Gnil, i took the Diesel 272PS and i must say i am very happy with it and would recommend it.

I thought about the TFSi briefly because of the Dieselgate problems but as the Q7 in Europe is not touched by it this is not an issue anymore.  Additionally the TFSI costs Fr 4000 more than the Diesel which is certainly the more expensive engine to produce, that means the margin for Audi must be enourmous on that engine. Last but not least i would have considered the fuel version if they had put the new 3.0 biturbo powerplant into the Q7 as they did with the new S4. But they didnt, so i dont see why one should pay extra money for a good but thirsty and old engine.  

On the positive side of the Diesel i have to add that the throttle response in this version is really excellent! And i say this coming from the Audi Biturbo tdi (313ps). and the x6 40d (306ps biturbo). Both those engines had a much sloppier throttle response than the Q7! The bad throttle response is the single most unnerving feature of a Diesel engine in my opinion. Consumption is good at an average of about 9.5 liters.

so what are the downsides of the Diesel?

1. lack of sound! I mean we will have to get used to electric engines but as long as there is some fire under the bonnet it would be nice to hear that! The Audi biturbo had a great sound synthesizer that really gave it a bit of a V8 baritone (or almost). At least you could drive just listening to the engine, with the new one it is so silent its almost ridiculous. I know there are some aftermarket options but they are not MfK conform, which disturbs me.  I hope Audi will offer something in that direction soon. 

2. At high revs its limited, so a second or third turbo would be great. ABT offers a tuning to 335 hp but i am afraid that might kill the great throttle response. Solution? go for the SQ7, order books should open in march and that will certainly be a bombshell if what is being speculated is true..👍 (4.0 V8, 430 PS)


--

turbolite