The Q7 Is Still A Family Affair | 2024 / 2025 Audi Q7 Review

This Q7 is a 2024, but for 2025 the only change is a new grille and some headlight and tail light tweaks. The interior? That's exactly the same. That's not a bad thing however, depending on what you're looking for in your next luxury 3-row.
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[@SilverScarletSpider]

What I love about your intro is that it gets straight to the point why the Audi Q7 is older and cheaper than the BMW X7, but also why the german luxury brands no longer consider japanese and korean luxury from Lexus, Acura, Infiniti, Mazda, and Genesis viable competition. For the most part, Audi’s Quattro Q7 pricing almost ignores Acura’s SH-AWD MDX Type S and Mazda’s CX90 Turbo existence.

[@threeohnine]

I have a 2017 with the supercharged 6 cylinder (different than the twin turbo 6 in the current iteration). I absolutely love it, except for the oil consumption. The seats are fantastic, the engine responsive, and the materials durable. It’s perhaps not as premium as the x7 or GLS but it’s significantly cheaper. Big fan.

[@ArthurBenetton]

It's a nice car, as it was when it came out in 2015. Virtually every car in Audi's lineup badly needs a complete redesign. It's just weird - the A4 and A6 were market leaders, and while I understand the shift away from sedans, the 3/5 and C/E classes are as strong as ever. Same with the Q7 - this thing is ancient - and even the Q5 too. I'm not talking about obscure models, these are the ones that count, and they are ALL dated. The only thing left is a strange assortment of confusing e-tron models, which also aren't competitive! Isn't VW the largest car company in the world? It seems weird that the short budgets are so tangible to consumers.

[@future62]

Not sure I'd say the 3/5/C/E are as strong as ever. Sales of them all are way down from peaks (as much as 2/3) and aside from the 3 the rest have not been received very well. e-Tron models are either decent + well priced in the real world (Q4), getting huge upgrades (GT) or coming out of the gate cutting edge and competitive (Q6). I think it's kind of trendy to bash VWAG (and seemingly cars in general) but off the internet and in real life they're not actually that bad. I have an ID.4 for example which the internet has deemed the anti-Christ... I love it, possibly the best car I've ever owned, CARIAD and all. Q7 is still a strong seller IIRC so Audi must be doing something right.

[@ArthurBenetton]

@@future62 I don't disagree, "sales" of 3/5/C/E might not be as strong as ever - as sedans across the board in all markets. But the models themselves don't indicate any cost cutting or loss of interest from their brands, unlike the Audi A4/A6 which feel entirely forgotten.

[@Dutillac01]

Couldn’t agree more on all fronts. Audis are strong vehicles but are they so strong that their ancient models can compete in today’s market? Doubt it. Love Audi’s, but hate their 50 year redesign cycles.

[@Bestfriend-650]

My friend just sold his new Q7 at a 20k loss due to constant issues and bought a TX. As a person who owns two Benz cars, I would say at this point Japanese brands are much compelling than Germans. They have all of the moderns features and then some with great reliability. Once I am ready to buy a new car, I am just going to buy a lexus. Scratched enough of my German Itch.

[@SilverScarletSpider]

Does the Acura MDX Type S or Mazda CX90 Turbo come to mind?

[@naveenthemachine]

The tx is probably the worst 3 row suv in the class. Like the worst. It’s the Mitsubishi mirage of luxury 3 rows

[@prashantkompella5372]

I would pick the new kid on the block - Mazda CX90. Cheaper, Grander, and Roomier.

[@ruffmadman]

But not as luxurious. Mazda makes vehicles that look the part, but don't really compete in build.

[@jtomtl]

Just don’t damage those fancy lights, ridiculously expensive to fix 😂, the lights are worth more than the engine, you buy a Audi for the headlights and taillights

[@really9025]

I bought a Q8, which is essentially the same as a Q7 without the third row. I bought it because I am 6’5”. The Q7/8 have great headroom and lots of second row legroom with the front seats fully back. Both the X5 and GLE do not have adequate second row legroom. My Q8 has most options including air suspension which is impressive on long drives. Nevertheless, I remain very scared about long term maintenance costs. Front storage space is a joke as mentioned by many reviews but not a deal killer. Have owned for 18 months and my only issue has been internet connection used by MyAudi. Turns out the system keeps reverting to G3 (now obsolete) instead of LTE (G5). Easy to fix but requires a day at the repair shop. Frustrating! In summary, I am still pleased with purchase.

[@shanejoseph8132]

GLE has tons of second row legroom? I agree the x5 does not

[@fycfyc1]

Had one as a rental for a week and at first I really considered purchasing one, easy to drive easy to use, I like the exterior/interior styling too. But after spending time with it there is a major daily use annoyance. The front center console storage in this generation is basically non-existent, extremely shallow, only good enough for wallets and phones, the competition all are much deeper. And the front door pocket bins are pretty deep but not very wide, if you have something at the bottom sometimes it's hard to reach your hand down there to grab it, and it will not fit wider things like small bags/purses. So your only choice for front storage is the glovebox or the backseat, which is not the most convenient for the driver.

[@sprague49]

I had one as a rental too and I liked it except for one major thing....the tires were at least a foot wide and the road noise they generated was unbearable.

[@Kylehoulihan]

I really wanted this car but couldn’t afford it so got an atlas fully loaded instead

[@nevco8774]

For a while there is a PHEV version of this car in Europe. It never came to the USA...

[@bfish9700]

I was out on the MDX until they recently decided to give it a touchscreen. I have always liked Audis but I get to "does this justify the price increase over Palisade calligraphy?"

[@tbolende]

Great review, super appreciate the child car seat fitment section!

[@viccao8431]

I love the more technical details you go over even on an SUV like the engine placement, weight distribution and transmission. It provides a unique and interesting perspective that I haven't seen in any other reviewer - at least for non supercars.

[@nullifiedgravity3060]

It's never just about the numbers, when you've driven a Volvo you will know if this brand is something for you, it isn't for me, I absolutely hated everything about the XC60 & XC90. I feel the same way for any BMW with the exception of the X5 which is truly an astounding car. But the Q7 however (and the SQ7 in particular) is something else, its like Alex said : it's the complete package of comfort and practicality and luxury without it being too posh like a Range Rover. I read a comment from someone saying he purchased a Q8 because of headroom, that's an odd thing to say (or to use as a decisive factor) because the Q8 is a completely different car than the Q7, regardless of headspace.

[@evanjung2239]

If you get a higher trim like 55tfsi premium, everthing inside is luxurious. the dashboard is covered with nappa leather, also you can get valcona leather seats. the door trims are covered with nappa leather and alcantara combined. You won't see any cheap plastics inside if you choose the higer trim.

[@Thebusdriverandgamermorefan790]

Amazing review Alex.

[@fantomtuba]

Decent crossover to lease, horrible choice to own.

[@orig_gee_man]

14:51 Audi and Marlene Dietrich .. interesting choice that's for sure.. I guess das ist sehr schoon and goes well with this German car..

[@sprague49]

Ich bin von Kopf bis FußAuf Liebe eingestellt (I'm prepared for love from head to toe)

[@whiteandnerdytuba]

Why is it my semi truck can hide the radar sensor behind the bumper but every single Audi all the way up to the million dollar lambo has two giant ugly sensors

[@Ride_Runner]

What? Why is there a tire iron and a can of fix a flat? You don't need to take off the tire for the fix-a-flat.

[@nathanwright8616]

how can you get a third row in an x5? i cant find it in the configuratior

[@adriancooper78]

We got a Q7 fir about a week as a loaneras they worked on our Q3. It's a real nice ride BUT, the 3rd row in the Q7 is cramped, Audi has to make a larger more comfortable 3rd row vehicle like a Q9; And fake exhaust tips......COME ON AUDI, COME ON!!! For a family of 5 it's good, and Alex that 3rd row space do not make this car perfect.

[@ayushmalpeddi2793]

Have you sat in the 3rd row of an X5, or GLE? The Q7 is a limo in comparison to those (not actually lol). I agree though the Q7 need a larger third row seating and vents. Reminds me of the MDX.

[@David_Journey]

If you care about third row space Grand Highlander / Lexus TX offer most space

[@adriancooper78]

@David_Journey The Q7 was a loaner, and it was a really nice riding vehicle; excelerates good for its size and weight. And the technology in the car was cool also. Personal I'll stick with my 2016 Subaru Outback 283,000 miles and still going strong!!! If I had to get a 3 row crossover, it would be the Hyundai Palisade, Kia EV-9, or a Telluride and then the New Toyota Grand Highlander or Lexus TX

[@jackz4149]

@@adriancooper78But you do realize that those options don’t drive nearly as nice as the Q7? Mazda CX90 probably but not in terms of comfort

[@ayushmalpeddi2793]

@@adriancooper78 how do you put 30K+ miles a year?!? Crazy

[@chiemekaa]

There's supposedly an electric Q9 coming....we'll see.

[@RonSmith472]

The cheaper Bentaga

[@naveenthemachine]

Isn’t the gv80 the cheaper bentayga?

[@damilolaakanni]

The QX80 has the least combined legroom...then again, it's body on frame, so that explains why.

[@normanli7085]

The Qx80 had a redesign that was shown already. Should be better in all dimensions

[@billshoe22191]

I kind of feel bad for Audi because VAG has so many brands that overlap with one another, Audi is always the brand that can’t have character because they fear they would be stepping on one of their other brands toes. There interiors are incredibly drab and dull. There’s so much potential with vehicles like the Q5 and Q7 but instead are held back in utter dullness. There is nothing wrong with them, but there is nothing great about them either. That is the Audi brand in general. Especially now that everyone uses awd for everything.

[@scooks71]

Question Alex, Does the Aviator not stack up well against this and the MDX? Rear wheel drive, available 400hp twin turbo V6, and right around the same price range.

[@AAutoBuyersGuide]

I think it does, but we can’t talk about all the competition or it’d be an hour long episode 😂

[@scooks71]

@@AAutoBuyersGuide Fair point, there are tons options lol. I just never hear you mention it when talking about the segment lol.

[@G-Rated]

Germans suffer from large SUVs with cramped and tight interiors. I’m a bit claustrophobic and I couldn’t even imagine spending just 10 minutes in that third row trapped behind the second row bench right up against my knees.

[@kyled7207]

Alex, I’m curious, why you didn’t compare this to the Grand Cherokee L. As an owner of a Summit Reserve trim with a V8, I chose it over the Q7, X7, and GLS. I love the tech, the ride, and capability. Granted it doesn’t handle like an X7 or even the Q7 but it’s very very comfortable.

[@romulox4318]

The lack of any spare tire makes it a non-starter

[@Grilcantino]

Of course you would agree with me, dear Alex, that climate control panel in Q7 is too low on the dashboard. More than that: as you rightly say, it is convoluted in his action. So, we have two step of danger: position and time to handle it out of street sight. Sometime in the future governments will have to establish where main instruments must be in the cabin, e how to use it (physical, touch, vocal, and so on). Safety first, I mean.

[@bradyb9929]

I’m surprised Audi hasn’t created an Audi Atlas in the US

[@ebidbay3711]

how does it compare to Mazda cx90?

[@David_Journey]

I rented 2023 Q7 for a long weekend and own a CX-90 PHEV for 13k miles. The 4-cyl turbo in Audi can’t match the power of electric boost on the PHEV. The power of PHEV stays consistent in long trips when in charge hold mode, ample passing power on tap even with fully loaded vehicle. The Audi has smoother transmission shifts because it is conventional auto, Mazda’s shifts are faster but can be more abrupt. Mazda updated the transmission software which now fixed the rough shifts at full throttle. The third row space and headroom is way bigger in the CX-90. The suspension is more sporty on CX-90 and handling in corners more flat thanks to kinetic posture control.

[@David_Journey]

In terms of seat adjustability - Q7 has more options, although some of the options like extending thigh cushion is only available in V6 models. cx-90 has only 2-way lumbar … a longer rest drive can answer of that fits you

[@rightlanehog3151]

Alex, Gloves?

[@AAutoBuyersGuide]

It was 40 degrees out LOL

[@rightlanehog3151]

@@AAutoBuyersGuide 🥶

[@JRB41]

I would only buy the 2017-2019 gen Q7. The supercharged V6 is much more reliable, with no problematic 48V mild hybrid system. New Audis are not what they used to be.. stick with BMW X5/X7, Mercedes GLE, Lexus TX500, Acura MDX, or others

[@shirke01]

I like MDX over SQ7 and Q7

[@samishamiflog4972]

Really?

[@tonylanese5059]

Dude Cadillac XT6! American suv lux.

[@naveenthemachine]

It’s still very competitive as Audi understands how to properly execute

[@ALMX5DP]

They certainly know how to properly execute a diesel emissions test. 😛

[@naveenthemachine]

@@ALMX5DPdid the q7 ever offer a diesel? I know the A6 did for some time

[@ALMX5DP]

@@naveenthemachine yup, a few different types/configurations.

[@naveenthemachine]

@@ALMX5DP but none of those came to the USA right?

[@ALMX5DP]

@@naveenthemachine I believe there were at least a couple of V6 clean diesel models that came in the US prior to dieselgate.

[@Gadfly2025]

Does it still have VW motor ?

[@naveenthemachine]

It’s oriented differently than a VW. Plus no VW sold here has any of these Audi engines

[@AAutoBuyersGuide]

Yes. The 2.0L EA888 is used in a wide variety of VW, Porsche, Skoda, Seat, and Audi models, the 3.0L EA839 is used in mainly Audi models but variants are also found in the European market 3rd gen Touareg, Macan, etc

[@AAutoBuyersGuide]

Not quite, the 2.0 and 3.0 are common with at least one VW model.

[@ayushmalpeddi2793]

For anyone wondering the Q7 does not actually have better materials all around because it is HIGHLY dependent on the spec you get. For example, the base premium trims which start at 60K doesn't even have leatherette or stiching on the armrest or dash. It's all just cheap soft touch plastic or whatever which is disgusting for 60K+. On the premium plus and prestige trim levels (65-78K) you finally get leatherette arm rests and stitching, but not on the upper door trims or the full dash. That stuff is still the disgusting and cheap soft touch plastic or whatever. To get the nicer stitched leatherette on the upper door trims and dash, you need to spend an additional 3,700 for the luxury package only available on the prestige trim to get all the materials shown in this video. In other words roughly 83K. And mind you, all the trims still get the extremely cheap piano black plastic that creaks when you touch it and doesn't feel high quality at all. Audi used to have the higher quality interiors but not anymore. Especially for the price, other brands are better. I think you should add a disclaimer in future videos about material choices based on trim levels and pricing. Because the base or even the top trim without the 3700 luxury package feel vastly cheaper.

[@MeliorIlle]

Why are soft touch pieces "disgusting"?

[@ayushmalpeddi2793]

@@MeliorIlle for a "premium/luxury" car it's unacceptable. Especially when cars like a Palisade or CX-90 offer better finishes and materials inside. Hell even the new refreshed highland Model 3 offers better nicer materials inside which is unbelievable. Honestly I can't think of a single unique feature that only Audi has that competitors don't offer. The Q7 is dated and isn't as premium as it used to be. Id understand if it's an EV and they are trying to cut cost and weight but cmon. It's an ancient Audi at this point which weighs 5000lbs and costs 70K on average. I'd expect nicer materials. This goes to all German brands. Look at Genesis for example. Even the base version of theirs cars often have nice trims and leatherette all over the door panels, console, dash, etc. And the top trims could easily rival cars costing double the price.

[@MeliorIlle]

@@ayushmalpeddi2793 ...You do know every single premium car has fake leather right? So are they all "disgusting" cars?

[@ayushmalpeddi2793]

​@@MeliorIlle I'm not calling the fake/artificial leather disgusting. I'm calling the soft touch plastic instead of fake/artificial leather disgusting lol. That is not acceptable especially since companies like Genesis use more fake/artificial leather than soft touch plastic.

[@MeliorIlle]

@@ayushmalpeddi2793 "That stuff is still the disgusting and cheap soft touch plastic or whatever. " Yah you did.

[@krzysztofcwik5347]

Make next one piano black free, 3rd row gls roomy, phev powered with 7 seperate seats with manual childseat tilt and no air ride option for big family use

[@Ozzy_08x]

1:11 I really love how Alex skipped the Lexus TX, which is likely to outsell them all of them

[@normanli7085]

Because there's a guy that is named Naveenthemachine in the comments. If Alex mentioned the TX, Naveen would have a field day.

[@naveenthemachine]

No kidding The tx is honest to goodness the worst 3 row suv you can buy in this category. It’s the Mitsubishi mirage of 3 rows and if Alex knows a thing or two about that mirage, it’s really falls apart in just about every single way. The same problems apply to the tx only significantly more expensive

[@normanli7085]

@@naveenthemachine and that's why u wrote a review on the TX because u can't stand all the positive reviews it gets🤣

[@naveenthemachine]

@@normanli7085 not a lot of positive reviews from what I saw. The tx looks ugly vs any other 3 row. Only the bz4x and juke look worse The tx has the worst interior in its class. From the cheap materials to lack of upscale touches. A telluride palisade have much nicer interiors and they cost significantly less The Tx has useless tech nobody ever asked for. Not to mention it lacks so many features For its size there’s no 8th seat version which is offered in the cheaper grand Highlander The power trains are pathetic at best. The base turbo is as slow as a rav4. Only the mirage or ecosport are significantly slower. The 500h is barely faster than a ford explorer 2.3 or xt6 or qx60 or cx90 but still slower than the MDX aviator gv80 Durango etc. not to mention it’s overpriced. The 550h is still slow but way overpriced and it’s the only way to get a naturally aspirated v6. You can get a naturally aspirated v6 in the competition for significantly less The driving dynamics fall well behind the competition. Every other vehicle that’s not a performance suv handle and performs better. Finally it’s way overpriced in general So this proof that you just can’t give credit where it’s due because there’s nothing to give credit for

[@naveenthemachine]

@@normanli7085 it’s not getting positive reviews.

[@damilolaakanni]

Audi has a PHEV version of this outside of North America, i wonder why you haven't gotten it yet. Especially considering that the smaller Q5 has a PHEV option.

[@rromancunard]

Beautiful car but in reliable engines is better Lexus.

[@naveenthemachine]

Nobody cares about reliability at this point If you care about reliability then don’t shop for a luxury car.

[@justinedward4742]

Why not the newly refreshed model? Did Audi actually send you the older one? Weird.

[@klyded8523]

It's called GLS now fyi, not GL

[@damilolaakanni]

True, but I think he was referring to when the GL initially came out in 2006.

[@gordonyz4]

Don't compare this drive train to MDX, this is a Cayenne

[@laloajuria4678]

21mpg....gross.

[@anthonyv1719]

Boring bland all black interior built on a front wheel drive platform to save money.

[@naveenthemachine]

But Alex said this isn’t fwd. it’s RWD biased

[@ALMX5DP]

⁠lots of shiny black fingerprint attracting plastics isn’t so great.

[@naveenthemachine]

@@ALMX5DP I’d agree but it’s better than just having injection molded plastics

[@ALMX5DP]

@@naveenthemachineI disagree with that part. I’d much rather have a matte finish injection molded piece than this hard shiny plastic.