Discussion
Thought I'd post my Audi "vulgar chav chariot for those who aspire to be nouveau riche and thus wish to adorn themselves with the trinkets of the tasteless on tick".
These don't appear to have many fans, with this as a selection of comments from this thread
"a fugly monstrosity that makes a chevy tahoe seem like a sensibly sized city runabout."
"Very impressive shame its so ugly and has no character what so ever"
"What a fat b****d of a car.
2.3 tonnes? Seriously? And such a behemoth will be used by how many soccer moms to take a single child out in to school. You could use pretty much ANY car to do that.
But that's actually secondary to the sheer size of this abomination. How will people even park them in standard sized spaces, navigate tight multi-story car parks, or, heaven forbid, park them in a typical suburban garage?
If ever there was a caricature of a vehicle, this is really staking a claim."
"Not a fan. They are just too big for UK parking spaces and UK roads...... They drive into the local M&S carpark, but three minutes later drive out again having failed to find two spaces next to each over, that they can park in the middle of. I do not understand why folk have to buy something so huge, when they probably only use the size once or twice a year. ....
The cost with some extras is probably close to 100k and in less than ten years will be worth 10k, or less when they are banned from town centres.
Their only advantages are intimidating other road uses and coping with speed humps."
"I would consider paying audi not to build this"
"Badass gangster mobile innit."
"There are obviously exceptions to most rules, but in the main, this sort of car is likely to be driven by a knob."
But whatever, here are a few pics:
It's a Vorsprung model, which means it's got lots of toys - 4 zone climate, heated fornt and rear seats, pano roof, Alcantara headlining, leather in most places, radar cruise, HUD, electric folding 3rd row seats blah blah.
Single owner car, apparently a wife of a powerfully built company director, bought from an independent dealer by me. Decent SH, mostly at Audi (bar the last one, I think, done by a specialist). Covered 57K miles, and is in very good nick overall, I'd say.
It's a 4.0 V8 turbo diesel, and apparently goes to 60 in less than 5 and onto 155 (limited) top whack, which is still impressive in 2026 for something over 2MT. Certainly notice the difference in poke over the 2013 Volvo XC9 it's replacing.
To answer some of the stuff in that thread I linked:
1) It's really no bigger than an XC90 - might be a tiny bit wider. It's certainly no bigger than a FFRR.
2) I'll certainly be ferrying the kids to sports in it, and giving lifts to kids teammates to matches etc. It's kind of an ideal use case for something with 7 seats. Not soccer though.
3) I don't think it's that hideous - sure, there are better looking cars (e.g. we have an Alfa in the family), but it's not horribly proportioned and actually quite handsome from some angles IMHO.
4) Of course it's complicated - it's a modern car - they're all like that.
5) Depreciation hasn't hit this as hard as a FFRR of the same age I wouldn't have said, but as a big car, it depreciates faster than small ones
6) I did look at a couple of RS6s - I'd love one of those, but SUVs are just more practical than estates, and it is bigger, and the size is useful to me.
Plans for it include a boot liner and some mats (it's going to lug my Rugby coaching gear about, and that inevitably means mud) and I'm not sure what else right now. Welcome any thoughts really... Or ask me a Q, or request more phots - whatever really.
These don't appear to have many fans, with this as a selection of comments from this thread
"a fugly monstrosity that makes a chevy tahoe seem like a sensibly sized city runabout."
"Very impressive shame its so ugly and has no character what so ever"
"What a fat b****d of a car.
2.3 tonnes? Seriously? And such a behemoth will be used by how many soccer moms to take a single child out in to school. You could use pretty much ANY car to do that.
But that's actually secondary to the sheer size of this abomination. How will people even park them in standard sized spaces, navigate tight multi-story car parks, or, heaven forbid, park them in a typical suburban garage?
If ever there was a caricature of a vehicle, this is really staking a claim."
"Not a fan. They are just too big for UK parking spaces and UK roads...... They drive into the local M&S carpark, but three minutes later drive out again having failed to find two spaces next to each over, that they can park in the middle of. I do not understand why folk have to buy something so huge, when they probably only use the size once or twice a year. ....
The cost with some extras is probably close to 100k and in less than ten years will be worth 10k, or less when they are banned from town centres.
Their only advantages are intimidating other road uses and coping with speed humps."
"I would consider paying audi not to build this"
"Badass gangster mobile innit."
"There are obviously exceptions to most rules, but in the main, this sort of car is likely to be driven by a knob."
But whatever, here are a few pics:
It's a Vorsprung model, which means it's got lots of toys - 4 zone climate, heated fornt and rear seats, pano roof, Alcantara headlining, leather in most places, radar cruise, HUD, electric folding 3rd row seats blah blah.
Single owner car, apparently a wife of a powerfully built company director, bought from an independent dealer by me. Decent SH, mostly at Audi (bar the last one, I think, done by a specialist). Covered 57K miles, and is in very good nick overall, I'd say.
It's a 4.0 V8 turbo diesel, and apparently goes to 60 in less than 5 and onto 155 (limited) top whack, which is still impressive in 2026 for something over 2MT. Certainly notice the difference in poke over the 2013 Volvo XC9 it's replacing.
To answer some of the stuff in that thread I linked:
1) It's really no bigger than an XC90 - might be a tiny bit wider. It's certainly no bigger than a FFRR.
2) I'll certainly be ferrying the kids to sports in it, and giving lifts to kids teammates to matches etc. It's kind of an ideal use case for something with 7 seats. Not soccer though.
3) I don't think it's that hideous - sure, there are better looking cars (e.g. we have an Alfa in the family), but it's not horribly proportioned and actually quite handsome from some angles IMHO.
4) Of course it's complicated - it's a modern car - they're all like that.
5) Depreciation hasn't hit this as hard as a FFRR of the same age I wouldn't have said, but as a big car, it depreciates faster than small ones
6) I did look at a couple of RS6s - I'd love one of those, but SUVs are just more practical than estates, and it is bigger, and the size is useful to me.
Plans for it include a boot liner and some mats (it's going to lug my Rugby coaching gear about, and that inevitably means mud) and I'm not sure what else right now. Welcome any thoughts really... Or ask me a Q, or request more phots - whatever really.
Edited by EggsBenedict on Wednesday 15th April 15:37
Edited by EggsBenedict on Wednesday 15th April 15:38
Edited by EggsBenedict on Wednesday 15th April 16:00
Up until about 3 years ago we had a Discovery 4, we lived in the Cotswolds and it ticked all the boxes and they were driven by everyone, including the local farmers.
It was a great car and the longest I've ever kept a car, being 4 years.
When we came to change it my wife was very keen on a Q7, one of the previous shape ones, everyone we saw was either driven by an absolute idiot or wannabe 'gangsta', that even the image put my wife off. I think it was the problem of them falling into a certain price bracket...
I personally prefer the looks of this newer model than the original version, although with now not needing the 7 seats my own money would go on an SQ5. Nice to have all that power available when required.
Enjoy it and nice to have choices!
BTW, how much did you pay for it as I love the spec of it?
It was a great car and the longest I've ever kept a car, being 4 years.
When we came to change it my wife was very keen on a Q7, one of the previous shape ones, everyone we saw was either driven by an absolute idiot or wannabe 'gangsta', that even the image put my wife off. I think it was the problem of them falling into a certain price bracket...
I personally prefer the looks of this newer model than the original version, although with now not needing the 7 seats my own money would go on an SQ5. Nice to have all that power available when required.
Enjoy it and nice to have choices!
BTW, how much did you pay for it as I love the spec of it?
mdk1 said:
I like these, see the appeal, but have no need for one myself. Following with interest.
Having spent a bit of time with one of these I can certainly see the appeal. Lots of kit and a very relaxing way to do miles - also super easy in traffic due to radar, auto creep, HUD etc. They sound really nice (inside and out - more V8-y than my S6 from the outside) and are obviously super-practical. Carbox boot liners are good, but others may have opinions too. Enjoy!
66HFM said:
When we came to change it my wife was very keen on a Q7, one of the previous shape ones, everyone we saw was either driven by an absolute idiot or wannabe 'gangsta', that even the image put my wife off. I think it was the problem of them falling into a certain price bracket...
BTW, how much did you pay for it as I love the spec of it?
Seemingly quite a few either start out black on black with black pack and tints, which doesn't help the gangsta thing. Then people black the wheels as they get scuffed. At this age, some dealers tart them up with bodykit tat as well, which again just reinforces the stereotype. I really didn't want one like that, and this one stood out as having all the things I wanted and none that I didn't, as well as the more subtle grey.BTW, how much did you pay for it as I love the spec of it?
The Vorsprungs at this age are high 30s, low 40s depending on year. They facelifted them in 2019, and the interior gets an update - those are generally into the mid 40s at the sort of miles I was looking at. I like to think I did OK on this one - there were certainly a lot worse ones around for not significantly less. Mine isn't quite 'fully loaded' as they say - you can option a Bang and Olufsen ICE, mine's got a Bose and you can get side steps etc. (which I didn't want). I'm not mad on the V8T badges on either wing either, but these are minor gripes.
I’ve a 55tfsi, 2023, sport, so quite bog standard spec. 3 kids 5 and under so boat loads of stuff to cart around and live in London with heinous fees just to park outside my own house as well as short journeys to do, hence petrol over diesel. Superb cars in my view. Built beautifully, incredibly refined and comfortable and extremely capable for what I need it for. Yours looks a cracker- enjoy!
For that engine I'd put up with a lot in the way of looks. And it's better looking than an Bentayga. I wish they'd kept making the V8 diesel a bit longer; I'd have really liked a Panamera Sport Turismo with it.
My wife has a Cayenne with a petrol V8 and the fuel economy feels pretty tragic so there's a massive amount of sense to this. I don't envy you in a few years when you come to replace it though; there really won't be anything which lives up to it.
My wife has a Cayenne with a petrol V8 and the fuel economy feels pretty tragic so there's a massive amount of sense to this. I don't envy you in a few years when you come to replace it though; there really won't be anything which lives up to it.
A friend of mine recently went from a Disco Sport (which was nothing but trouble) to a 2023 Audi Kuwait, which I took to mean it needed it needed its own oil tanker for the diesel. Apparently not, it's quite fuel efficient.
She loves it, it looks very smart in a mid-blue colour and it tows her horse trailer (about 2 tonnes with horse and tack) with ease.
The perception of size thing is an interesting one.
It would be interesting to compare the measurements of your Audi with, for example, a Mondeo estate.
I bought an L322 (so full fat) Range Rover 4.4 TDV8 last year because I wanted to tow stuff and my X Trail was about to fail its MOT.
Got it home and asked my wife if she would like to drive it?
"No thank you" is my polite translation of what she said, "it's far too big for me".
She has had an old Saab 9-5 estate for the last 11 years and loves it.
Out of interest, I looked up the measurements of my behemoth and her sleek estate and discovered that the behemoth was 1 inch longer than the Saab, 4 inches wider and 2 storeys taller.
And I have no problems with parking in supermarket carparks, as it isn't any bigger than a normal middle sized estate car.
She loves it, it looks very smart in a mid-blue colour and it tows her horse trailer (about 2 tonnes with horse and tack) with ease.
The perception of size thing is an interesting one.
It would be interesting to compare the measurements of your Audi with, for example, a Mondeo estate.
I bought an L322 (so full fat) Range Rover 4.4 TDV8 last year because I wanted to tow stuff and my X Trail was about to fail its MOT.
Got it home and asked my wife if she would like to drive it?
"No thank you" is my polite translation of what she said, "it's far too big for me".
She has had an old Saab 9-5 estate for the last 11 years and loves it.
Out of interest, I looked up the measurements of my behemoth and her sleek estate and discovered that the behemoth was 1 inch longer than the Saab, 4 inches wider and 2 storeys taller.
And I have no problems with parking in supermarket carparks, as it isn't any bigger than a normal middle sized estate car.
QBee said:
A friend of mine recently went from a Disco Sport (which was nothing but trouble) to a 2023 Audi Kuwait, which I took to mean it needed it needed its own oil tanker for the diesel. Apparently not, it's quite fuel efficient.
She loves it, it looks very smart in a mid-blue colour and it tows her horse trailer (about 2 tonnes with horse and tack) with ease.
The perception of size thing is an interesting one.
It would be interesting to compare the measurements of your Audi with, for example, a Mondeo estate.
I bought an L322 (so full fat) Range Rover 4.4 TDV8 last year because I wanted to tow stuff and my X Trail was about to fail its MOT.
Got it home and asked my wife if she would like to drive it?
"No thank you" is my polite translation of what she said, "it's far too big for me".
She has had an old Saab 9-5 estate for the last 11 years and loves it.
Out of interest, I looked up the measurements of my behemoth and her sleek estate and discovered that the behemoth was 1 inch longer than the Saab, 4 inches wider and 2 storeys taller.
And I have no problems with parking in supermarket carparks, as it isn't any bigger than a normal middle sized estate car.
Agreed on the above - the Q7 is apparently 12cm (4.5 inches) longer and c.13cm (5 inches) wider than my 2015 S6 Avant (which is itself a big car) but I didn't find the Q7 hard to place on the road. She loves it, it looks very smart in a mid-blue colour and it tows her horse trailer (about 2 tonnes with horse and tack) with ease.
The perception of size thing is an interesting one.
It would be interesting to compare the measurements of your Audi with, for example, a Mondeo estate.
I bought an L322 (so full fat) Range Rover 4.4 TDV8 last year because I wanted to tow stuff and my X Trail was about to fail its MOT.
Got it home and asked my wife if she would like to drive it?
"No thank you" is my polite translation of what she said, "it's far too big for me".
She has had an old Saab 9-5 estate for the last 11 years and loves it.
Out of interest, I looked up the measurements of my behemoth and her sleek estate and discovered that the behemoth was 1 inch longer than the Saab, 4 inches wider and 2 storeys taller.
And I have no problems with parking in supermarket carparks, as it isn't any bigger than a normal middle sized estate car.
darreni said:
I've been looking at these at it would suit our use.
The only hesitation i have is the bork potential - are these pretty reliable? I'd be interested to hear owners stories.
Same here. Ive heard a few horror stories on the Internet.The only hesitation i have is the bork potential - are these pretty reliable? I'd be interested to hear owners stories.
That being said there are horror stories about most expensive cars (apart from lexus).
Great cars, had one for 3 years, nothing except regular maintenance.
It rode way better (and did not understeer so severely) on the 21 inches, but can see the appeal of the larger wheels, after two seasons I got rid of them and rode on the 21 again.
Came from a Cayenne s, needed the extra space back then, had a good deal on pcp and liked it, great cruiser and quite good on gas, but not very exciting or engaging. Still looks good, though.
All in all a great car, but the Cayenne 92a was a better drive altogether, so much that I'm on the hunt for a big diesel one to keep, as the engines are great and the drive is still entertaining.
It rode way better (and did not understeer so severely) on the 21 inches, but can see the appeal of the larger wheels, after two seasons I got rid of them and rode on the 21 again.
Came from a Cayenne s, needed the extra space back then, had a good deal on pcp and liked it, great cruiser and quite good on gas, but not very exciting or engaging. Still looks good, though.
All in all a great car, but the Cayenne 92a was a better drive altogether, so much that I'm on the hunt for a big diesel one to keep, as the engines are great and the drive is still entertaining.
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