Even without the financial sweetener, patient owners will probably take the view that late is better than never. This car’s torque-rich all-wheel-drive powertrain is so unobtrusively supple that it’s as though the entire thing – electric motor upstream of an eight-speed torque-converter gearbox, 3.0-litre V6 TDI up front – uses only a handful of moving parts. Along with the solemn chic of the interior, on crowded British roads the Q7 e-tron (equipped here with optional adaptive air suspension) delivers a cut-crystal tranquillity that will recalibrate your notion of refinement in the SUV segment.
The engine’s active mounts are partly to thank for this and use coil actuators to offset the tremors of internal combustion. The unit itself flexes an effortless 443lb ft from just 1250rpm. Along with the electric motor, the e-tron delivers a total 516lb ft. Apart from the brakes, which grab at low speeds because of the disjointed handover from regenerative braking to the real, hydraulic thing, this dual-source set-up is a graceful companion to the daily grind.
The Q7 e-tron usually starts in electric mode, the eerily distant engine only firing (with but a whimper) once the throttle pedal has been squeezed past a variable point of resistance in its travel. You may find this feature irritating, but if you’re at all interested in what this car is capable of, you’ll let it be your guide. The same applies to the car’s ‘predictive efficiency assistant’, which uses sat-nav data and active cruise control to determine the most effective division of labour between hydrocarbons and electrons.
At five metres long and 2445kg (375kg of which is e-tron hardware, and 202kg of that is attributable to the battery pack), to pretend this Q7 is nothing other than a tank would be disingenuous. And yet the heavily assisted but direct steering combined with the car’s electric surge means it never feels clumsy in town, where the optional adaptive air suspension almost makes speed bumps disappear. London’s rush hour, meanwhile – an environment many of these Congestion Charge-exempt cars will confront – yielded an electrical economy that equates to a range of 32 miles given the 17.3kWh capacity of the battery pack, which roughly aligns with the 35 miles Audi quotes.
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Overdrive
2.5 tonnes? Bloody hell!
2.5 tonnes? Bloody hell!
Zero appeal to me. If you must have a Q7, go for the base petrol, at least until such time when the elertic/hybrid versions can be had with far less weight and better ranges.
Campervan
Petrol version
if you want a petrol Audi Q7 you are out of luck there is currently no such thing at least in the UK.
You have a choice of a 218hp and 272hp V6 3.0 litre diesel and the SQ7 with the 4.0 litre 418 hp V8 diesel plus this diesel hybrid. Nobody buys petrol SUV's anymore they are simply unaffordable in fuel costs in the UK
scrap
Diesel hybrid is ok for heavy
Diesel hybrid is ok for heavy commercial vehicles but a terrible idea for cars. Too much weight and complexity.
ianp55
Flawed??
It's very heavy having that 200kg battery pack can't help plus having a hefty V6 diesel at thr front is required to balence it up,this sort of power train is perhaps better suited to a railway locomotive rather than a family car. Flawed is not the word I would use to describe this latest offering from Audi, I'd use two words,seriously misconceived, what is the point of using plug in technology with a massive diesel engine?. I'm really not sure of the type of customer who'se going to stump up a minimum of £66:5k (plus options on top) for this type of car, I'd think that Audi UK must have some special PCP or heavy discounts to move this mass of metal out of their show rooms
The Apprentice
Autocar reader are the wrong
Autocar reader are the wrong type of target buyer to understand this. A senior manager/company owner, a higher rate tax payer, gets all his fuel paid so MPG irrelevent. Has a lot of meetings inside the congestion zone. Car fully company funded on lease so price not much of an issue either. With this he gets to pay out 6 grand less company car tax per year and once registered doesn't have to remember to pay congestion charges. Of course no one else would want it. Horses for courses.
Thekrankis
Probably the only Chelsea Tractor...
...which is more vulgar than a blinged up Range Rover.
The epitome of bad "look at me I am a footballer " taste
adrian888
Works for me
the electric range gets me to work, the diesel torque tows my caravan across Europe so just about the only hybrid that works for me. I will admit i am biased as an Audi fan of over 35 years of owning the marques products, however unless in this anti diesel world of car sales there is a PCP at £250/month in the real world it is way above my budget for a car!
typos1
They really should ahve used
They really should ahve used the 2 litre BiTDi engine for this. But contrary to what some have said a diesel hybrid is a far, far better idea than a petrol one.
Einarbb
Diesel hybrid inevitably is the more expensive option
Undoubtedly why petrol hibrid is the norm.
Einarbb
Diesel hybrid inevitably is the more expensive option
Undoubtedly why petrol hibrid is the norm.
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