Late Model Audi Q7

[gorcorps]

To be honest, the 3rd row in the GX really is an afterthought. When we bought the 4Runner (same platform), we looked at one with 3 rows and were not impressed. To top it off, we need to be able to put car seats in the 3rd row and the GX has no hardware...so that pretty much completely disqualifies it.

I really do like the reliability expectation/maintenance of our 4Runner and by extension the GX... but I think we would just stick with the 4Runner over the very limited benefit of the GX (or a different 4Runner's) 3rd row.

That doesn't surprise me. I have the '16 Highlander and I wouldn't call it a 3rd row vehicle either. That 3rd row is best served folded flat for the storage.

 

[PricklyPete]

That doesn't surprise me. I have the '16 Highlander and I wouldn't call it a 3rd row vehicle either. That 3rd row is best served folded flat for the storage.

Yeah, and the Highlander 3rd row feels luxurious compared to the 4Runner 3rd row.

The Q7 will really be no more useful than you're highlander as a 3row. It is more about possibility rather than all the time needs. The fact that we can throw the twins in car seats in the back row when necessary makes the second row much more accommodating for visiting adults.

 

[roofus100]

I have been watching the Q7 forums (MKII) on audiworld for information on the SQ7 due for 2018. I recently have seen threads on software cheat devices linked to the 3.0L engines in Q7's. I guess the trickle through Volkswagen Auto Group. Their resale values may take a hit. There are multiple threads that would help to explain.

I have been cross reviewing the Range Rover (Sport). Very capable but not sure of reliability.

 

[PricklyPete]

I have been watching the Q7 forums (MKII) on audiworld for information on the SQ7 due for 2018. I recently have seen threads on software cheat devices linked to the 3.0L engines in Q7's. I guess the trickle through Volkswagen Auto Group. Their resale values may take a hit. There are multiple threads that would help to explain.

I have been cross reviewing the Range Rover (Sport). Very capable but not sure of reliability.

I had heard about software cheats in the automatic transmission. Not cool.

I've looked some at the LR4, but always a bit skeptical on reliability of those things.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I had heard about software cheats in the automatic transmission. Not cool.

I've looked some at the LR4, but always a bit skeptical on reliability of those things.

Man, you must be a gambling man.

 

[PricklyPete]

Man, you must be a gambling man.

Haha. I'm an Audi fan and even I am skeptical of Consumer Reports saying the Q7 is there second most reliable vehicle. It doesn't have to be perfect, but I don't have time to constant service visits. I've never known a person to have a good experience with a Land Rover.

 

[roofus100]

I am an Audi fan too. Had an '04 A4 until 2014 and it started to act up a little bit with 70K miles on it. Fuel pump was the only time it stranded me. No biggie really. I then went to an S4. Had that for a year and then the car seat for my little guy was too big and of course the prudent thing to do was get a bigger back seat and I swapped the lease on the S4 for an S6. Really nice vehicle. My wife's '11 Q5 2.0T has been great.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Used Oddesey. No more off roading. You have three kids to put through college.

 

[PricklyPete]

Used Oddesey. No more off roading. You have three kids to put through college.

I need at least AWD. We have a condo in the mountains that we probably drive to 10+ times in the winter. The only reason we got rid of our previous Audi (A4) was to get some decent clearance. There were a lot of mountain roads we couldn't go on...and several that we did resulting in a lot of bottoming out and scary rock hits. The 4Runner has been great for the mountains, but COMPLETELY sucks daily driving in comparison to our old A4. I'm not expecting the Q7 to be perfect, but I'm thinking it will hit all the right spots for a one car family.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

I need at least AWD. We have a condo in the mountains that we probably drive to 10+ times in the winter. The only reason we got rid of our previous Audi (A4) was to get some decent clearance. There were a lot of mountain roads we couldn't go on...and several that we did resulting in a lot of bottoming out and scary rock hits. The 4Runner has been great for the mountains, but COMPLETELY sucks daily driving in comparison to our old A4. I'm not expecting the Q7 to be perfect, but I'm thinking it will hit all the right spots for a one car family.

That was a joke. (You have kids so your life is over, hahaha.) Maybe not funny?

If you're cross-shopping $70k SUVs, you probably have the saving money thing well in hand. At least that's my assumption. You do you.

Now, that said, I know a few people who aren't all that wealthy who got stuck trying to buy one car that did everything they could possibly need, instead of buying one affordable car that did most of it, and a ten year old beater that could handle the other thing they only needed to do once or twice a year. FWIW.

There's this idea in our culture that everybody should have one and only one car. Seems silly to me, but I'm from Michigan, so I don't think it's weird if somebody says "this is my spare car."

 

[PricklyPete]

That was a joke. (You have kids so your life is over, hahaha.) Maybe not funny?

If you're cross-shopping $70k SUVs, you probably have the saving money thing well in hand. At least that's my assumption. You do you.

Now, that said, I know a few people who aren't all that wealthy who got stuck trying to buy one car that did everything they could possibly need, instead of buying one affordable car that did most of it, and a ten year old beater that could handle the other thing they only needed to do once or twice a year. FWIW.

There's this idea in our culture that everybody should have one and only one car. Seems silly to me, but I'm from Michigan, so I don't think it's weird if somebody says "this is my spare car."

Believe me, three kids do take a lot of your time and make you a very efficient person. To top it off, they are all under 3... my wife is a saint.

Money is not an issue for this purchase (not attempting to brag, just in context of convo). That being said, I don't want to waste money. Time is my biggest issue...so that is why reliability is important.

We live on a city block. We have a garage that just barely registers as a two car garage and half of it is storage/wood working tools. I take the train to work everyday. I really don't want/need two cars. The main use for this car is trips to the mountains and errands. My wife is at home all day with the kids...she barely ever uses our car during the week.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

We live on a city block. We have a garage that just barely registers as a two car garage and half of it is storage/wood working tools. I take the train to work everyday. I really don't want/need two cars. The main use for this car is trips to the mountains and errands. My wife is at home all day with the kids...she barely ever uses our car during the week.

Your wife probably needs a vacation.

 

[PricklyPete]

Your wife probably needs a vacation.

No greater truth. Planned week in Costa Rica later this winter sans kids.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I need at least AWD. We have a condo in the mountains that we probably drive to 10+ times in the winter. The only reason we got rid of our previous Audi (A4) was to get some decent clearance. There were a lot of mountain roads we couldn't go on...and several that we did resulting in a lot of bottoming out and scary rock hits. The 4Runner has been great for the mountains, but COMPLETELY sucks daily driving in comparison to our old A4. I'm not expecting the Q7 to be perfect, but I'm thinking it will hit all the right spots for a one car family.

I hate to sound like a broken JLee record but the GX460 would be ideal for that and incredibly comfortable. Unless your kids are all 6'4" teenage boys they should all fit fine in it. Give it a test drive, I think you'll agree.

I've driven the X5 and it is a great driver but it's not as good off road and I suspect the Audi would be similar. The GX would get you through anything the mountains will throw at you and be a supremely comfortable car in the city.

 

[PricklyPete]

I hate to sound like a broken JLee record but the GX460 would be ideal for that and incredibly comfortable. Unless your kids are all 6'4" teenage boys they should all fit fine in it. Give it a test drive, I think you'll agree.

I've driven the X5 and it is a great driver but it's not as good off road and I suspect the Audi would be similar. The GX would get you through anything the mountains will throw at you and be a supremely comfortable car in the city.

I don't disagree that on paper, the GX460 or just 4Runner with a third row would be great...except I looked into it as a possibility and realized the 3rd row does not have hardware for the latch car seat tether...so a no go at this point. Need to be able to put two car seats in the third row to make this work. This also keeps the Land Cruiser off the table.

I like the X5, but it has even a smaller 3rd row than the Audi...which is already a bit small.

So far, the best option is probably a Tahoe...but will have to see if my wife is interested after a test drive.

 

[Bubbleawsome]

Have you considered a Ford Explorer sport or platinum? Their third row is small, but it fits two child seats.

 

[Spicedaddy]

My friend had a 2014 Q7 S-line. The 3.0T is very reliable, but his Q7 drank a lot of gas compared to the same engine in my Q5 as it's much heavier.

I'm not sure he had the 3rd row, the trunk was pretty big. He replaced it with a Range Rover Sport Diesel.

I think the new Q7 looks too boring for my tastes.

 

[Demo24]

The pilot and MDX both have latch in both rows.

It doesn't sound like you plan to do serious off-roading and the q7 platform (Touareg and Cayenne) I remember as having reasonable ability.

 

[PricklyPete]

Have you considered a Ford Explorer sport or platinum? Their third row is small, but it fits two child seats.

My wife is not a fan of the Ford look and I was not thinking the AWD system was all that great. Will need to research some more.

 

[PricklyPete]

The pilot and MDX both have latch in both rows.

It doesn't sound like you plan to do serious off-roading and the q7 platform (Touareg and Cayenne) I remember as having reasonable ability.

My understanding was that the Pilot did not have a great AWD system. The MDX does seem to have a decent system though...so might have to look a bit further.

I'm not going through one hitting Moab with this thing, but we do drive some pretty burly roads. I think I mentioned earlier how I had an experience camping with a friend last year where he got stuck 3 times with his highlander where my 4Runner barely winced. If I didn't have the off-road "requirement", I'd probably already bought a Highlander, Pilot, or CX9 (really dig the new CX9).

A Land Rover LR4 would probably be my best bet on paper, but not really wanting to gamble with reliability.

The Q7 will not be as capable off-road, but I'm thinking it will be enough for 99+% of the stuff we do (especially if we get air suspension). It is not as capable as the original Touareg it was based on (no low range for instance)...but should be close enough.

If my wife likes the Tahoe...that might be the direction we go. It is similar money to a Q7 of the same vintage...but should be cheaper to keep up.

 

[PricklyPete]

My friend had a 2014 Q7 S-line. The 3.0T is very reliable, but his Q7 drank a lot of gas compared to the same engine in my Q5 as it's much heavier.

I'm not sure he had the 3rd row, the trunk was pretty big. He replaced it with a Range Rover Sport Diesel.

I think the new Q7 looks too boring for my tastes.

Yeah, from all the data I have been able to collect (empirical and anecdotal, the Q7's with the 3.0T have been pretty reliable.

 

[PricklyPete]

Was getting intrigued by the 2017 Mazda CX-9. The AWD system appears to be a big improvement over the Honda/Toyota CUV's. Not a ton of ground clearance...but was thinking that maybe I was putting to high a bar on off-road performance. Unfortunately the third row only has hardware for one car seat...so that unfortunately crosses that off the list of possible vehicles.

At this point (at least on paper), this seems to be a fight between the Q7 and a Tahoe.

 

[bigi]

You have three kids in car seats. Go test drive a mini van. Nothing better out there

Amen.

Q7 looks great, but for 3 kids... minivans sell well for a reason.

 

[PricklyPete]

Amen.

Q7 looks great, but for 3 kids... minivans sell well for a reason.

Not sure if you read the rest of the thread. I have no issue with minivans and if we were a two car family, it would be tops on our list. As a single car family with needs for good AWD and some ground clearance, the only minivan that comes close is a Sienna and even then it falls short.

If we decide to keep the 4Runner and get a second car at some point...minivan will be top on the list.

 

[Spicedaddy]

Get the Q7.

APR Stage 1 for the 3.0T is now 425HP, I can't wait for the warranty to expire on my Q5 lol.