2010 Audi Q7: 1st Drive

  • Aug 20, 2009
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Audi's Q7 gets a mid-life facelift but as Adil Jal Darukhanawala reflects after his first drive in the best-selling Audi SUV, it yet has that all-encompassing awe, performance and presence of the original.

You can't beat it for presence - its sheer size is daunting in the flesh, especially when you figure out its 5089mm length, 2177mm width and 765mm height (ups to 836mm when the ride height is set to maximum). Get that weight measure out of the way as well, for unladen this huge momma of an SUV tips the scales at 2035 kilos and it yet has the capacity to swallow seven homo sapiens.

Yes the Audi Q7 seems to be all excess and probably the reason why many look at SUVs with a jaundiced eye yet are not averse to secretly lusting for one themselves! However let me say that from a machinery point of view, cars like the Q7 are at the cutting edge of the automotive business and this edge has been further sharpened to cut many a nay sayer to size. The latest iteration of the Q7 proves this in some measure: it has the same large 2967cc dohc 24-valve turbocharged V6 engine for India but it is now not just more powerful and torquey but it is also even more cleaner and has better fuel efficiency to deny SUV-bashers a leg to trample on it, that is if they are brave enough to stand in front of this butch beauty.

First off let's get one detail out of the way: are there really any new pointers on the style front to distinguish this Q7 from its predecessor? Well if there are they are so subtle that you would miss them. However the LED daytime running lights are a neat touch while the large single-frame grille features vertical chrome slats to contrast with the high gloss dark finish. Subtle or brash, there is a happy blurring of these traits on the new Q7. The biggest aspect of the new Q7 is the technology that Audi has further wrought into its flagship SUV. While Europe and other markets get more powerful Q7 derivatives, the 3.0-litre V6 TDI for India is now even more refined and packs an iron punch in a velvet fist. Bludgeoning efficiency was never so smoothly and subtly delivered and in this case the Q7 manages to out snare its rivals easily. No other car boggles the mind with figures as does the Q7 and so engine performance figures have to be brought into play yet again. It is not the 240 Ingolstadt horses (all on full gallop in the 4000 - 4400rpm band) which is of the essence but rather pride of place in the thumping stakes goes to the 550Nm of torque which the quad cam turbocharged engine produces in the 2000 to 2500 rpm range. Not only is the gut wrenching torque laid out strong and thick be it on tarmac or out on the rough and the tumble, it is the seamless and silky power delivery which is awesome in its efficacy and pleasure.

No I didn't mean to infer that SUVistas are sadists out to abuse but the Q7 tempts its pilots to truly give this beast its head and once you do that the large and wide 255/55 R18 radials bite and hurl the vehicle forward at such a prodigious pace that you would have thought it was contravening the laws of physics. This is where Ingolstadt's famed Quattro all wheel drive moves in to keep everything not just under control but also without reducing traction and impeding forward motion.

There is a six-speed Tiptronic gearbox to let the torque waves flow across the rev range and what is mighty smile inducing is that this motor can be as docile as a Hero Honda while gliding through tight traffic infested streets. Give it a stretch of open road though and a stomp on the loud pedal gets it to literally rocket ahead with the pilot, ahem driver not even fazed by the punch which pins him to the seat back. The latest Q7 has one more techno goodie up its sleeve. Audi has equipped it with a brake energy recovery system wherein the energy that normally would be wasted under braking or when on the over-run is transformed into usable electrical energy by increasing the alternator voltage. This is then stored in the on-board electrical system's battery. Under acceleration, the required electrical energy is then drawn from the battery instead off the alternator as is prevalent convention. What this translates into is a reduction in CO2 emissions by up to 5 grams per kilometer and this is particularly effective not just in high speed driving but more importantly in the stop-and-go traffic scenarios where part throttle application is the norm rather than the exception.

It is of course not a big guzzler when you stack up its bulk, weight and performance. Audi claims the Q7 in the city mode can do 8.84kmpl while on the highway expect it to deliver 12.82kmpl! When you factor in its 100-litre tank, this gives the Q7 an awesome capability to drive from Mumbai to Delhi in a tankful!

Among all top end SUVs in the country, the Q7 is of course the best equipped and turned out, no doubts on this front at all. The sheer quality of the materials, craftsmanship, the ergonomics and the truly splendorous audio system makes the cabin an ocean of calm as you play your song with paddle shifters, steering wheel plus throttle and brake pedals as willing accompaniments. Shame therefore that it is even more capable off the road, an idea almost all owners would never even dream, let alone dare to explore and exploit!

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