Compared: 2023 Acura RDX vs. 2023 Audi Q5
These luxury SUVs compete with bang-for-your-buck value and a plethora of powertrain options.
Acura | Audi
With so many vehicles vying for the same eyeballs in the luxury SUV landscape, it's difficult to determine why one model is better than another. At first glance, comparing the 2023 Audi Q5 and 2023 Acura RDX is a prime example of this challenge. In their base trims, the two SUVs appear similar in price and standard features.
A closer look sets them apart, however. The higher end of the Q5 price range includes a plug-in hybrid option the RDX doesn't have, and overall it offers three powertrains to the RDX's one. The RDX pre-loads a little more standard equipment than the Q5 and outright beats it in areas such as cargo space.
A higher-performance, and higher-priced, Audi SQ5 is available, but it's been excluded from this comparison since the RDX doesn't offer a trim that directly competes with it on performance or price.
Acura
2023 Acura RDX vs. 2023 Audi Q5: Price
Audi offers the 2023 Q5 in three trim levels: Premium, Premium Plus, and Prestige, each of which is available as 40, 45, or 55 models. The 40 models have a 201-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine; 45 models have a higher output version of the same engine with 261 horsepower, and 55 models are 362-hp plug-in hybrids. All 2023 Q5 models come with standard all-wheel drive. Prices range from around $45,000 for a Premium 40 model up to around $68,000 for a Prestige 55.
Audi
The 2023 Acura RDX is available in five trims, ranging from the base RDX starting around $43,000 to the A-Spec Advance at around $55,000. The RDX, Technology, and A-Spec trims come with standard front-wheel drive; all-wheel drive adds $2,200 to the bottom line. Advance and A-Spec Advance models are all-wheel drive only. The only engine option for the RDX is a 272-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder.
Acura
2023 Acura RDX vs. 2023 Audi Q5: Features
The base models of each have many standard features in common. For example, both come with adaptive cruise control, 7.0-inch instrument displays, and heated front seats.
Audi
Differences range from the subtle — the leather seating surfaces of the base Q5 Premium versus leatherette in the base RDX or the Q5's 10.1-inch touchscreen versus the RDX's 10.2-inch touchscreen — to more substantial. The RDX includes a standard panoramic sunroof across all trims, whereas only the 45 and 55 Q5 models do. (The 40 models can get the panoramic sunroof as a $1,450 option.) The RDX comes with either 19- or 20-inch alloy wheels; in the Q5 20-inch wheels are an $800 standalone option with the Premium 55, and Premium Plus or Prestige 45 and 55 models or come as part of the Sport plus package ($2,800) available with Premium Plus or Prestige 55 models. The RDX also edges out the Q5 in cargo space, with 29.5 cubic feet to the Audi's 26 cubic feet.
Acura
2023 Acura RDX vs. 2023 Audi Q5: Fuel Economy
None of the gas-only versions of the 2023 Q5 or RDX are superstars in fuel economy. All-wheel-drive models of the RDX return an EPA-estimated 23 mpg; with front-wheel drive, that gets bumped up to 24 mpg. The 40 and 45 versions of the Audi Q5 are rated at an EPA-estimated 25 mpg.
Audi
If efficiency is your benchmark here, the clear leader is the 55 plug-in hybrid level of the Q5. The 2023 Q5 55 doesn't have an EPA estimate yet, but the 2022 came in at 26 mpg gas-only, 61 MPGe using the gas and electric systems, and 23 miles of all-electric range.
Written by humans.
Edited by humans.
James TateJames Tate has been writing about cars professionally for 15 years and he remains obsessed with them. He enjoys digging into the incredible technology of new vehicles as much as he likes the tactility and the driving experience of yesterday’s cars. He has written for a variety of legacy automotive magazines and websites.
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