2016 Audi SQ5
The 2016 Audi SQ5 is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact SUV. The most efficient version, the SQ5, is EPA-rated at 19 mpg combined. NHTSA lists no recall campaigns for this model year so far (Safety Signal A). Owners have filed 6 complaints, most often about the steering. NHTSA crash-tested it at 4 stars overall.
Specs & fuel economy
Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov| Configuration | Powertrain | Drive | Engine / motor | City | Hwy | Comb | Annual fuel* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SQ5 | Gas | AWD | 3.0L 6-cyl | 17 | 24 | 19 | $4,350 |
*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 36423.
Emissions & certification
Source: EPA emission certificates| Configuration | Smog rating | Emission standard | Where it can be sold new | SmartWay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SQ5 | 5–6 / 10 | Bin 5 / LEV-II ULEV | All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards | — |
Certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S.
The smog rating scores tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, 1 (worst) to 10 (best), and is comparable only within a model year. The standard is the federal bin or California tier the configuration was certified to. Both come from the EPA certificate behind the window sticker.
Specifications filed with NHTSA
Source: NHTSA vPICDimensions Exterior
| Body style | Sport Utility Vehicle [SUV]/Multipurpose Vehicle [MPV] |
| Doors | 4 |
| GVWR class | Class 1D: 5,001 - 6,000 lb (2,268 - 2,722 kg) |
Engine Basics
| Cylinders | 6 |
| Displacement | 3 L |
Engine Output
| Horsepower | 354 hp |
Fuel Economy
| Fuel | Gasoline |
Transmission
| Drivetrain | AWD/All-Wheel Drive |
| Transmission | Automatic |
Filed by the manufacturer with NHTSA under the federal vehicle-identification rule and decoded from the VIN pattern — not a manufacturer press kit, so it describes the configurations we could identify rather than every trim (seen: quattro Premium Plus, quattro Prestige). Figures for the trim you are looking at may differ.
Dimensions & weight
Source: Transport Canada| Length | 182.3 in |
| Width (body, without mirrors) | 74.8 in |
| Height | 65.4 in |
| Wheelbase | 110.6 in |
| Track, front | 63.0 in |
| Track, rear | 63.0 in |
| Curb weight | 4,409 lb |
| Weight distribution, front/rear | 53/47 |
Measured by Transport Canada for its Canadian Vehicle Specifications database, which covers the North American versions of each model — here one configuration: 5-door SUV 3.0 Tfsi Quattro. Where a range is shown, those versions differ. Width is the body without mirrors, which is why it can read narrower than a brochure figure. Before we used it we checked it against the US manufacturer press kits we hold (27 Sep 2026): wheelbase agreed within 1% on every vehicle we could compare, length on 98%, and the curb weight fell inside the manufacturer's range on 96%. Source dataset. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Licence.
Factory warranty running out?
The 2016 Audi SQ5 is in the years where transmission, electronics and drivetrain repairs land on the owner. What an extended plan does and does not cover is worth reading before a dealer quotes you one.
What to check before you buy →Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
Recalls (0)
Source: NHTSA recall databaseNo NHTSA recall campaigns are on file for the 2016 Audi SQ5. New campaigns appear here within a week of NHTSA posting them.
These are vehicle campaigns — the ones the automaker filed against this model. NHTSA also records equipment recalls, filed by a parts maker against a component (a tyre, a child seat, an aftermarket part), and those are not listed here or counted above. nhtsa.gov/recalls shows both for a VIN.
Hear about a recall before the letter does
The manufacturer’s letter is the last step of a recall: it has up to 60 days after filing to mail owners, at the address on the registration. We email you the day NHTSA posts a recall on the 2016 Audi SQ5, with what to do next. Nothing else, ever — no newsletter, no marketing, one-click unsubscribe in every message.
Parts & accessories for the 2016 Audi SQ5
Search by fitment on eBay Motors — OEM take-offs, aftermarket, and the trim pieces dealers no longer stock. The listing and the price are the seller's.
Find parts for this SQ5 →Owner complaints
Source: NHTSA complaint database0 involved a crash · 0 a fire · 0 injuries · 0 deaths reported
Filed per year: 2016: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2021: 2
Most-cited components
In owners' own words
Filed with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, one per problem area. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed.
Steering intermediate shaft is a known defect on every mlb-platform Audi model. My Sq5, like thousands of others, has developed a known defect that causes a squeaking/creaking that can be felt in the steering wheel when turning the wheel. It can also be faintly heard.
The original engine water pump failed at 18,313 miles on may 12, 2019. The replaced engine water pump has failed again at 24,700 miles on april 25. 2021. This is completely unacceptable and unsafe
The contact owns a 2016 Audi Sq5. The contact stated that the size and placement of the driver and passenger side mirrors caused a blind spot when making turns. The contact also stated that due to the failure, he nearly crashed into a pedestrian.
The Audi sq 5 loses power steering if the rack/pinion power steering unit is exposed to water. This does not refer to flooding or submerged car Audi considers weather an outside influence and does not honor the warranty the car retains full propulsion but is impossible to steer the electrical mechanism on the power steering is…
Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.
Crash ratings
Source: NHTSA NCAP| Configuration | Overall | Frontal | Side | Rollover | Rollover risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUV AWD | ★★★★☆ | ★★★★☆ | ★★★★★ | ★★★★☆ | 15% |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.
Service bulletins & campaigns
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communicationsMost often about: Equipment, Electrical System, Unknown Or Other, Engine, Structure.
- TSB_2083409_1 Service bulletin2026-09-25 · Unknown Or Other
- This bulletin states that technicians are required to report to the manufacturer when a vehicle has flooded, and specify the height to which the vehicle has been flooded.
- TSB_2052680_2 Service bulletin2026-09-25 · Unknown Or Other
- This bulletin provides information for reporting safety related information to the manufacturer.
- TSB_2074846_5 Service bulletin2026-09-22 · Steering
- This bulletin provides information about vibrations and rotational steering vibrations.
- TSB_2020552_15 Service bulletin2026-09-22 · Visibility/Wiper
- This bulletin provides service information regarding exterior glass cleaning.
- TSB_2030471_9 Service bulletin2026-09-15 · Unknown Or Other
- This bulletin provides information when the license plate mounting bracket threded inserts are stripped.
- TSB_2068999_5 Service bulletin2026-09-08 · Structure — Body
- This TSB describes a corrosion issue due to outside influence and the prohibition of warranty in these cases.
- TSB_2051095_12 Service bulletin2026-09-08 · Unknown Or Other
- This bulletin provides infomraiton abou the Audi frequency analysis application, which is available in the App Store for Android and Apple phones.
- TSB_2074436_3 Service bulletin2026-08-26 · Unknown Or Other
- This bulletin provides information when the horn sound quality is poor.
A service bulletin is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a known condition. It is not a recall, not a finding that the vehicle is defective, and the work is not automatically free — though a bulletin is often what a dealer works from when you describe a symptom, so quoting the document number can save a diagnosis. The count is every communication filed; the list shows the most recent, one entry per campaign, because a single campaign is usually filed as several documents on the same day. The summaries are NHTSA's; the full documents come from the manufacturer.
Common questions about the 2016 SQ5
Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kitsDoes the 2016 Audi SQ5 have any recalls?
No NHTSA recall campaigns are on file for the 2016 Audi SQ5. New campaigns appear here within a week of NHTSA posting them, and a clean sheet on a recent model year often just means the vehicle is new.
How safe is the 2016 Audi SQ5?
NHTSA gave the 2016 Audi SQ5 4 stars overall in its New Car Assessment Program tests — 4-star frontal crash, 5-star side crash, 4-star rollover. WhichTrim also grades it A (100/100) on its recall record, which is a different question from crash protection.
What is the fuel economy of the 2016 Audi SQ5?
For the 2016 Audi SQ5, the best EPA combined figure is 19 mpg. Figures are the EPA's own, per configuration, and every one is listed above.
What are the dimensions of the 2016 Audi SQ5?
Transport Canada measured it at 182.3 in long, 74.8 in wide (body, without mirrors), 65.4 in tall, on a 110.6 in wheelbase. Curb weight: 4,409 lb. Those are its measurements of the North American versions; every figure is in the table above.
What do owners complain about on the 2016 Audi SQ5?
Owners have filed 6 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Audi SQ5, most often about unspecified, steering, visibility/wiper. Complaints are unverified owner reports, so treat the pattern as a signal and the individual report as an anecdote.
How clean is the 2016 Audi SQ5?
The EPA smog rating for the 2016 Audi SQ5 runs 5 to 6 out of 10 across its configurations. That score covers tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, and it only compares vehicles within the same model year. It is certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S. Its configurations were certified to different standards — Bin 5, LEV-II ULEV — which the table above lists per configuration.
Are there service bulletins for the 2016 Audi SQ5?
The manufacturer has filed 384 service bulletins and related communications with NHTSA for the 2016 Audi SQ5, most often covering equipment, electrical system, unknown or other. The most recent is dated 2026-09-25. A bulletin is not a recall: it is the repair procedure a manufacturer sends its dealers for a condition it knows about, and the work is not automatically paid for. It is still worth knowing — if the symptom matches, quoting the bulletin number at the service desk can save a diagnosis. The document numbers and summaries are listed above.
What we hold, and what an empty row means
Paid vehicle-history reports will not tell you the difference between “nothing happened to this car” and “we never received that record” — both of the big two say as much in their own help pages. Most of what is on this page comes from complete federal registers, so we can tell you which is which, row by row.
| Data | Held | Source | What it covers — or what empty means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel economy & configurations | 1 configurations | EPA certification records | Every configuration the EPA certified for sale, with its own test figures. |
| Emission certificates | 1 configurations | EPA emission certificates | Smog rating, standard and the sales area that decides where the car can be sold new. |
| Recalls | none | NHTSA recall campaigns | No campaign has been filed. Because the register is complete, an empty row here means there is nothing to find — not that we are missing it. |
| Owner complaints | 6 | NHTSA complaint database | Also complete, but unverified: these are reports owners filed, not findings. Counts scale with how many were sold. |
| Crash ratings | 1 tested | NHTSA NCAP | Only the configurations NHTSA chose to crash-test, which is never all of them. |
| Service bulletins | 384 | NHTSA manufacturer communications | Everything the manufacturer told its dealers about a defect or malfunction, short of a recall. |
| Investigations | none | NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation | No defect investigation has been opened. |
| Driver-assist crash reports | none | NHTSA Standing General Order 2021-01 | No report has been filed. Only entities named in the order report, and only crashes they hear of — so this is also what an unequipped car, or a manufacturer without telematics, looks like. |
| Specifications filed with NHTSA | 9 fields | NHTSA vPIC, decoded from VIN patterns | What the manufacturer filed under the federal VIN rule — a configuration, not the full trim ladder. |
| Measured dimensions | 7 fields | Transport Canada, Canadian Vehicle Specifications | Length, width, height, wheelbase, track and curb weight, measured on the North American versions. |
| Trims, pricing & equipment | none | Manufacturer press kit | We have not transcribed a press kit for this model year yet. This is our gap, not the manufacturer's — the one row here where an empty cell means we are behind. |
Rebuilt nightly; this page was generated 2026-10-26. Every figure above is traceable to the source named beside it, and the JSON for this page carries the same values with their identifiers.
Sources & method
Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). The most serious recall counts in full and each further one counts 85% of the one before, because a vehicle sold in millions is recalled more often than a rare one without being more dangerous — and because a flat subtraction bottomed the scale out, scoring a vehicle with 22 recalls within a point of one with six. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Read it as what it counts: recall campaigns on the federal record, weighted by severity. The damping reduces the sales bias by roughly 40% but does not remove it: like our complaint counts, this is not normalized by how many were sold, so a best-seller still scores somewhat worse than an obscure model with the same real risk. NHTSA crash ratings, do-not-drive and park-outside advisories, and the crash, fire, injury and death counts in owner complaints are reported separately on every page and never blended into the letter — a vehicle can hold five stars and a poor letter at once, and where that happens we say so rather than leave you to notice. Because the scale subtracts from a clean sheet, a model year too new to have been recalled, complained about or bulletined scores full marks on an empty record; we label those grades provisional rather than present them as earned.
EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed nightly.