Holy smokes: there's an Audi Q7 V12 TDI for sale

Seven seats, four-wheel drive and loadsa diesel torque? The perfect winter wagon...

By Matt Bird / Tuesday, 16 December 2025 / Loading comments

Even by the exalted standards of silliness that characterised flagship Audis during the '00s, the Q7 V12 TDI really was something very special indeed. A twin-turbo, V10 RS6 might as well have been a 2.0 FSI by comparison. Having dominated Le Mans with diesel power throughout the decade, Audi (understandably) wanted to celebrate the fact. But a Q7 has about as much to do with top-tier sportscar racing as swingball has to do with Wimbledon (probably less, in fact), so it always seemed a slightly strange fit. There was a V12 TDI R8 concept, which would have been fascinating if nothing else, but that was ultimately canned.

With good reason, in hindsight. See, while there was probably never a good time to launch a £150k, diesel SUV in the 2000s, 2009 was an especially bad one. With the world reeling from a financial meltdown, the last thing anyone really wanted was a top-of-the-range Audi with an optional Exclusive package that lined the boot with wood like it was the back end of a speedboat. And even those that could justify a V12 TDI were met with a world of juxtaposition: this was still just an Audi Q7, and very much still looked like one, but cost Ferrari money. There was the glamour and prestige of a 6.0-litre, 12-cylinder engine (technically 5,934cc, but we’ll let them off), conflicting with the less illustrious diesel element. Meaning it was also a TDI that wasn’t anything close to affordable to run.

Nevertheless, what a glorious reminder of how things were not so very long ago, when ideas (and the engineers to create them) could run wild. This is the era of the S65 and S85 BMW M engines, the M156 AMG V8, the V10 TDI from VW that somehow was also on sale at about the same time as a V12, and more besides. There had been mega engines before then, of course, but the proliferation was unprecedented - they were everywhere. The Germans in particular were determined to outdo each with increasingly ridiculous feats of combustion. Now, as they must attempt to beat their rivals on mild hybrid assistance and miles per kilowatt hour, it’s hard not to yearn for a slice of that silliness back.

The Q7 V12 TDI, then as now, is more than a slice. Because of that whopping great 6.0-litre, the seven-seater weighed 2.7 tonnes before an occupant stepped in - more than the plug-in hybrids of today. Yet with 738lb ft as well, it was fast like no other diesel SUV before it; indeed with 500hp as well, the Q7 wasn’t far off the pace of the petrol-powered performance 4x4s. Yet it whispered in every sense, with a muted growl from under the bonnet and just a few V12 badges to mark it out. Unless you’re the kind of person who looks for ceramic brakes behind Audi front wheels (hello friend, there’s a few of us here), the TDI was hard to spot.

It was on sale here from 2009-2012; HowManyLeft suggests a peak of 36 V12 TDIs on our roads back in 2013, for some idea of just how rare these beasts are. At the last count, we were down to 21 taxed, and Audi has one, so this example is almost five per cent of the entire UK population on its own. It’s a 2009 car, so one of the very first, and seemingly its first owner was unconcerned with any prevailing attitudes to displays of wealth: remember when everyone wanted a white car? This V12 is Calla White, creamy and almost like Honda’s Championship White in shade. This one was not going unnoticed. There’s carbon trim and brown leather inside, which looks better than it sounds, plus there’s some lovely Alcantara finishes and a B&O sound system. It still looks appropriately lavish, 16 years later.

Interestingly, this one has yet to cover 30,000 miles; maybe the prospect of regularly using a 300g/km, 25mpg diesel was a bit too much to stomach for three previous owners. Or it was saved for special family outings, perhaps - the occasional far-flung adventure in a car like a Q7 V12 TDI would surely be something to cherish. Whatever the case, it now presents as surely one of the nicest out there, and at £100,000 less than its new cost. Which is still £54,995. And there’s a lot of SQ7 TDI to buy for that money, if it’s a mega Q7 diesel you’re after. But that car was eminently rational and reasonable by comparison; for the ultimate in Audi excess, nothing even comes close to a V12 TDI.

SPECIFICATION | AUDI Q7 V12 TDI

Engine: 5,934cc, V12 diesel
Transmission: 6-speed tiptronic, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 500@3,750rpm
Torque (lb ft): 738@1,750-3,250rpm
MPG: 25.7 (NEDC combined)
CO2: 298g/km
Year registered: 2009
Recorded mileage: 29,000
Price new: £154,175
Yours for: £54,995