Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro: Pump up the diesel

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro: Pump up the diesel

Nice driving report here with the Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro.

Until alternative powertrains such as hybrid, electric and fuel cell become accessible and affordable; and until natural gas vehicles are less clunky and clumsily designed, the answer is diesel.

As you might know, not all diesels are created equal. Singaporeans are well- acquainted with the smoky Euro 2 diesel taxis and trucks on the road.

Even the budding population of Euro 4 diesels - spewing soot ever so regularly - are obviously nowhere quite as clean as the vast majority of petrol vehicles here.

But a turbodiesel such as the Q7 3.0 TDI epitomises everything that is right about diesel technology.

We are talking about a seven-seater all-wheel-drive SUV that tips the scale at 2.4 tonnes and yet consumes merely 8.9 litres of fuel every 100km and emits 234g of carbon dioxide every kilometre.

We are talking about a behemoth that has 550Nm of torque on tap and which thunders from nought to 100kmh in 8.5 seconds.

Compared with the 4.2-litre petrol Q7, it has 110Nm more torque, is 30 per cent more fuel-efficient and produces 23 per cent less carbon dioxide.