► Seven-seat performance SUV tested
► Receives the smallest of updates for 2025
► But has enough changed?
It’s now 10 years since the second-generation Audi Q7 was revealed, but it must be said that time has been kind to this large SUV.
Audi, the master of the smallest of nip-and tuck facelifts, is now back with a second refresh for the Q7 to help tide it over until the third-generation model FINALLY arrives in 2026 – and here we’re trying it inthe sportiest SQ7 flavour.
The SQ7 has had a slightly convoluted life. Launched in 2016 with a brilliant V8 diesel engine, Audi then facelifted for the first time in 2019 and then a year later swapped diesel power for a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol so that it could shift some SQ7s in America.
But is a small update enough to keep the SQ7 in contention as a credible performance SUV?
At a glance
Pros: Great engine, so comfortable, massive interior
Cons: Bit of a lazy update, big fuel bills, tech starting to feel a bit old
What’s new?
Good question. I had to read the press release as I really wasn’t sure. It turns out the answer is very little has changed.
There’s a slight redesign of the front and rear bumpers and a new pattern for the HUGE grille. In typical Audi fashion, there are fancy new lights on top-spec versions, with digital OLED lighting allowing you to choose between four daytime running signatures. I’m not sure why, either, but you can now have your SQ7 painted in ‘Sahkir Gold’ (picture from Audi’s configurator) if you crave some massive depreciation.
Another small change is third-party apps being integrated into the main infotainment system for the first time, such as Spotify and Amazon Music, while the digital instrument cluster has had a small redesign.
What are the specs?
Left unchanged is the SQ7’s brilliant 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine, which you find in various guises in models from Bentley, Porsche and Lamborghini. It’s a (very) mild hybrid too, meaning no plugs are needed here, unlike the latest Urus…
The TFSI engine puts out 500bhp and 658lb ft of torque (down 100bhp and 30lb ft compared to an Audi RSQ8), allowing a 0-60mph sprint of 4.1 seconds and a top speed limited to 155mph.
Audi claims just 23.3mpg, which should be quite achievable, if down on the 30mpg possible from the old diesel SQ7. You’ll get less than 20mpg pootling around town, but high 20s are possible on a longer motorway run.
What’s it like to drive?
The burly petrol V8 noise remains the highlight; it’s deep and muscular, burbling away at low revs. Poke the bear that lies within in faster roads and it growls, barks and even clears its throat with pops n’ bangs on downshifts, making the experience that little more exciting than before. The exhaust is also amusingly vocal each time you start it up. Best hope you live some distance from your neighbours.
The petrol V8 is more than 100kg lighter than the old diesel engine, and it’s certainly not slow. You have to be at slightly higher revs than the diesel for the torque, but it’s still readily available from just 2000rpm. Traction is impressive even in poor conditions and the eight-speed Tiptronic is generally excellent, if occasionally hesitant when pulling away from a standstill or at low speeds.
Useful all-wheel steering is standard on all SQ7s but you need the Vorsprung trim to get the clever 48-volt anti-roll bar. This test car does without it, and does lean more as a result, but the SQ7 is more of an everyday family car than a stiffer and less rolly RSQ8.
The SQ7’s best talent is its ride quality. Adaptive air suspension is standard and the damping in its two softest settings is remarkable, even on large 22-inch alloys (the only size you can get these days). If you have it in the softest mode, the front of the car lifts like a speedboat if you boot it, though a firmer suspension setting levels things out. I, oddly, quite enjoy the sensation that comes with the front lifting though passengers might not be quite so pleased.
But the SQ7 feels so big and comfortable that its capability when pushed harder is a genuine surprise. Just watch its sheer size, the SQ7 is a big car and can make you wince somewhat if on narrower country lanes or tight city streets, though standard 360-degree cameras help.
What’s the interior like?
Massive. The Q7 remains Audi’s largest SUV at a similar size to a standard-wheelbase Range Rover. It also remains the only Audi you can have with seven seats. That space is put to great use, though, with vast amounts of space in the second row, which each have individually tilting and sliding seats. Access to the third row is done by the middle chairs tumbling over – it reminds me of a Land Rover Discovery 4. It’s a bit old-school but still an effective way into the back, and space in the third row is adequate for adults on shorter distances. Space is similar to a Volvo XC90 but not as accommodating as the rear row in a BMW X7.
An SQ7’s boot is slightly smaller than that of a regular Audi Q7, with the usual underfloor space taken up by its S differential, but the space above is identical and it is absolutely vast. Even with all seats upright there’s space for two suitcases and the 617-litre boot volume with five seats upright is much bigger than the numbers suggest – I carried a chest of draws in the boot and could still have five seats up. Impressive.
The rest of the SQ7’s interior is starting to feel its age, though. The quality remains impressive – and the leather sports seats are excellent – but the tech lags behind that of a Mercedes GLE or BMW X7. I’ve never been a fan of the twin-screen touchscreen system (one for infotainment, another for climate) and it remains annoying at times. And, quite ridiculously, the 10.1-inch touchscreen looks tiny in the Q7’s vast interior these days.
Before you buy
Audi binned off the standard ‘SQ7’ trim level for this latest update, leaving a choice of Black Edition and Vorsprung. Prices start from a steep £94,730 for the former and a steep £114,080 for the latter. No SQ7 is cheap, but it’s worth looking at what a similarly-specced Porsche Cayenne or Bentley Bentayga would cost you. Hint, it’s a lot more.
Standard equipment is generally excellent, including a Bang & Olufsen sound system, head-up display and full leather upholstery. But the fact you have to pay extra for adaptive cruise control on a £100,000 SUV when it’s standard on a £22,000 Volkswagen Polo annoys me. While the Vorsprung might cost nearly £20,000 more, you do get all sorts of extra kit, including the fancy digital lighting, soft-closing doors, ventilated and massing features and an electric steering column.
As for other seven-seat performance SUV, the choice is surprisingly limited. Other alternatives are the BMW X7 in M60 V8 guise or a six-cylinder Mercedes-AMG GLE 53.
Verdict: Audi SQ7
Even almost a decade on the Audi SQ7 is as large, imperious, well-built and practical as it’s ever been, and time has generally been very kind to it. Perhaps with the exception of a slightly older-feeling interior, and, yes, Audi could have probably done a bit more with this second facelift.
But that can’t take away from what a talented SUV the SQ7 remains. From its outstanding comfort to its brutish V8, it’s a car that’s able to do it all, and remains one of Audi’s best cars even all these years later.