New Audi Q7 India review, test drive

Captains of industry, film stars and page 3 personalities take note. Audi is ready to launch the replacement for your beloved Q7. Yes, finally. I’ll get into real-world impressions in a bit, but going by Audi’s tall claims, this all-new Q7 should be quite different from the one you rolled onto the red carpet last Saturday. This one promises to be faster, quieter, more efficient, more luxurious and more engaging to drive. Not that you or fellow Q7 owners didn’t like the old one for what it was. Far from it. Demand for the original Q7 was so strong even a decade after launch, Audi was in no tearing hurry to bring out this new one.

In the months to come, you’ll read our comprehensive report of living with a Q7 over an epic 17,000km road journey from the Audi headquarters in Ingolstadt, Germany to India. But for now, here’s our first impression of Audi’s latest celeb-mobile right from verdant Maharashtra.

Curtain raiser

Before you proceed any further, have a good look at the photos. The new Q7 looks a bit smaller than what you remember of the original, right? Strictly going by the dimensions, it is. But the new Q7 doesn’t look smaller so much for its 37mm shorter length, 15mm narrower width and 3mm lower height as it does for its more chiselled form. Unlike the original, there are no volume-enhancing bloated surfaces here. Instead, the body is all tight skinning and crisp lines. The Q7’s new form has actually been the topic of many lunchtime debates at office and unfortunately, even seeing this Argus Brown example in the flesh didn’t help bring us to consensus. To some, the new Q7 appears lean and athletic, to others, it lacks the visual mass that was central to the previous Q7’s appeal. Think Ranbir Kapoor standing next to Dara Singh and you’ll get the difference.

Still, there’s no taking away from the fact that the Q7 looks sharp and very modern. Elements like the flat bonnet, single-frame grille and superbly detailed Matrix LED-equipped headlights, in particular, work really well together. Other things that leave an impression include the right-sized wheel arches and the belt line that elegantly splits up at the rear doors. The angular tail is neat in its own right but the rake of the rear windscreen is perhaps a touch more station wagon than SUV.

Interestingly, the new Q7’s body not only looks leaner but is actually leaner too. Audi claims to have shaved 71kg off the body alone by using a mix of materials. The Q7 is also the first model to be made on VW Group’s new MLB 2 platform, itself lighter than the old Q7’s chassis by a full 100kg. Model-to-model, Audi claims the new Q7 weighs a full 300kg less than its predecessor!