It’s on the winding roads that run alongside the view of the Island of Elba that we went to see up close, touch, try and taste new Q7, mega SUV that is actually Audi had already been officially presented a few months ago but which we will now find in dealerships at a price which, having to start from the bottom, starts from 77,000 plus change (read optional). First question: is it worth it? Yes sir, it’s worth it because first and foremost it’s an Audi, and that still means something. In the era of the massive invasion of (very respectable) Asian brands, the house with the four rings perseveres, carrying forward a reputation earned through years of commitment and whose results, behind the wheel of the Sport Utility, can be seen right up to the last corner. Inter alia the Q7 – progenitor of the Audi SUVs and whose first generation dates back to 2006 – is the flagship of the Q family, which also includes the Q3 and Q5 (the best-selling Audi in the world) in its range. All cars that represent a flagship for the brand in Italy, considering the sales volumes displayed with sacrosanct pride: “37 thousand cars delivered in Italy in 2023 and a mix of 55% of total sales, a success reiterated in the first five months of 2024 and underlined by the share of registrations that has almost doubled in just under 10 years”.
New Audi Q7: technology and engines
Driving the new Q7 it is impossible not to appreciate the qualities of a giant who despite can reach weigh up to 2460 kgshows off an unsuspected agility both in a straight line and in curves. The credit must be democratically assigned to two factors: on the one hand to the strictly technical structure, that is to say the adaptive air suspension thanks to which the car’s height from the ground can be varied by up to 90 mm, to the integral steering which also acts on the rear wheels and finally to active anti-roll stabilization included in the Advanced Chassis package. From the other to one range of TDI and TFSI MHEV 48V engines combined with plug-in petrol technology available in two power steps, as well as the sporty SQ7 TFSI variant equipped with the powerful 507 HP 4.0 biturbo V8. The diesel engines and the TFSI unit share the fractionation (6 cylinders), the V-shaped architecture, the 3-litre volume and the 48 Volt mild-hybrid technology, capable of reducing consumption by up to 0.5 liters every 100 km. In the case of the Q7 45 TDI, the 3.0 TDI delivers 231 HP, while the most powerful version of the V6 TDI, the one with 286 HP, is reserved for the Q7 50 TDI. The 3.0 turbo petrol engine featured in the Q7 55 TFSI delivers an impressive 340 HP.
New Audi Q7: the plug-in variants
As regards the plug-in variants, the 340 HP V6 3.0 TFSI thermal engine is joined by a synchronous electric motor (PSM) and a new lithium ion battery with a greater capacity (22 kWh net instead of the previous 14.4 kWh ) with evolved chemistry, energy density and cell arrangement. Upgrades that translate into an electric range of up to 84 kilometers WLTP, 70% higher than in the past, and in significant increases in power. The 55 TFSI version stands at 394 HP (13 HP more than the previous model), while the top of the range 60 TFSI can even rely on 490 HP, 28 more than before. All the engines in the range also work in combination with quattro permanent all-wheel drive with self-locking center differential and the eight-speed tiptronic automatic transmission of the torque converter type.
New Audi Q7: up to Napoleon’s house
But you don’t live by power alone. Despite one length of 5.06 meters and a width of 1.97 which we had to deal with when climbing into the narrow streets of Elba for a dutiful visit visit to the Palazzina dei Mulini – where Napoleon Bonaparte lived from 1814 to 1815 in his first exile (among the many things he did, the Corsican general rearranged the sewers and roads of the island…) – despite this the Q7 showed a familiarity in dealing with narrow spaces that we didn’t expect. All protected in a cockpit where comfort and rationality reign, also because in this new version the standard equipment includes starting from the entry variant the electric adjustment of the front seats, the leather/imitation leather upholstery and, in the case of the S line edition variant, the heated front seats, the comfort key and the diffused lighting plus package. Starting from the intermediate Business Advanced trim level, the Audi smartphone interface with the App Store, the Audi phone box light for inductive smartphone charging and the third row of seats are standard equipment. Obviously there is no shortage driving assistance systems: the Audi virtual cockpit with Full HD resolution reports a wide set of information ranging from lane change warning to the presence of other road users (trucks, cars and motorbikes), from the safety distance to intersection assistance up to to online traffic light information.
New Audi Q7: prices
Loading the car for the holidays with wife, husband, children, suitcases, umbrella, deckchair, cat basket, canary cage it’s easy: the trunk of the five-seater variants boast a varying load capacity from 867 to 1,993 litres, while the aforementioned standard equipment is accompanied by various customization possibilities ranging from 9 decorative inserts, new metallic colours, a range of wheels from 20 to 22 inches and, above all, the integration of the App Store into the vehicle thanks to which you can directly access the most popular third-party applications (for example Spotify or Amazon music) through the MMI multimedia interface. How much does all this cost blessed God? We first mentioned the 77,000 euros for the entry versionbut just go on plug-in versions to reach 82,900 and definitively close the game at 112,250 euros with the SQ7 TFSI.
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