The Audi Q7 e-tron 3.0 TDI quattro has made its world debut at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show. Set to go on sale in the first quarter of next year, the eco-friendly SUV is billed as the world’s first six-cylinder diesel with a plug-in hybrid system and all-wheel drive.
Looks wise, the Audi Q7 e-tron 3.0 TDI quattro is more or less the same story except for the inclusion of a revised version of the Singleframe front grille, air intakes, 19-inch five-spoke turbine-esque alloy wheels and a streamlined rear diffuser.
Under the skin is where things get a little more interesting. A 3.0 litre, six-cylinder TDI engine is paired to a disc-shaped electric motor – which is juiced up by a liquid-cooled 17.3 kWh lithium-ion battery – and together they generate a combined power output of 373 hp and 700 Nm of torque.
An eight-speed automatic gearbox sends the power to all four wheels, resulting in a 0-100 km/h time of just 6.0 seconds while the v-max is officially quoted at 225 km/h. On pure electric power alone, the Q7 possesses an operational range of 56 km. Fuel consumption is rated at 58.8 km/l, resulting in a range of 1,410 km.
Another world’s first comes in the form of a thermal management system with an integrated heat pump. Essentially, the system transmits the heat energy generated by the electrical drive components and employs it to heat up the interior, reducing strain on the climate control interface.
Charging the Q7 e-tron with 7.2 kW of power is now possible thanks to a new two-phase charging technology. Using a “high-performance industrial socket”, one only needs to spend two and a half hours to fully charge up the car. The cabin architecture echoes its siblings with the exception of a few add-ons.
One of them includes a new electromechanical power steering that’s supposedly tuned for the Q7 e-tron. Elsewhere, Audi’s latest MMI system with navigation plus gets hooked up to the hybrid management system. By employing real-time traffic information, the car is able to determine the best driving mode (out of four available modes) for optimal fuel efficiency.
Also standard on the Audi Q7 e-tron 3.0 TDI quattro is the Audi virtual cockpit which is a fully-digital 12.3-inch instrument cluster. Operating on the Tegra 30 graphics chip from NVIDIA, the layout is able to display a multitude of information from current speed to a power meter readout.
Additional onboard entertainment comes in the form of the Audi tablet, which doubles as a form of rear-seat entertainment. The Q7’s sound system features 3D sound technology both Bose and Bang & Olufsen while an Audi phone box enables wireless charging for mobile phones.
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