It was hard returning the keys of the ’11 Audi Q7 we recently test drove. This was the perfect family vehicle. Over Memorial Day we loaded it up with three tikes aged 5, 3, and 7-months and three adults (no one sat in the front passenger seat just snacks). On the dyno it made its advertised power to the wheels. Off road it was great as long as you didn't need ground clearance—perfect for snow and ice.
Stay tuned for an in depth review. In the meantime are their any questions? This Audi was just as fun to drive as the ’08 Volkswagen Touareg V10 TDI we got awhile back (well almost). Sorry about the fuzzies flying around in some of the images (the Diesel Power Challenge's Dyno Event was hard on my camera equipment...it needs a good internal cleaning).
The Q7 has a 8-speed transmission (with a torque converter instead of 2 dry clutches like A3's s).
The Q7 has a 3.0L V6 TDI diesel.
The Q7 gets about 17 mpg city and 25 mpg highway (we're calculating our 1,700 mile trip now).
The Q7 has four wheel drive (Quattro).
1.I've also been trying to put a clutch in a 2005 Honda Accord 2.4L gasoline car. I bought a 1,000 pound engine support fixture for $60.00 from Harbor Freight Tools.
2. I've been meaning to compare the amount of Federal money going to clean diesel and biofuel research programs versus battery electrics and hybrids. Our diesel faction only gets about 50 million a year while the other faction gets about 4.8 billion. That's not fair or smart to me. Why not go for the low hanging fruit with immediate local benefits? It might take a team a researchers 2 years to figure out exactly how much money we're spending and where it's going but we don't have to be exactly right when the figures are so disproportionate.
3. If you don't won't powerlines creeping into your neighborhood choose diesel. We parked under the lines just long enough to snap a picture.