Audi Q7 SUV 3.0 TDI (218bhp) Quattro S Line 5d Tip Auto Owner Review

'The ironic Audi Q7....probably one of the most overrated cars on the road'. Good Points: - practical, excellent boot - mechanically sound - well built - good level of tech Bad Points: - dull to drive, completely boring - s line ride bumpy and far too harsh - s line seats uncomfortable compared to competition - 218 bhp under powered, car suffers from significant turbo lag - auto box struggles to change down and deliver power when requested, miles behind BMW - very poor voice command system - software counter-intuitive compared to BMW idrive Summary Having owned this car for 18 months or so, I can honestly say I'm disappointed. It's spacious and good for passengers but just a complete bore to drive. This is strange because for it's size the car feels reasonably agile, despite letting you know it's weight. It feels lifeless and the auto box struggles significantly to make driving a pleasurable experience, particularly in lower gears. The turbo lag is so significant at times, it's difficult to know whether to blame the lag or the box. It's even more noticeable on a cold start, although in fairness this is an issue most diesel engines have. In sport mode, the car is 10 times better. It's much more responsive and fun to drive but unfortunately isn't cost effective to drive around in all the time and refinement goes out the window in sport. I think audi have failed to produce a driving mode that combines comfort with a responsive throttle. Having come from a 5 series prior to this, that's something BMW have achieved. The cabin is of a good quality but the software is counter intuitive in comparison to BMW's i drive system. Where the latter's different driving menus are all integrated together, the audi feels like everything is separate for one another, for example if you're in the sat nav screen you can't make a phone call through voice command. You also don't appear to be able to navigate by postcode either. Whilst idrive allows you to control so much from one or two buttons, the audi system requires you to know what about 10 different buttons do, all working with very little synergy. The voice command is so bad I gave up on it a long time ago, after it had me raging on several occasions. I'm a motorist who loves to drive, not particularly fast but I enjoy the experience. If you're a more practical person that isn't after an engaging ride, you shouldn't let this review put you off as it's a very practical car and serves a purpose from that perspective. I would highly recommend going for a higher powered version though. Parkers mentioned in their review that the 218 BHP is under powered, they're right. It's not a 'bad' car so I've given it 3 stars overall but I was expecting a lot more. Should you consider it? If you want practicality and like your tech - yes. If you want an engaging car to drive - no.