Used Audi Q7 cars for sale

Overview

The Q7 was the car Audi never wanted to make. It’s their admission they were wrong about SUVs being a phase, but they pulled off their entrance to the market with a premium bang. The Q7 is large and luxurious, crammed full of impressive technology and safety credentials. It’s a SUV which proves why they’re such great cars.

What you need to know about the Audi Q7

With seven seats, the Q7 is the largest sibling in Audi’s Q range. Whilst the newest models are slightly more compact, it’s a something of a beast. The styling splits opinion somewhat, but there’s no denying it’s a fantastic car to drive and own.

For a car of its size, the Q7 is remarkably composed. The suspension system boasts air springing standard on all versions, and somehow Audi have managed to bely its two-ton bulk with impressive handling. For longer journeys, you’ll also be pleased to know it’s a well-damped ride with excellent noise refinement.

Then there’s the cabin. Brilliantly constructed, it’s a cut above other manufacturers. With everything you could ask for, including luxuries like smartphone mirroring, reversing camera, and dual-zone climate control, all in a logically laid out dashboard and manufactured from quality materials, it’s impossible to criticise. Look out for the new Virtual Cockpit, taken from the TT, too.

What to watch out for

There’s two generations of the Audi Q7, the second of which weighs 325kg less than the original. Overcoming the struggles navigating narrow lanes or town centres, partly down to its sheer size, the latest Q7 is arguably a more diverse car. The reduction in weight also makes it cheaper to run.

However, if you spend most of your times outside of town, the first generation is still a great car and you’ve got all the sensors you need to navigate smaller spaces when necessary.

Other options

• BMW X5
• Volvo XC90
• Mercedes GLE

Expert opinion

Audi have basically thrown everything but the kitchen sink at the Q7. Infotainment technology, cabin quality, driving experience, it’s all decent. You get a lot for your money, although it requires a fair chunk of change.

Why buy a used Audi Q7 with Exchange and Mart?

The Audi Q7 is a lot of things but perhaps its most obvious quality is just how conspicuous it is. There's really no way to blend in when you're driving a vehicle as huge as Audi's seven-seat super-SUV. If you're trying to make an overt statement, great, but for most of us, the big bruiser from Ingolstadt was just a bit OTT.With the sheer size of the thing comes all manner of notions of profligacy. When the Q7 first appeared in 2005, we ran a 4.2-litre petrol car and it went through fossil fuels like an oil tanker that had taken an Exocet hit. Aware of this, Audi took steps throughout the MK1 model's lifetime to try and make the Q7 a good deal more efficient, most significantly in 2011 introducing the improved first generation version we look at here. With this upgrade, the shape didn't change significantly but the oily bits underneath certainly did. Almost by stealth, the Q7 gained a certain relevance. That fact might easily have been lost on many buyers of big SUVs though.

About the Audi Q7

The Audi Q7 makes an interesting used pick and the first generation version made more sense in this later post-2011 guise. So many buyers miss the improvements Audi made throughout this vehicle's lifetime, simply judging it as a gluttonous leviathan and disregarding it straight off the bat.In fact, the truth is that a later 3.0-litre TDI diesel model - the kind of car we've been looking at here - is actually about as green and frugal as a 2.0-litre Ford Mondeo weighing half as much. On the quiet though, we'd also point out that the pokier 4.2-litre TDI diesel might just be the sly bargain here, this variant's price premium over its 3.0-litre TDI diesel stablemate being slashed by the used market. Either way, negotiate hard and you can pick up a Q7 that's got years of life in it for about the price of a decent diesel medium range hatch. If you're looking for a car of this sort, it's hard to go too far wrong with a proposition like that.