Audi A5 coupe (2007-2016) - Practicality & boot space

Although it's based on the roomy Audi A4 saloon, the A5 coupe is surprisingly cramped in the rear. The seats are at least comfortable, while the two doors are large and open wide, so getting in and out with some dignity is easy enough. The car is fairly practical, too, with lots of storage space for water bottles, phones and other oddments. The boot is large and thanks to rear seats that split and fold 60:40, can be made larger still if necessary.

Audi A5 interior space and storage

The A5 has a swooping coupe roofline, so a very spacious rear cabin was never going to be on the cards. In fact, there's only room for a couple of children. Grown-ups can just about fit, but a tall driver who needs to slide their seat backwards will make things very uncomfortable in the rear. Add the Black Edition Plus' dark-tinted windows and it can feel very claustrophobic in there.

In contrast, the BMW 4 Series coupe is far roomier. It has a lot more head and legroom in the back – certainly enough for two adults to make themselves quite comfortable. On the plus side, the A5 has a generous number of cubbyholes, including storage areas and cup-holders between the front seats, a large glovebox and door bins that easily pass the Carbuyer big-bottle test.

Boot space

At 455 litres, the Audi A5's boot is about 30 litres smaller than the Audi A4 saloon's, but around the same size as the BMW 4 Series coupe's. It's certainly enough to swallow two sets of golf clubs, which is the (perhaps stereotypical) benchmark for load capacity in this class. A standard space-saver spare wheel makes best use of all the available room. With the rear seats folded (there's a handy release in the boot to do this), load space grows to 829 litres.

Towing

Depending on the engine chosen, the A5's maximum braked trailer weight ranges from 1,500 to 2,100kg. With their superior mid-range power and fuel economy, the diesel models make the best tow cars. Of these, the 2.0-litre TDI quattro S tronic is our pick, thanks to its impressive traction and smooth driving characteristics in all conditions.