SA Roadtests
South Africa
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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.
*To read one of our road tests, just select from the menu on the left.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the stories.
The Q7 is Audi’s full-sized SUV, launched at the Los Angeles motor show in January 2006. The subject of this report, the 4,2 litre V8 TDI, was launched at the Geneva show in 2007 and facelifted during the third quarter of 2009. Cosmetic changes included redesigned grille, bumpers and the integrated underbody protection in the centre section of the bumper. At the sides, modified door mouldings add interest.
At the back, a two tone bumper and reshaped tailgate give the game away, while inside changes include a redesigned instrument cluster, some chrome trim and ambience lighting in the door linings. This is actually rather nice, allowing one to find the knick-knack storage slot and window switches, while scrabbling for tollgate money on the way to the airport at four ayem. Yes, Farnsworth, we do go without a certain amount of sleep in our never-ending quest to bring readers the latest news in motoringdom.
Apart from three diesel engines (the others are a humungous 5,9 litre V12 and a little-bitty 3,0 litre V6), the Q7 also comes in petrol versions with 3,6- or 4,2 litre capacities. A motoring rule of thumb is that, for a given capacity, the petrol engine will deliver a significantly greater number of kilowatts while the diesel will be ahead in the torque stakes. We have a bit of an exception here: the 4,2 diesel puts out only 7 kW less power than its petrol-driven sister (250 kW at 4 000 rpm vs. 257 kW at 6 800 rpm). As far as torque goes, it’s no contest – the diesel boasts a tractor-like 760 Nm at 1 750 rpm vs. the petrol engine’s 440 Nm at 3 500.
The result is effortless cruising anywhere, at any time. Some testers have even ventured to suggest that, with such torque, a transfer case for off-road slogging would simply be a waste.
Speaking of off-road driving, Audi offers adaptive air suspension as an option on lesser models but throws it in free on both big diesels. This is a pneumatic system that operates in conjunction with an electronic shock absorber control. It offers five different levels of ground clearance through a range of 75 mm and lets the driver select three driving modes: comfort, automatic and dynamic.
“Comfort” speaks for itself, “automatic” alters its settings according to how you are driving at any given moment and “dynamic” is for getting a move on. My personal experience was that leaving the setting on “automatic” while driving like a gentleman resulted in the usual rather wishy-washy and top-heavy SUV driving experience.
I soon selected the dynamic setting for day-to-day use (firmish but pleasant) and entered the comfort zone only while dealing with the potholes and washboard surfaces of some of our local gravel roads. These were dispatched with contempt, by the way.
So what was it like to live with? Inside was pure Audi – lots of black leather, dual zone air conditioning, magnificently comfortable once I had chosen a suspension setting that suited me, and a great standard sound system, with one notable exception. You are stuck with your six CDs in the player, or the radio. If you want to use your iPod or MP3 player, the conversion kit will cost extra; up to double what your music box cost you in fact. Why do German luxury car manufacturers, without exception it seems, get so stingy with the details? OK, rant number one over.
The standard six-speed Tiptronic box is almost intuitive in fully automatic mode once you are mobile and getting a bit of a move on. Driving gently or manoeuvring around your yard or parking lot results in some hesitation and jerkiness, though. Is it typical diesel turbo lag or something odd with the gearbox? Whatever it is, it needs fixing. That was rant number two. Driving with gears selected manually is a breeze, as always and just the ticket for the twisty bits.
And rant number three – there has to be, right? Yes. As mentioned earlier, this is Audi’s biggest SUV. That means it’s a bit bigger than most and its high waistline makes it difficult so see out of for judging where you are trying to park. It’s also pretty wide, which makes fitting within the width of a Pietermaritzburg Standard Parking Slot a bit of a mission. Even when you can get it exactly in the middle, space for opening doors is cramped.
Would I buy one? It’s big and comfortable, goes like no big SUV should, has all the electronic trickery one expects these days and it’s an Audi. But at R796 500 with all the nice stuff available only as expensive extras and after three rants, possibly not.
The numbers
Price: R796 500
Engine: 4 134 cc V8 DOHC, 32-valve TDI
Power: 250 kW at 4 000 rpm
Torque: 760 Nm between 1 750 and 3 000 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 6,5 seconds
Maximum speed: 236 km/h
Real life fuel usage over 472 km: about 13,5 l/100 km
Tank: 100 litres
Maintenance plan: 5 years/100 000 km
We drove the facelifted 2016 3.0 TDI Quattro here
This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.
What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.
I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax.
So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!
This site is operated by Scarlet Pumpkin Communications in Pietermaritzburg.
Unless otherwise stated, all photographs are courtesy of www.quickpic.co.za
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SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8