Designer Juan Carlos Huerta Martinez explains the design elements of the all-new Audi SQ5 Sportback – creating a distinctive new model while remaining true to the original concept.

13 May, 2025


Designing a new generation of a revered model is not a task taken lightly by the design team at Audi. When the model in question is the Sportback version of the Audi Q5 – the brand’s most successful SUV model ever – the pressure is significant, but with the new Q5 and SQ5 Sportback, the mission has been successful.

As Audi designer Juan Carlos Huerta Martinez explains, the new model – the second generation of the Sportback in the Q5 ranks – had to be an evolution as opposed to a revolution. After all, the  original Q5 Sportback is a beautiful vehicle that perfectly performs its function, so the new model had to remain sympathetic to its origins and build on that legacy.

So even at a glance it is obviously an Audi and the ‘family likeness’ to the existing SQ5 Sportback is likewise unmistakable – but the new model has its own distinctive look.

The results speak for themselves and will no doubt strike a chord with Australian customers when it arrives in Australia towards the end of 2025.