Thanks to the Macan’s sloping rear glass, the trunk is limited to a mere 500 L of cargo space compared to 824 L in the SQ5. If you plan on hauling around significant amounts of luggage or other packages, the Audi is the better bet by a long shot.
And because of that drastic difference in cargo, Audi gets the square.
Features
Safety in this segment should be a given considering the price tags. But, it should be no surprise that the Porsche takes the cake from an active safety standpoint considering it’s a newer model.
It should be mentioned all the active assist functions on the Macan S are optional extras. They include Lane Change Assist, Lane Assist, ParkAssist, Reversing camera and Surround View. Our tester, equipped with the Premium Package, came with the back-up camera and ParkAssist, which both worked quite well.
    2014 Audi SQ5, 2015 Porsche Macan S dashboards & consoles. Click image to enlarge |
Over in Ingolstadt, the safety features haven’t yet caught up, but they should with the next refresh. However, our test SQ5 was equipped similarly to the Macan S, with a back-up camera and parking sensors. There was an issue with the Audi in that the front sensors wouldn’t activate when pulling up behind my personal car in the driveway. However, when reversing from the same spot, the front parking sensors would suddenly scream at me. For 20 minutes I fiddled through the menus and could not find out why the sensors were acting that way.
The SQ5 does make a slight comeback when it comes to comfort. The Audi is equipped with tri-zone climate control as standard while the Porsche only offers up two zones. The seats in the Audi are a little more comfortable as well, though the Porsche seats are more supportive and form-fitting.
I’m going to give this one to Porsche.
Powertrain
The two utilities use 3.0L V6 engines, but the Porsche opts for two turbos while Audi attaches a supercharger to the top of their powerplant.
And, while the numbers are similar, how that power is delivered is altogether different.
   2014 Audi SQ5 vs 2015 Porsche Macan S. Click image to enlarge |
The Macan S 3.0L V6 develops 340 hp and 339 lb-ft of torque, which is much more than any soccer mom ever needs. Even though that power is being made thanks to turbocharging, delivery is smooth, acceleration is silky, and the torque rush is noticeable but not surprising. If it made just a tad bit more power, it would be a perfect motor, but that’s why Porsche has the Macan Turbo.
Conversely, the Audi SQ5 is pushed along by a 354-hp 3.0L V6 with 347 lb-ft of torque. If the Porsche mill was a scalpel, the Audi engine is a saw, as the power delivery is much more brutal and, in some ways, much more fun.
The difference truly is night and day with these engine and transmission combos. A seven-speed PDK automatic is utilized by Porsche while the SQ5 gets an extra gear in the Tiptronic automatic. The PDK is smoother, especially with the twin-turbo six, and much nicer to drive. But, there’s something visceral about the Audi when you give it the beans. It sounds a hell of a lot better, too.
Yet, with all this performance, both testers returned just over 10 L/100 km in mixed driving, not bad for SUVs with all-wheel drive and over 300 hp.
Point: Audi.
Luxury Compact SUVs
August 28, 2014
