Come on Kids – Let’s play with the Audi Q7

Fun though it is to throw test cars round a track (and I can’t deny it has been known!), we do do try to use cars in the way a real owner would when we have a test car to run with. And so it was with the Audi Q7 4.2 fsi.

Audi have resisted entering the SUV fray for a long time, believing initially it was a passing fad, but as always with Audi, when they decide to get stuck in they do make a very good car. Based on the same underpinnings as the Cayenne and Toureg (a good starting point) Audi have built a car that is essentially Audi, and not a rip-off of its existing siblings (the Toureg is made by Audi’s parent company VW, which in turn is owned by Porsche – how incestuous!).

What sort of buyer looks to the Q7? Logically, someone with a gaggle of kids looking for a stylish alternative to a Chrysler Grand Voyager or any of the numerous people carriers littering the market. So it seemed like a good idea to pile the kids in to the Audi and have a day out at Thorpe Park, that Mecca for kids of all ages in deepest Surrey.

The Q7 offers an extra row of seats (as do Land Rover on the Discovery) which means you’re not limited to the usual 2 adults and 2 children scenario, so we piled in to the Audi (I’d rallied friends kids to make up the numbers, so we had the full compliment of 7) and off we trollied to Surrey.

I’d expected the Q7 to drive like a softer version of the Cayenne, and in many ways it does. It’s much softer and quieter, but it actually handles very well. All the Q7s get the air suspension set-up, which I have to say seems to work even better than on the Cayenne. At motorway speeds the Q7 is very planted, very quiet and very pleasant. Like the Cayenne, it belies its bulk in an astonishing way, and never feels like the 2.5 ton monster its is. Lane changes are crisp and easy, and you never get any of the rock and roll you’d find in a Range Rover. I am very impressed.

What did the kids think? Well, they loved it! Even those in the ‘dicky’ seats at the back were comfortable! There were lots of arguments over what to play on the extremely good Bose sound system; who got the heated seats (and this was on a warm day – but I must admit I do like the aircon cranked up!) and who was going to choose the food pub in Surrey for a spot of dinner on the way back (it was me!) from the very impressive DVD satnav menu. They were intrigued by the rear-view camera and the ’side-assist’, which gives radar assistance warnings for lane changing. And they loved being in a ‘tank’! Overall, a very big thumbs-up from the passengers.

What about the driver? I have to admit I did like it. It wasn’t as sharp as the Cayenne, but it did a better job than a Range Rover on road (I’m not sure about off-road – we didn’t go there, despite the kids eagerness to try it out). The handling and road holding are very good, the cabin ambience is very Audi (in fact very A6, which is a good thing), and Audis MMI knocks BMWs i-drive in to a cocked-hat. And frankly, if you’re ferrying around your brood – shopping, school runs etc. – this is a much better option than the Cayenne or any of the people carriers on the market.
So if you’re in the market for a people carrier, this is the best 4×4 by far! (sorry Land Rover).