Used test: Audi SQ5 vs Porsche Macan S costs

Buying and owning

Costs, equipment, reliability, safety

To purchase a 2019 Audi SQ5, you'll need around £42,000, whereas the equivalent Porsche Macan S will set you back around £47,000. For the money, expect similar specs to our two test cars and a mileages of around 30,000. 

However, that the SQ5 is a cheaper used buy than the Macan is only half the story. The fact is that the Audi has dropped in value by around £10,000 since it was new, compared with around £3500 for the Porsche. If it continues on this trajectory, the SQ5 will lose you more money in the long run.

The SQ5 is undoubtably better on fuel, mind you. In our testing, it averaged 32.1mpg, bettering the Macan's 24.0mpg effort. Both will cost you the same in annual in road tax; £520 per year. However, because that includes a £355 surcharge because both cars cost more than £40,000 when new, that annual bill will fall to a flat rate of £155 per year after the car's sixth birthday.

As for equipment, both cars can be found with a tow bar, as well as metallic paint and a rear-view camera (all as options from new). The SQ5 comes with heated front seats as standard; these were optional for the Macan, as were heated rear seats (they weren't available on the SQ5 at all). Keyless entry comes as standard on the SQ5, but the Macan's original owner would've had to opt for that feature at an extra cost from new. 

We would recommend investing in a Macan with some of the optional safety aids. Although lane departure warning is standard, automatic emergency braking isn’t, and it was available only in conjunction with adaptive cruise control. That’s a hugely disappointing fact, given that this crucial safety feature is standard on not just the SQ5 but also most sub-£20,000 hatchbacks from new.

In our most recent What Car? Reliability Survey, the standard Q5 placed 11th out of 21 cars in the large SUV category, while the Macan ranked first out of eight cars in the luxury SUV category. As for brands, Audi came 18th out of 30 manufacturers, and Porsche came 25th. 

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