THE competition between BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi - not only to fill every market niche from little more than $30K through to $400K, but to invent new ones - continues to get fiercer. , But Audi, in its bid to become the number one German prestige car manufacturer, goes to the strangest extremes. It starts lowest with the A1 and finishes with arguably the most exciting, the R8. , Neither of these is puzzling, but the A5 Sportback will doubtless perplex some customers. Audi claims the Sportback blends the traits of a coupe, sedan and wagon, but the car amounts to an A5 coupe with two extra doors and plenty of A4 underpinnings., Except, of course, that it is much dearer than an A4 and it is a – dare we say the word – hatchback. , The A5 Sportback 2.0 TFSI Quattro, with its dual-clutch automated manual transmission, has a list price of $80,314. You pay a lot for the fifth door, new name but essentially the same level of standard equipment, given a same-spec A4 costs $72,414. , Audi Australia obviously hopes that the image-savvy buyer who thinks the latter figure is a bit high for an A4 might see the A5 as sufficiently upmarket to justify the $8900 premium after all, it’s 20 per cent more badge.