver fouroneone ...

while i like the 5, it's got almost zero storage space,

really much less than many fuel efficient boxes at HALF the price.

and it's NOT especially great on fuel when driven briskly.

a mini van, a explorer/sport trac, or many other things,

would rank MUCH higher as everyday/drive/carry/eco/occasionally tow/TINY trailer vehicles...

4 example i doubt u can FIT the honda handi/genset into the back, without dropping the seats...

while a sport trac has a small open bed for this sorta stuff,

and a mini van has LOW easy loading virtues.

SKIP taking it to canUKland for mods,

i found a great little shop in warm/sunny juarez that will mod it 4 ya,

AND include a free set of dentures.

cheers
2air'

[rando]

Hello to all,
In speaking with two different Q5 dealers, they tended to dissuade me from the Q5 for towing my 19 foot Flying Cloud Bambi. Accordingly, I started looking at other options.... ML 350, Touareg, etc. Drove the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee and decided on that SUV with the new V6. As I will only tow the trailer less than 5-6 times a year, my rational was that the other times the V6 would do the trick. Prodigy makes the P3 brake controller which is a plug and play and as I had it on my Dodge Ram, going with it again. Of course the Reese WD setup will have to be adjusted to get to the recommended height for that setup.
As the JGC has both trailer anti-sway and trailer leveling with the trailer option, I will be also trying to pull the trailer that way. I suspicion that will not be satisfactory after the WD setup, but certainly worth exploring the newer trailer handling technology in these Jeeps. The Overland model also has a air lift suspension system and that will be interesting to see how that responds to the AS. Any thoughts from this valuable forum will be welcome and I will try to get some feedback to the group as this evolves.

Rando

[mutcth]

I towed my Argosy Minuet with a 2011 Grand Cherokee V8 with the tow package and air suspension. The manual (which you need to download or ask the dealer for a full paper copy - they only give you an abbreviated user guide) wasn't too helpful on trailer set-up with weight-distribution, but it didn't really prove to be a problem. It handled well and was a pleasant tow vehicle. The plug-and-play brake controller is nice - bit of a hassle to get to the connector in the footwell, but not too bad.

The anti-sway will only come on and use the stability control to stop swaying once the trailer starts a-swayin' - it doesn't prevent it in the first place. In other words, with a proper set-up, you might never encounter it. Nice to have anyway though.

I've also driven a V6 and know folks who have towed with it. That engine works hard to move the heavy (almost 5000 lb) Jeep around, and it labors when towing. The V8 doesn't have such problems, but it will drink more fuel.

Tom

[Road Ruler]

Originally Posted by rando

Hello to all,
In speaking with two different Q5 dealers, they tended to dissuade me from the Q5 for towing my 19 foot Flying Cloud Bambi.
Rando

Did they say why? Did they say they had any towing experiance with the Q5 and how it tows? I have a pal who is a truck salesaman. He will give out an opinion on just about anything, even though he knows very little about everything...

[rando]

Frankly, the candor of both Audi dealers was surprising as they (General Manager in one and Sales Manager in the other) had resources within their respective dealerships (named years of experience and service department) that felt the 2.0 T motor would work too hard and that the weight specs on the towing capacity was too close to the 4500 lbs of the trailer. Q5 would pull it but they also felt the software on the vehicle handling computer would be giving problems with a fully loaded trailer (worse case scenario). After driving the '11 Jeep and their input, I had a better idea of my personal decision. Have several years of experience with the Jeep brand and did have a 2005 Jeep JGC and pulled snowmobile trailers at that time fully loaded and hardly knew that was behind the vehicle except on the steepest grades. Must say the chassis on the new Jeep is very different and absolutely love the air suspension. Fit and finish was better than anything Jeep has ever done. As I have the Overland and it is used also as a daily driver, all of the modern technology found on all of the higher end SUVs is onboard. Later this year they will also be offering three other nice technologies such as blind spot monitoring, adaptive speed control, and with that you might like the ability to have the system stop you before a rear end collision in heavy traffice if you are going under 19 miles an hour.... but I digress. The Audi is a fine vehicle and was seriously considered as were many other brands. Bottom line for this consumer was that I got what I felt would be the right solution for me and also bought American. Rando

[rando]

Mutcth,
You mentioned the brake controller and how easy it was to connect to the vehicle braking lines. Can you give me some direction on that. I spoke with Tekonsha yesterday on the P3 product and they said they did not have the plug and play connector (yet) for the '11 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Had this model on my truck and it worked quite well.
Rando

[mutcth]

I use a Prodigy as well. There is a Mopar brake controller wiring cable (68088278AA or 68089305AA - for some reason the instructions have 2 part numbers) that you just splice to the four-cables of the brake controller. Supposedly this pigtail harness is being included with later-build-date GCs with the tow pack.

OK - its maybe not totally "plug and play," but close.

Tom

[JFScheck]

You can get a Q5 with the 3.2 litter engine - but in the end it is still an A4 platform - go with a V6 T-Rex or if you can swing it the TDI version of the T-Rex - might get some good deals since the 2011's are just getting ready to come out - for me I would want a 2010 - 2007 T-Rex - thus why I jumped on a TDI T-Rex back in January - it BLOWS AWAY my Porsche Cayenne S (V8) - Love It!!!

And I will be getting a Q5 latter in the year - but with the 3.2 and there will be no towing with it....

[DorrH]

Yes, I tow a 2017 19' Flying Cloud with a 2015 Q5 Diesel. I did lighten the hitch weight by replacing the two larger (approx. 72 lb. each) propane tanks mounted on the hitch with a smaller approx 32 lb. full

tank and an empty 15 lb. tank. It's easy to find a hardware necesary to secure the smaller tanks. That took my tongue weight down to below the max capacity. I fill the second tank when needed at my camp site.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Maybe things have changed a bit in the last 8yrs?😳

Bob
🇺🇸

[David_NC]

I have a 2019 Audi Q5 Prestige and average around 13 (sometimes 14) mpg towing about 3600 pound RV trailer at 65 mph. I'm consistently seeing this mpg average over 100s of miles of relatively flat terrain. I've towed a total of 5000 miles. What mpg are you seeing around 65 mph and what weight are you towing?

Side note - Q5 is perfect for my towing except just very surprised at very low mpg. The Q5 tows confidently and can accelerate and handles nearly like the trailer isn't there (although of-course I accelerate lightly to conserve fuel).

[GeoffButler]

Originally Posted by David_NC

I have a 2019 Audi Q5 Prestige and average around 13 (sometimes 14) mpg towing about 3600 pound RV trailer at 65 mph. I'm consistently seeing this mpg average over 100s of miles of relatively flat terrain. I've towed a total of 5000 miles. What mpg are you seeing around 65 mph and what weight are you towing?

Side note - Q5 is perfect for my towing except just very surprised at very low mpg. The Q5 tows confidently and can accelerate and handles nearly like the trailer isn't there (although of-course I accelerate lightly to conserve fuel).

You should have bought the older TDI. I'm getting 20mpg in the mountains pulling a Basecamp. 25mpg in the flat freeways. I am thinking of trying either the 16ft Bambi or Caravel next. Though I would have to do something to lighten the 490lb tongue weight of the Caravel.