Q7 Buying Advice
 

I've noticed a lot of first gen Q7 TDIs coming up for sale for under $20k. Most of them are VW buybacks with the diesel updates recently completed, which means they have the 4 year/ 48k mile emissions warranty. From what I can tell, these sound like great cars for that price and the extended warranty gives a piece of mind for a higher mileage Audi. The only recurring "issue" I'm reading about on here is early brake and tire wear.

Am I missing any major issues I should be aware of?

Has anyone found a way to reduce brake and tire wear with aftermarket parts? My gut tells me there are probably some other brake pads that last longer. I know it's a heavy vehicle, but 25k miles for brakes still seems lower than comparably sized competitors.

Thanks!

You cant do anything to make brakes last longer without reducing stopping power, ceramic pads would last longer but everyone complains about how they perform, OEM brakes are high quality and difficult to improve on, but easy to make worse... Tire wear is manageable if you downsize wheels and put Truck tires on.. I've got >30k on my KO2's, they cost ~$700, brake pad light just came on and Ive got new brakes sitting in garage waiting for the weather to agree with my schedule.

Are there any at least cheaper aftermarket pads that perform comparably with the same life? I saw another Q7 thread that mentioned $350 in parts for pads and rotors. Is that the price or Audi parts? That seems cheap for Audi brakes.

I'm at least glad he first gen Q7 doesn't have the electronic parking brake. That makes a DIY brake job much easier. How many more miles do you think you have on your tires?

Bought my Q7 two years ago with 19k miles. Have 52K miles now and just replaced the pads with Centric semi metallic from Tire Rack for $136 for front and rear. I am very happy with these pads and I will buy them again. Rotors were still in great shape. Lucky I guess after reading other experiences here in the forum.

I live and tow in the rockies, so went with OEM.. ~$700 to put OEM Audi Components back on it.. I'm at 70k and AFIK these are original rotors I'm taking off.. I've also got adaptive cruise which is more than happy to over-use brakes.. Semi Metalic are the way to go definitely, if you went more aggressive compound they would be consumed quicker and if you went less aggressive the'd last longer but performance would go down.. You could always cryo-treat rotors to get more life outta em, alot of delivery vehicles do it to reduce brake maintenance costs.

My tires got plenty of life left, im not even half way through em I'd guess.. but I'll probably replace them around 40-45k for piece of mind.. I've now got a full size spare so I'll start rotating that in on the next set and that should get me even more life outta em.

Thanks for the feedback. It sounds like brakes and tires may wear out a little faster than normal, but the price to replace them can be reasonable with aftermarket pads.

Any other common reliability issues I should be aware of? If we pick up one of these Q7s, we would like to get to 150k+ miles with minimal issues if possible.

Also, does anyone have a link summarizing the emissions updates and what the extended warranty covers? I've read some conflicting information.

I haven't had to put brakes on my Q7 yet, but I have used SP Performance pads on other cars. Anyone try these on the Q7? I was looking at the semi metallic. https://www.sp-performance.com/product-p/md1014.htm
I may try these when its time.

BTW, I went from 21" Conti's at $1200 a pop to 20" Hankook Ventus for $600 which is IMHO a better ride at half the price. My two cents.