srajitha

Hi,
Me and my husband are planning to buy Audi Q7 2017 brand new. We have 1 kid-16 month old and our parents visit us often and we plan to have 1 more kid, so Q7 is very apt for us.
We had a look and test drove it. God! it's gorgeous. We absolutely loved the car.
Having said that, we are in a confusion whether to go for a German/Luxury CUV/SUV spending 60k dollars on an investment which only depreciates exponentially. It's definitely a personal choice, but would like to know lot of stuff before going for it.
We never owned Audi before. Most of the members here must be loving Audi. Can you please be fair and give your suggestions about:
-How long can we keep this car?
-What's the perfect time to trade this car? So, that we get a decent re-sale price and make most use of it ?
-Thoughts on extended warranty after 4yrs/50k miles? Suggestions for places for it?
-What are the problems that can be expected? At what mile range do we expect them?
-Is there a huge difference in depreciation/maintenance when compared to rivals like Acura MDX, BMW X5, Lexus or Volvo 7 seaters?
Thanks for your time in advance. Waiting to hear!

MRANT212

Q7 is an amazing vehicle. When your at these higher price points for a vehicle the depreciation is like throwing a rock out a window! Depending upon your mileage you drive you should look into leasing especially if it's a 3-4 year period that your planning on keeping the car. Also, if carrying mom and dad in it with the kids the third row doesn't have a ton of room.
If you plan on keeping it longer than the warranty period the extended plan would be recommended. Audis are loaded with tech and are over engineered. If something goes they really break the bank. Other than that they are all amazing vehicles. Good luck shopping and post a pic if and when you get the new ride!

Tinbad

I'm an Audi enthusiast and we didn't opt for the Q7, it's a great vehicle but IMO not for your situation. We have the same issue, two kids and need to haul visiting parents one in a while. After checking out the Q7, the third row is only usable for small children, but becomes completely useless with car seats in the 2nd row. So if you plan to have at least one (or in your case probably 2 car seats), it's not going to work. Not trying to discourage but you asked for honest opinions. After shopping we realized for carrying 6 people comfortably the only options are full size SUVs (Suburban, Tahoe, Yukon, Expedition) or.. Minivans! Yes, we hated the idea of driving and I initially dismissed it completely but after looking at said 60k SUVs you just get so much more and SUVs are harder to get in and out of with both kids and (elder) parents. Also for about 40k (20k less than full size SUV) you get a tricked out loaded to the top Sienna or Odyssey with even more options. After checking out all the vehicles we just couldn't justify anything else and settled for minivan as the practical car and 2nd fun car (currently A6) on the side. Whatever you choose make sure you test drive and try everything and don't make hasty decisions. As far as reliability, rule of thumb is the more tech the more problems and Germans tend to over engineer and be less reliable than the Japanese counterparts, if you decide to keep it for a while. If you lease it really doesn't matter much since you'll be covered by warranty anyway. Good luck and happy shopping!

schalliol

+1 with Tinbad.

We have had a 12 Odyssey Touring Elite and now a 16 of the same vehicle. I think 17s will be all new and probably add some of the features my S6 has that the van doesn't. For example, in the TE, you have blind spot detection, 3 zone AC, a (much better than any A/S6's audio system, even Bose), hard disk drive, real-time traffic etc. drop-cylinder technology for fuel economy. However, the van only has lane departure warnings and forward collision warnings, vs active lane keeping and active correction through adaptive cruise control.

Audi could make an awesome minivan with the big doors that auto-open and close, better mobile theater, better seats, etc. They're just too afraid to hurt the brand. That's okay, they could just call it a VW. Mercedes has tried this with the R320, R400 and R500, but they didn't fully commit and do anything well.

MRANT212

If you really need some space go with the Suburban/Yukon XL/Escalade ESV. When my kids were younger started with a Durango and then stepped up to the Escalade ESV...pretty much a 4bdrm colonial with wheels on it. It really is an amazing truck with plenty of space in every row. No one complains and there's plenty of space behind the third row too! The new ones now have real 4wd vs AWD which the prior generation had. It can blast thru snow and sand. Could always search for a pre-owned one even if it's the prior generation. We load ours up and drive on the beach in Brigantine NJ. People with Jeeps and jacked up pickups think I'm nuts. At your life stage with a potentially growing family I would get the big GM truck. My wife loves them...here's a pic on the beach with our Slade...