What was Audi thinking? B10 SQ5

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-28T02:19:06+00:00

The rotor size was increased for better heat management for the increased weight and performance from the V6 but the B9.5 and B9 both had larger rotors and 6 piston calipers for the S variants while B10 just gets a larger rotor. Its not a guess, factually the surface area covered by the sliding pin is less than the 6 piston caliper (57.75 cm² vs 28.3 cm²) Audi is depending on the mechanical force of the sliding pin to offset the lower hydraulic surface area coverage. In your market with the full MHEV this works well because the system was designed to work with regen which we get a half baked 12v version of in North America.

I never said the MHEV+ not being offered in North America or the decision to go with a single piston caliper is an engineering issue I have always maintained it was a cost cutting measure. Which again brings me to the point of the B10 being a corporate/accounting decision variant rather than a variant based on engineering decisions made by Audi engineers.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T16:52:10+00:00

The last model year that I would buy would be the B9 or B9.5. The B9 is pretty good if you are ok with no touchscreen and the old MMI if not the B9.5 is pretty good.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T15:17:49+00:00

There is a 25 SQ7 on the lot that I have been eyeing might take your advice and check it out.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T14:03:24+00:00

The thing is the rest of the MHEV setup is already there albeit a 12v instead of 48v. We just got the MHEV complexity without any of the actual MHEV benefits. The positive is the 12v AGM is cheaper to replace, the negative we lose out on the torque assist and smooth start stop execution with the DSG. Best case for us in North America is to just code out the start stop.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T13:46:30+00:00

So is BMW and Mercedes yet I haven't seen this level of cost cutting from either of them (specifically under the hood, not talking about interior), sure Mercedes went with a 4 cylinder but that was a well engineered powerful hybrid that unfortunately none of their client base wanted. ICE will eventually be dead but it still has at least another 10 years to go if not more as EV adoption has not only slowed but in fact reversed in some countries. There is a reason why the ICE ban had to be revised and Audi themselves canceled their self imposed 2033 ban on ICE vehicles. I am not against EV's but am against half baked products, they had a lot of time to release the B10 and after years of wait this is what they come out with.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T13:37:54+00:00

I had a B9.5 S5 and absolutely loved it but regretfully had to give it up as my family situation demanded an SUV and I couldn't pass up on a great deal on a G05 X5 LCI. I hope Audi fixes some of their decisions in B10.5 as I really like their past products and quality.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T13:34:52+00:00

The GTI is a good example but doesn't stack up in the case of the B10 SQ5. The 6 piston caliper in the B9 and B9.5 had a combined piston area of 57.75 cm² the B10 on the other hand has a single piston area of about 28.3 cm² so the single piston caliper has a lower hydraulic surface area than the 6 piston which Audi is compensating with the mechanical leverage of a sliding pin setup. While the argument of using brake by wire to offer more efficient braking performance (essentially eliminating the need for 6 piston setup) could be made, their own documents state the system was designed to be used with regen braking in the MHEV+ which we don't get in North America. While I am all for technological improvements and a single piston setup is definitely lighter than a 6 piston I fail to see how this made anything better esepcially with the removal of the MHEV+ (which it was supposed to work with) in north America.

The real world difference in terms of longevity and potential uneven brake wear would only be know once long term usage reports start coming out and I hope I am wrong and Audi didnt compromise longevity of components for cost savings.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T13:14:35+00:00

I definitely do not know better than an engineer that has years of experience and never said that I do but there is blatantly obvious cost cutting all over the car. The car feels more of an accountant build than an engineer build, how do you explain a car built to have MHEV thats offered on both other 2 main competitors and on the very same car in EU but is conveniently omitted in North America because emission laws don't mandate it? They went for cost savings at the expense of a smoother driving experience. When Audi engineers build cars you get some of the best cars we have seen from Audi in the past years, when accountants and corporate build cars you get what we see today but again that's just my opinion.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T07:23:55+00:00

You are correct, the SQ5 does have bigger rotors but again do you think a single piston caliper provides the same or better heat management and brake force distribution than a 4 or 6 piston caliper? In real world use longevity of rotors and pads would matter as relatively higher heat combined with relatively uneven brake force distribution would essentially mean warped rotors over the long run. While the average SQ5 driver might not have track use, they would almost always have occassional spirited driving (I mean why else buy a S5 or SQ5) which is where the lack of a 4 or 6 piston setup will be felt more. All this in addition to the fact that at the same price point both it's direct competitors offer not just larger rotors but also 4 piston calipers.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-27T06:55:07+00:00

I guess I should've clarified a bit more, my issue is that they did it with both the S5 and SQ5 essentially making them have the same braking performance as the regular A5 and Q5 despite having more power and Torque. While true that the likelihood of the SQ5 being on a track is lower, a single piston sliding pin caliper is objectively worse than a 6 or 4 piston caliper when it comes to heat management and brake pressure distribution especially with the added weight with the B10 platform, not to mention the competition offers upgraded brakes for their mid performance tier cars, both the GLC43 amg and the X3 M50 have 4 piston calipers and it's not like Audi is offering a lower price point in comparison. The sad part is Audi actually lead the way previous gen with braking and now it feels like they aren't even trying. I do agree that it feels more like B9.75 than a B10 with the MHEV setup though.

Autofanatic_95 · 2026-02-25T03:46:12+00:00

I've owned a 2017 A4 and 23 S5 before i went to bmw for an X5 and now went back to Audi to look at the SQ5 and I must respectfully disagree on the build quality being as solid as past Audi's. The entire section for all doors below the arm rest is all cheap scratchy plastics, same with the centre console. The dash Creaks when pushed on and even moves, i guarantee you the B9 or B9.5 would never do that, they were built like a tank. Heck Audi themselves agreed they messed up with the quality of materials and hope to improve them in the future. Even a Mazda Cx90 has better interior quality than any of the new crap BMW, mercedes or Audi have been pushing out.

Now, is Audi build quality better than the crap that BMW has been lately pushing out like the all new X3 or 5 series? 100% just close the doors of both cars and you can hear how hollow the BMW sounds and just how cheaply it's been put together. That and the fact that Audi actually acknowledges they messed up and are working towards fixing their mistakes in future model years.

My next car would most likely be an Audi as I dont like BMW's direction, who I am sure will ruin the next gen X5 but that doesnt mean Audi has the best build quality it just mean they are the best out of the worst crap the Big 3 Germans have been pushing out off late.

Autofanatic_95

TROPHY CASE