Skip to main content

Lightweight construction allows Audi to offer the Q7 with a frugal turbo four

Audi Q7
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Audi went to great lengths to make the second-generation Q7 as light as possible. The weight shed allows the behemoth to receive a frugal four-cylinder engine for the first time.

The four-banger in question is a familiar 2.0-liter gasoline-burning unit that’s also found in a number of Volkswagen, Audi, and even Porsche models sold across the globe. In the Q7, it generates 252 horsepower from 5,000 to 6,000 rpm and 273 pound-feet of torque over a broad band that stretches from 1,600 to 4,500 rpm. Its power is transferred to all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Recommended Videos

Audi points out the Q7 2.0T is nearly 500 pounds lighter than the 3.0T version it replaces. Consequently, it takes half a second less to hit 60 mph from a stop. Official performance figures haven’t been published yet, but the Q7 3.0T performed the benchmark sprint in 7.7 seconds, so the new model should only take a little over seven seconds.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Fuel economy checks in at an EPA-estimated 22 mpg in a combined cycle, a 22-percent improvement over the old 3.0T model. In spite of its relatively small engine, the 2.0T is capable of towing up to 4,400 pounds when it’s equipped with the towing package that’s available at an extra cost.

Engine aside, the Q7 2.0T is identical to its more expensive sibling. It continues to offer space for seven passengers and a tech-focused cockpit. The list of options includes a digital instrument cluster called virtual cockpit in Audi-speak, navigation, and a Bose 3D sound system.

The 2017 Audi Q7 2.0T quattro will go on sale early next year with a base price of $49,000, while the better-equipped Premium Plus trim will cost $53,000 before a mandatory $950 destination charge is factored in. In comparison, buyers who order the Q7 with a 3.0-liter TFSI V6 engine need to write a check for $54,800.

Ronan Glon
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Ronan Glon is an American automotive and tech journalist based in southern France. As a long-time contributor to Digital…
Digital Trends’ Top Tech of CES 2025 Awards
Top Tech of CES

Las Vegas is overrun. Every billboard in town is shouting about AI, hotel bar tops now sport a sea of laptops, and after hours The Strip is elbow to elbow with engineers toting yard-long beers.

That means CES, the year’s biggest tech bacchanalia, has come to town, and Digital Trends editors have spent the last four days frolicking among next year’s crop of incredible TVs, computers, tablets, and EVs. We’re in heaven.

Read more
Sony and Honda’s Afeela 1 EV makes more sense at CES than in the real world
Afeela 1 front quarter view.

The Sony car is almost here. After its creation via a joint venture with Honda in 2022 and two years’ worth of prototypes, the electronics giant’s Afeela brand is finally taking reservations for its first electric vehicle, with deliveries scheduled to start in 2026.

But will it be worth the wait? Coinciding with the opening of reservations, Sony Honda Mobility brought updated prototypes of the Afeela 1 (as it’s now officially known) to CES 2025, representing what California customers (Afeela is only taking reservations in that state) who put down a $200 refundable deposit can expect when they take delivery.

Read more
Bose wants to dominate car audio, and I heard its next-gen 3D automotive speakers
Bose logo on a speaker grille

Bose’s automotive audio business is huge, and it’s set to get even bigger. The company has been making big plays in car audio for some time now. The audio company works with premium brands like Porsche, building high-end speakers that allow drivers to experience high-quality audio on the road, whether they’re carting the family around in an Escalade or weaving around the highway (don’t do that) in a Porsche Macan.

But while it has a solid selection of audio brands under its belt, the world of personal audio is also evolving. Mercedes-Benz showed off its Dolby Atmos system at CES last year, and now, a year later, plenty of other brands are joining the trend. At CES 2025, Bose walked me through its current lineup of automotive audio products, as well as a sneak peek of what’s to come.
Immersive audio
The big trend in all areas of personal audio right now essentially boils down to supporting 3D audio formats like Dolby Atmos. Consumer home theater products are increasingly offering up-firing and side-firing speakers that can bounce audio around the room to simulate height and surround effects, while headphone brands are increasingly developing spatialized audio tech that can convert stereo audio into simulated spatial audio.

Read more