The Audi Q7 is a very big vehicle some 16ft 8ins long, 6ft 6ins wide, 5ft 7ins high with a long wheelbase measuring 9 ft 10ins. It weighs in at around 2,300kgs or 2.3 tonnes and it will tow in the region of 3.2 tonnes braked trailer weight.Size matters it appears in this executive SUV segment and vehicles don’t come anymore substantial than the Q7. It is a mix of SUV and MPV due to its quattro 4x4 system and seven-seat layout.
In the region of 1,300 UK customers have ordered and paid their deposits for Audi’s new Q7 without seeing or even trying the vehicle. The luxury seven-seat Q7 Sports Utility Vehicle is Audi’s first ever SUV. One of its competitors will be Audi’s own new and marginally cheaper A6 Avant Allroad which goes on sale this summer.
Priced from £37,330 to £48,625, the Q7 SUV is already available to order but deliveries will not start to UK customers until July. Around 3,500 vehicles will be available for UK customers this year, 5,000 in 2007 and a peak of 5,400 in 2008.
Audi UK says the Q7 will sell in the premium SUV sales segment, which has grown from 747 sales in 1998 to approximately 33,000 units last year. Competitors are seen as the BMW X5, Lexus RX, Mercedes M-Class, Porsche Cayenne, Volvo XC90, VW Touareg and Range Rover Sport.
Five versions of the Q7 are available in the first phase of the introduction of the new range. These are powered by either a 4.2-litre FSI V8 petrol engine with 350PS and 440Nm of power and torque or a 3.0-litre V6 TDI turbodiesel unit with 233PS and 500Nm. A 3.6-litre V6 FSI petrol engine with 280PS and 360Nm of power and torque will be added to the range in October. All models have a 6-speed tiptronic transmission with quattro permanent four wheel drive with a 40:60 front/rear wheel torque spilt as standard. Seven seat configuration and variable height air suspension are standard across the range but the Q7 can be ordered with five or six seat configurations.
Depending upon which engine is chosen there are currently three levels of specification available, Standard SE and S line. Audi UK expects S line to account for 73 per cent of sales with 27 per cent of customers specifying SE trim and just 4 per cent taking the Standard level of specification. To date 90 per cent of advance order customers have also added the extra cost Technology Pack to their vehicles.
Audi UK say that on average in the premium SUV sector 72 per cent of customers are classified as private buyers, 67 per cent of owners choose diesel engines, 76 per cent want automatic transmission and 78 per cent are male customers. Their target buyers for the Q7 are company owners and entrepreneurs but users will include affluent housewives. Already Audi’s dedicated Q7 website has attracted 263,877 visitors so far this year.
Jeremy Hicks, Audi’s Brand Director, said this week that in 1996 Audi had just six model ranges in the UK. In 2006 this has grown to 16 model line-ups with the launch of the Q7.
He said, “Product is the bedrock of everything we do because as we expand our model range this in turn grows our sales. We do not over exploit sales of just a few models, new models gives us the opportunity to grow the brand overall. Introducing completely new and different models allows us to compete in sectors where we have previously not been represented.”
As I wrote earlier in this story Audi sees the Q7 as a premium SUV but realistically it is a large and luxurious people-carrier with their excellent all-wheel drive Quattro system. Whilst the Range Rover Sport is a true luxury off-roader and the Touareg, M-Class and X5 have reasonable on and off road capabilities the Quattro system is more suited to mud, ice and snow winter on-road driving with some off-road abilities for roads, tracks and field parking due to the four wheel drive and adjustable high ground clearance setting.
It is closer I think to the new luxury Mercedes R-Class MPV. I’m sure many will be used by executive families for their winter runs to the snow for skiing and for the rest of the year be used for the school run and family outings with boats and horse boxes attached.
The true size of the Q7 was felt this week during the Media’s first drive of the vehicle using left hand drive models on right hand drive British roads and lanes around Somerset and the narrow lanes of Devon and Dartmoor where it proved quite an obstacle for the local residents. Several of the Q7 test drive cars had their mirrors whacked by passing delivery vans and lorries; such is the size of this vehicle.
As big as it is the Q7 is extremely nimble thanks to the quattro 4x4 system which gives excellent on road adhesion and grip. The automatic air suspension limited body roll and the fore and after pitching of the vehicle exceptionally well. The steering is good and the front end adhesion during cornering is brilliant for a vehicle of this size. On the motorway cruising is effortless and very quiet.
The Q7 is filled with the latest handling and driver awareness technology support systems. I particularly found the camera assisted rear parking and the acoustic radar alert for the rear corner blind spots of really practical use bearing in mind how big this vehicle is.
The bonus of such a large vehicle is the interior space. It was primarily designed for the US market so interior space is massive. The three rows of seats are comfortable and access to the rear seats is good but the headroom for the rear row passengers is limited so it’s really for children only. The rear side opening doors are huge so access is very easy. However the front side doors are relatively narrow and with the restricted headroom due to the coupe body styling with its swept back A pillar the seats need to be in a low position to give unrestricted headroom for the front passengers. The B pillar is also quite wide and positioned forward so there is a side blind spot and the radar alert that a vehicle is overtaking came in very useful. You can specify the Q7 with two rows of seats which then gives a huge load area. You can also choose the six seat option where the middle row has just two seats and a central consol. If all but the front two seats arte folded you have a huge flat floor area with up to 2,035 litres of luggage space. However if all seven seats are in use like so many other MPVs the load area is just 330 litres, hardly enough for passenger luggage.
Audi are renowned for the design and quality of the interior of their vehicles and the Q7 is no exception. Everything you need is either standard or available as an option but as with all premium vehicles extras come at a hefty price. Still with the sort of customers Q7 will attract price is no obstacle. Its looks, specification, brand value and size will impress status conscious buyers. The drawback of course will be the message it sends out to other road users or the ‘moaning minnies’ who hate all 4x4s and big MPVs.
At this stage of limited engine options the 3.0-litre TDI turbodiesel engine is the choice power unit because of its flexibility and high torque. Top speed is 134mph with 0-62mph covered in 9.1 seconds and the fuel economy of 26.7mpg is reasonable. The 4.2-litre direct inject FSI V8 engine has more immediate get up and go and it is extremely smooth. It gives the Q7 a top speed of 155mph with 0-62mph covered in 7.4 seconds. Fuel economy is 20.6mpg but we returned around 18mpg for our driving around the Devon lanes and the M5 journey back to Bristol.
Bomb proof predicted residual values, better than the vast majority of its competitors, with demand likely to outstrip supply and the ‘must have’ factor for well off customers will mean a sales success I’m sure although some will think this vehicle is just too big for their everyday needs.
MILESTONES:Audi Q7 3.0 TDI S Line. Price:£40,730. Engine: 3.0-litre, V6, TDI direct injection common-rail turbodiesel, 233PS, 500Nm of torque from just 1,750rpm. Performance: 134mph, 0-62mph 9.1 seconds, CO2 282 g/km. Transmission: 6-speed tiptronic with quattro all-wheel drive.
For: Imposing road presence, luxury and versatile specification and interior layout, competitive pricing in its class, good driveability for its size, a technology icon. Against: Overall size for the UK market, limited rear row headroom, narrow door opening for front seat passengers.
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