After Glow

For reasons that are purely academic, we go road-tripping to Prague in the 2018 Audi S5.

Performance sedans might seem like a relatively new automotive species, but they have in fact been in existence for decades. History has proved that tinkerers, radicals and speed-cultists will always turn the basest form of mobility into a vessel of pure visceral thrill at any given opportunity. Simply put: if it can move, we’d much rather it move quick.

Which is why the allure of a large performance sedan remains undying: A car that heroically restrains its considerable power in the interest of happy domesticity – like a mine-detecting Alsatian doing time as a sheep dog. Audi, in particular, hasn’t been shy about pumping its caravan-towing wagons and luxury sedans with power levels bordering on steroid abuse. Must be a pre-requisite if you’re going to be a weapon of choice for the Jason Stathams and Robert De Niros of the world. The 2018 Audi S5, however, would much rather err on the side of sensibility.