Dalancroft

Just took delivery of my new ride a week ago Friday. You might remember me from my wife's A4, my A6 Avant, or her current ride, an S4 Cabriolet. My "new" Q5 is quartz silver with light gray interior, 19" 5-spoke wheels. Replaced a 6-year-old Mazda CX-9, an otherwise fine vehicle whose large size and gas-guzzling ways were no longer needed. 36.5K miles and I upgraded to the 8 year/100K mile extended warranty for peace of mind. Sweet ride! My list of minor, mostly cosmetic, mods so far:

-Chrome 4-ring license plate frames
-Chrome 4-ring valve stem caps
-Chrome exhaust tips (genuine OEM Audi)
-Cargo net (genuine OEM Audi)
-AMI-iPod cable (via Amazon, about 1/6 of what Audi charges)
-(The kicker) Replaced OEM "subwoofer" with a far more robust driver from -- I can't believe I am saying this -- Bose.

The last is perhaps the most interesting mod. Like most tinkerers, I took apart the OEM "subwoofer" (non B&0) to check out its quality. Which, to be generous, is poor; it's a cheap paper-cone driver with a magnet about the size of 1/2 a D battery. Furthermore, us Q5 owners are constrained by impedance (the stock driver is 2 ohms) and the trapezoidal shape of the enclosure. I never thought I would be in the market for any Bose product, but it turns out that was the only plug 'n' play driver I could locate. Well, *almost* plug and play -- the 4-bolt pattern was just slightly off, perhaps by 3/16", and there is a small, 5/8-3/4" post on the lower left part of the plastic enclosure. Turns out when I slotted the lower right hole into the post, the upper right hole fit fine but I had to drill out holes for the lower and upper left-hand corners. The replacement driver is 4 ohms so I had to wick up the bass control a couple of notches, but the end result was worth the hassle as bass is now deeper and tighter. I'm quite pleased overall with the upgrade.

Also FYI, the cover for the previous driver won't fit given the new bolt holes, but since the sub unit is covered by the 1" thick rear compartment lid I don't think it makes any difference.

For those considering this upgrade, a listing for a similar driver can be found here:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BOSE-PS28-PS18-PS38-PS48-LSPS-Powered-Woofer-Replacement-Speaker-181860-6-4-Ohm-/121211652503?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c38c70997

Stephen Charles Rea

Congratulations...my 2011 Q5 is also a "new to me" Audi Q5...I bought it after a lady ran a red light and totaled my 2006 Dodge Durango...I had always planned on buying something smaller eventually but as my car was paid off I wasn't in the mood to buy something just yet...

That said I love my first Audi and the minor LED upgrades I've done to it already as well as upgrading the B&O Subwoofer...

Pix my my totaled former vehicle...
Dodge Durango Accident

Dalancroft

Yikes! Similar occurrence to my beloved '99 A6 Avant -- rear-ended at a stoplight by a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Totaled out, replaced with a 2008 Mazda CX-9 AWD Grand touring edition. Six years on, traded in for the Q5.

Stephen Charles Rea

She was either texting or just not paying any attention. I had a green arrow and she'd have rear ended someone if they'd been in her lane stopped at the light...instead she hit me so hard with her minivan she cracked her engine block and bent my frame broke the AWD front axel in two places on my Durango broke both my passenger side rims and somehow managed to dent and or destroy every body panel on that side..

The repair estimate (with used parts) was $11,690 US. Truck was only worth about $14k so it was an easy total for the insurance adjuster.