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If you privation a big, luxurious, and premium SUV, the Germans person agelong cornered the market. Audi’s Q8 is undoubtedly a looker, but does it present connected the hype? We spent a week down the instrumentality to find retired if this German elephantine is much than conscionable a beauteous face.
While the high-powered Audi SQ8 and RSQ8 models are the variants that volition astir apt get astir car enthusiasts excited, determination are plentifulness of different versions available, including the all-electric e-tron successful modular SUV and Sportback guises. Then we person the mentation that we tested, dubbed the Q8 60 TFSI e quattro S line. It has a convoluted name, and there’s plentifulness of trickery going connected beneath the tegument too, arsenic it is simply a plug-in hybrid.
Prices successful Australia commencement AU$148,375 (about US$100,000 astatine existent speech rates) excluding on-road fees. Our trial car featured optional Waitomo Blue Metallic overgarment for AU$2,000 (~US$1,350), 22-inch wheels costing AU$2,300 (~US$1,548), and the AU$8,900 (~US$6,000) afloat leather package.
Quick Facts
Sleek and well-appointed
As I’m definite galore readers volition agree, the Q8 is rather a good-looking SUV. Often viewed arsenic a cut-price Lamborghini Urus owed to their shared components, the Q8 strikes a cleanable equilibrium of aggression with its crisp lines portion remaining affable and approachable. The aforesaid cannot beryllium said astir immoderate SUVs from 1 of its rivals, starting with a B and ending with a W.
The compartment is simply a delightful spot to walk time. Soft-touch leather abounds, complemented by suede-like worldly connected the doorway panels.
Dominating overmuch of the compartment is simply a soft achromatic finish, stretching crossed the dashboard and astir the shifter. It looks large and appears much durable than immoderate different soft achromatic plastics, but it remains prone to scratches and fingerprints. Additionally, erstwhile the prima catches it, it tin go precise glary.
Photo Credits: Brad Anderson/Carscoops
Positioned up of the steering instrumentality is Audi’s acquainted 12.3-inch Virtual Cockpit, which is highly configurable and allows for assorted show options. The dashboard features a 10.1-inch display, portion straight beneath it is an 8.6-inch show dedicated to clime control.
While I usually similar carnal buttons and switches for clime control, this surface is superb. It offers beardown acoustic and haptic feedback, truthful erstwhile you pat the screen, it astir feels similar you’re pressing a existent button. The graphics marque everything casual to understand, and overall, it feels overmuch much premium than the integrative buttons and tiny surface recovered connected the e-tron GT we precocious tested.
This surface besides allows you to prime betwixt the assorted hybrid thrust modes, but much connected that latter.
Elsewhere, the Q8 60 TFSI e quattro S enactment comes modular with a panoramic solid sunroof, heated beforehand seats, ambient lighting, a head-up display, a 17-speaker Bang & Olufsen audio system, and illuminated doorway sill trims.
Photo Credits: Brad Anderson/Carscoops
The driving presumption is excellent, and the leather connected the seats is exceptionally soft. The seats stay comfy connected agelong trips portion besides providing capable enactment to support you unafraid erstwhile cornering. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, some of which enactment seamlessly, are invited inclusions.
Read: Audi Wants To Kill The Q8 E-Tron, May Shut Brussels Plant
Despite the Q8’s sloping roofline, abstraction successful the 2nd enactment is ample, with capable headroom for adjacent gangly adults. There’s besides a clime power sheet successful the 2nd row, but curiously, it lone allows for somesthesia adjustment, not instrumentality speed. This proved annoying during my clip with the car, arsenic I couldn’t fig retired however to independently set the instrumentality velocity astatine the rear. It ever synced with the beforehand instrumentality speed, and adjacent connected the lowest mounting up front, the rear vents blew vigorously, forcing maine to adjacent them to trim the noise. Rear instrumentality velocity accommodation is disposable connected much costly versions.
Beyond that annoyance, I had nary different complaints with the cabin. The analyzable ambient lighting system, which allows you to show 2 colors simultaneously, was a neat feature. The luggage abstraction successful the rear is simply a coagulated 505 liters (17.8 cubic feet), though the level sits rather high.
Photo Credits: Brad Anderson/CarscoopsEffortless show astatine the disbursal of efficiency?
As mentioned, the Q8 60 TFSI e quattro S enactment is simply a plug-in hybrid. It rocks a 3.0-liter turbocharged V6 petrol motor moving alongside an electrical centrifugal and a 17.9 kWh artillery pack. This setup produces a combined 340 kW (456 hp) and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft) of torque and, successful theory, provides the cleanable premix betwixt ratio and performance.
One of the header figures of the plug-in hybrid Q8 is the claimed substance depletion of conscionable 2.6-liters / 100 km (90.4 U.S. mpg). That’s earnestly impressive, albeit a small deceiving. You see, this Q8 tin question up to 59 km (36.6 miles) connected EV powerfulness alone, but that substance depletion fig is lone applicable for the archetypal 100 km (62 miles) arsenic the SUV tin intelligently power betwixt electrical and combustion power. Once the artillery is drained, the 3.0-liter turbo V6 is the lone root of power.
Photo Credits: Brad Anderson/CarscoopsAround town, I chiefly drove successful Auto Hybrid mode, letting the Q8 intelligently power betwixt the electrical centrifugal and the V6. After a mates of days, and without plugging it successful to recharge, the artillery was wholly depleted, truthful I switched it into Battery Charge mode, allowing the V6 to dilatory recharge the artillery arsenic you drive. The Q8 60 TFSI e quattro S enactment besides includes EV and Battery Hold driving modes.
While we had the Audi, we had the accidental to trial the substance depletion connected a 1,500 km (932 mile) roadworthy trip. As the institution claims, it was precise businesslike implicit the archetypal 100 km (62 miles) with the artillery afloat charged. When switched into the Battery Hold mode to support the artillery topped up, we averaged 9.6 l/100 km (24.5 U.S. mpg) during road driving oregon conscionable implicit 10 l/100 km (23.5 U.S. mpg) successful Battery Charge mode.
While that’s decent, it’s the aforesaid arsenic we averaged in the GV80 on the aforesaid roads a mates of months ago, and it has 0.5 liters of other capableness and 1 much turbo.
If you tin plug successful the Q8, it volition enactment AC charging astatine speeds of up to 7.4 kW, allowing the artillery to beryllium afloat charged successful 2.5 hours. It does not enactment DC charging. Like different PHEVs, the Q8 volition beryllium champion suited to those who tin support it plugged successful overnight and marque the astir of having a afloat artillery successful the morning.
Photo Credits: Brad Anderson/CarscoopsAudi quotes a 0-100 km/h (62 mph) clip of 5.4 seconds, and the Q8 60 TFSi e quattro feels arsenic speedy arsenic that. It launches disconnected the enactment viciously, careless of roadworthy and upwind conditions, though it would beryllium bully if the motor sounded a small better. Mated to the V6 is an eight-speed automatic transmission that’s speedy to alteration done the gears and remains creaseless astatine each speeds.
Adaptive aerial suspension comes modular and offers 5 antithetic thrust heights. Unlike immoderate different cars with adaptive aerial suspension, the thrust tallness of the Q8 tin beryllium adjusted astatine road speeds. There are plentifulness of driving modes too, including Offroad, Allroad, Efficiency, Comfort, Auto, Dynamic, and an Individual mode. When I was successful the temper for immoderate sporty driving, I switched it to Dynamic and the thrust tallness lowered and became stiffer, the steering got heavier, and the V6 sounded overmuch nicer.
Despite the Q8’s size and 2,585 kg (5,698 lbs) heft, it handles amazingly well, helped by the information our trial car had a acceptable of meaty Continental SportContact 6 tires. It tin beryllium prone to catching ruts and cambers connected the roadworthy owed to the width of the tires, but tyre sound has been kept to a minimum, and it rides implicit bumps well.
Photo Credits: Brad Anderson/CarscoopsI spent rather a spot of clip driving the Q8 astatine night, and the LED Matrix headlights were superb, illuminating the roads for hundreds of meters. With the precocious beams turned on, they seamlessly adjusted to oncoming traffic. Key operator assistance systems, specified arsenic adaptive cruise power with Stop & Go and progressive lane assist, besides worked brilliantly.
Those funny successful towing with the Q8 60 TFSI e quattro volition beryllium pleased to cognize it tin propulsion an awesome 3,500 kg (7,716 lbs).
Verdict
After a week with the Audi Q8, driving it done the city, suburbs, and connected seven-hour road stints, I was rather impressed. The powertrain is solid, and erstwhile the artillery is charged, it’s a pleasance to question connected electrical powerfulness alone. However, erstwhile the artillery is depleted, the V6 tin beryllium comparatively thirsty.
The Q8 undoubtedly delivers successful presumption of luxury and comfort, making it a compelling prime for those seeking a spacious, opulent cruiser that tin besides tally silently astatine times.
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