While the diesel can be noisy under strain, the Audi settles into a motorway cruise where the initial low-speed engine grumble almost completely dissipates, with wind and road noise also being kept at bay.
The brakes, meanwhile, are phenomenal, with massive 400mm discs up front and six-piston calipers. Stopping power is a given considering their size, but the travel in the pedal is very well calibrated.
Mild-hybrid tech brings a tiny efficiency boost, but the PHEV is yet to arrive
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You might think that with extra electrification the current Audi Q7 would be far more economical than the old one. And the good news is that it pumps out less in the way of CO2 emissions than before at 206g/km compared to 217g/km. However, the efficiency gains are marginal on paper at up to 36.6mpg on the WLTP combined cycle, as opposed to 35.6mpg for the old 282bhp TDI V6.
In the real world we found those figures to be even closer still, as around town we were lucky to get over 30mpg, with stretches of motorway and B-road increasing this to the mid-30s. The facelifted Mercedes GLE in 286bhp 350d diesel form beats the Audi only slightly when it comes to efficiency and emissions, claiming 37.7mpg and 197g/km, respectively.
If economy is super important to you, then it might be worth holding out for the Q7 plug-in hybrid. We know it’ll get the same system as the Audi A6 PHEV, meaning a battery capacity of 25.8kWh and an electric range of around 60 miles. Alternatively, you may wish to look towards the fully electric Audi Q6 e-tron instead, as that’ll be the cheapest to run by quite a long way.
| Model | MPG | CO2 | Insurance group |
| Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro S Line | 38.2mpg | 194g/km | 49 |
| Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro Edition 1 | 36.7mpg | 203g/km | 49 |
| Audi Q7 3.0 TDI Vorsprung | 36.2mpg | 206g/km | 50 |
Insurance groups
The Audi Q7 is a very large SUV from a premium brand, so we doubt there will be too many audible gasps when we say that it finds itself between insurance groups 49 and 50 (out of 50). What might come as more of a surprise, though, is that the BMW X5 could potentially save you a pretty penny here, as it can go as low as group 43. That being said, the fanciest models also wind up in group 50, so be careful.
Tax
It might have received an element of electrification, but the Q7’s CO2 emissions mean it’ll still attract a sizable VED road tax bill. The luxury car tax bracket is well and truly crossed, too, so you’re looking at an additional £440 on top of that bill between the second and sixth years of ownership.
Depreciation
Unfortunately, it’s not just the tax and insurance that’ll pack a punch, as the Audi Q7 is also pretty susceptible to the wrath of depreciation. Our market data shows that it’ll retain between 41 and 43 per cent after three years or 36,000 miles.
