Poll: Porsche Macan GTS or Audi SQ5?
Let’s say you need a crossover, something with decent interior space and all-wheel drive, but you can’t bear the thought of piloting a vehicle as mainstream as, say, a Toyota RAV4 or Chevy Equinox.
Well fear not, because there are plenty of options out there, and two stellar choices are the Porsche Macan GTS and Audi SQ5. These sporty haulers are fast, fun and stylish. What more could you want?
The Porsche in this tossup features a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 that’s rated at 360 horsepower and 396 lb.-ft. of torque. A seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission handles shifting duties and routes twist to all four corners through the Porsche Traction Management active all-wheel-drive system.
Like its corporate cousin, the SQ5 also features a turbocharged 3.0-liter V6. In Audi form, this engine is rated at 354 horses and 369 lb.-ft. of torque. An eight-speed automatic transmission is standard, as is quattro all-wheel drive.
Curiously, the Macan can hit 60 miles an hour in a claimed 5.0 seconds; the SQ5 is one-tenth off that pace. In real-world use, you’ll never notice a difference.
As for pricing, the Audi has a significant advantage here, kicking off at around $55,000. In comparison, the Porsche Macan GTS starts at 70 grand! Is it worth an additional $15,000? Well, that’s your job to decide. Compare these two fun-loving crossovers here and make sure to vote in our poll!
Born and raised in metro Detroit, Craig was steeped in mechanics from childhood. He feels as much at home with a wrench or welding gun in his hand as he does behind the wheel or in front of a camera. Putting his Bachelor's Degree in Journalism to good use, he's always pumping out videos, reviews, and features for AutoGuide.com. When the workday is over, he can be found out driving his fully restored 1936 Ford V8 sedan. Craig has covered the automotive industry full time for more than 10 years and is a member of the Automotive Press Association (APA) and Midwest Automotive Media Association (MAMA).
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Another thing to consider is that if you want more motor than the 2L four (single turbo ... which is a bit 'laggy') that's found on both of these models in base configuration, while you have to go to the SQ5 on the Audi side, but there's the option of the Macan S at Porsche. The Macan S has the same basic $55K MSRP starting price as the SQ5, so cost effectively drops out as a factor...while the S continues to have the same fundamentally lower Center-of-Gravity advantage over the Q5 chassis that the GTS has, as well as the basic engineering goodness brought to the platform by Porsche for all of the stuff that's shows up when you're not in a straight line drag race...
Without any other considerations and if I didn't know anything about the brands, I would prefer the Porsche because I like it's less fussy design. It looks like a man's car.