FIRSTDRIVE AUDI A7:Lighter, sportier and more beautiful, the new Audi A7 puts the A8 in the shade, writes PADDY COMYN
The executive car segment has dramatically changed since the recession took hold. It have effectively disappeered here. The price you used to have to spend on getting a fairly ordinary large executive saloon has dropped significantly.
This is partly due to changes in VRT in July 2008 and partly due to a price war between the German brands. If we hadn’t had the economic crash, then you would probably find that the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class would be in the top ten sellers, but as it stands, the fact that they are 17th and 20th respectively isn’t bad. You can also see what the new prices have done to the segment below it – the smaller Mercedes C-Class lies in 46th place and the once mighty BMW 3-Series is in 37th place.
At the other end of the scale, the large luxury car market, the real flagship cars have all but disappeared. The top-seller is the Mercedes-Benz S-Class with 51 cars, followed by the BMW 7 Series with 36 cars and the Range Rover with 26.
We know this is a lot of figures to digest, but they are necessary because it puts the new Audi A7 in context. Here is a car that sits between the Audi A6 and Audi A8, (no prizes for spotting that one) but it is also perhaps the best solution for those who want all the luxury of the almost non-existent top-end luxury saloon segment but at a much more realistic price.
We have written here before how you could be forgiven for not being able to keep up with the Audi range of late, but we can translate for you.
The A7 is Audi’s best-looking car this side of the R8. It is just stunning. They have managed the feat that Porsche with their Panamera and BMW with their 5-Series didn’t, and that is make a coupé-cum-saloon-cum-estate look good.
This is a massive car but despite this it doesn’t look slab-sided because of some clever design features, such as the tapered rear side windows. The rear end could be from an Aston Martin costing three times the price.
The A7 is made from a blend of aluminium and high-tech steels that make it not only lightweight but safe too – it is 70kg lighter than the equivalent A8, plus it is better looking. While the A8 looks like an overblown A4, presumably assuming that the luxury car buyer or diplomatic requires something conservative, the A7 is edgy, sporty and interesting.
The engine line-up for Ireland will be varied, but the main seller is going to be one of two versions of a 3.0-litre TDi.
The first, and the car we spent the most time in and would recommend, is the 245hp 3.0-litre TDi with quattro all-wheel drive, which despite its big capacity and power has emissions of just 158g/km so will cost you €447 per year to tax. This car gets the excellent S-Tronic seven-speed automatic gearbox and having quattro might use a little more fuel but it’s also like deciding to leave the lifeboats off a ship. It is always better to have quattro, as last winter’s weather will illustrate.
You can have this version in November and it will cost you €66,900. However if you want to wait until February you can get a front-wheel drive version with 204hp and the multitronic six-speed automatic, which really isn’t as good but it will save you €291 per year. Yet however much cheaper the car would be, you’d really be getting the inferior car.
OUT ON THE road, the A7 drives like an A5 Coupé. It is agile and not overly firm, even with 19 wheels. It could do with a little more brake and steering feel, but this only became apparent under more ‘enthusiastic’ driving. It takes 6.3 seconds to do 0-100km/h in the quattro version with fuel economy of 6 l/100km, which isn’t bad at all.
Seating is for four, with taller rear seat passengers perhaps not being overly pleased with the curve of the roof. What they will like though is the technology on board. We were given cars with WiFi built in that uses your 3G signal from your phone to make your car a hot spot. It is possible to use a computer or any other device with WiFi to surf the web and the system can use Google Maps as a navigation system.
The Alloy wheels will range from 18” to 20” in diameter and there will also be an S-Line pack. There are too many other customisation options to mention here, but some of the highlights are night vision assistant with highlighting of detected pedestrians; a speed limit display; and adaptive cruise control.
With a price tag of €66,900, the A7 is €25,000 less than the 3.0-litre TDi A8. That is €25,000 less for a car that is better looking, lighter, sportier, only a little smaller but cheaper to run than the A8.
You do the maths from there.