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Picking up my Q8 tomorrow. Took it for an extended drive today. A few observations on the new tech...
1) Apple Car Play is wireless - worked like a charm and a much more pleasant experience with a touch screen
2) The nav system has some subtle but noteworthy updates...exit numbers are shown on the screen. Street name is shown in the HUD (when navigating)
3) Sound system is very good - at least to my ear
4) Compared with my S5 and Q7, it will take some getting used to having the main MMI screen located in the middle of the dash. Not a problem, but just instinctively looking elsewhere for a moment.
5) There's a section in the lower center screen for favourites. Was very happy to see that if you had the favourites tab open, then when you leave the car and return, the favourites tab persists - it doesn't need to reopened each time.
6) The heated steering wheel is now activated via the MMI screens vs. a button on the steering wheel.
7) The new touch screen works nicely. Requires a firm touch. Haptic feedback is what you would expect.
8) The electric rear sunshades are quite nice. Will need to teach the kids how to operate. Not sure if they can be activated from the front seat - will find out tomorrow.
9) Fit and finish is outstanding - the stitching on the seats and the dash give it a nice contrast.
10) The voice response system seems much better. No more waiting for the annoying prompt that would cut you off mid-request, then have the car attempt to decipher half a request for 20 seconds, to then have to start all over. I was able to speak fairly immediately and have the system operate as expected (similar to Google Home or Amazon Echo).
11) Ride on the 21" wheels was good. Car feels very powerful. Quieter than my S5, but to be expected. I don't feel any loss in power/acceleration compared with the S5 (in sport mode) but I know the numbers would tell me otherwise. Real feel impressions are that it's very good.
More to come...the tech and menus although familiar do take some getting used to.
Thanks for posting. Please post some photos if you can!
Some pictures from the dealer on Monday and then from this morning. Spent a fair amount of time with all of the customizations with my salesman last night and then after I got home. Probably 90 minutes in total. An incredible amount of customizations. The Pando Grey is very dark...I wish it were lighter (like Rock Gray) but I liked it the best of all the choices. If some of the pictures, the area in the shade is much more representative of the color than the pictures in the sun. Only have driven it about 20 miles so far, but am very happy. The stop/start is probably as good as it gets. I still turn it off, but much less intrusive than prior models.
Thanks for the useful write-up. Somebody posted a window sticker of a Q8 and this indicated a mileage that is much worse than the Q7. (Q8 shows 17 and 22 mpg, while the Q7 shows 19 and 25). Do you experience a big difference? is this due to the different engine types or different measurement techniques? I'm not concerned about mileage but only about the range and although they both have a 22.5-gallon tank the range is a bit disappointing in the Q8.
Thanks and congrats on a great car!
Thanks for the useful write-up. Somebody posted a window sticker of a Q8 and this indicated a mileage that is much worse than the Q7. (Q8 shows 17 and 22 mpg, while the Q7 shows 19 and 25). Do you experience a big difference? is this due to the different engine types or different measurement techniques? I'm not concerned about mileage but only about the range and although they both have a 22.5-gallon tank the range is a bit disappointing in the Q8.
Thanks and congrats on a great car!
Thanks. Too soon to tell on mileage. My daily commute is 8 miles each way on secondary roads, so I'm not sure my numbers will be great during the week, but they probably won't be too much different from my old S5. Will be interested to see what it gets on the highway during weekend driving.
Picking up my Q8 tomorrow. Took it for an extended drive today. A few observations on the new tech...
1) Apple Car Play is wireless - worked like a charm and a much more pleasant experience with a touch screen
2) The nav system has some subtle but noteworthy updates...exit numbers are shown on the screen. Street name is shown in the HUD (when navigating)
3) Sound system is very good - at least to my ear
4) Compared with my S5 and Q7, it will take some getting used to having the main MMI screen located in the middle of the dash. Not a problem, but just instinctively looking elsewhere for a moment.
5) There's a section in the lower center screen for favourites. Was very happy to see that if you had the favourites tab open, then when you leave the car and return, the favourites tab persists - it doesn't need to reopened each time.
6) The heated steering wheel is now activated via the MMI screens vs. a button on the steering wheel.
7) The new touch screen works nicely. Requires a firm touch. Haptic feedback is what you would expect.
8) The electric rear sunshades are quite nice. Will need to teach the kids how to operate. Not sure if they can be activated from the front seat - will find out tomorrow.
9) Fit and finish is outstanding - the stitching on the seats and the dash give it a nice contrast.
10) The voice response system seems much better. No more waiting for the annoying prompt that would cut you off mid-request, then have the car attempt to decipher half a request for 20 seconds, to then have to start all over. I was able to speak fairly immediately and have the system operate as expected (similar to Google Home or Amazon Echo).
11) Ride on the 21" wheels was good. Car feels very powerful. Quieter than my S5, but to be expected. I don't feel any loss in power/acceleration compared with the S5 (in sport mode) but I know the numbers would tell me otherwise. Real feel impressions are that it's very good.
More to come...the tech and menus although familiar do take some getting used to.
One other nice discovery...took me a few days to notice and verify, but the Virtual Cockpit in the Q8 stays on whatever screen (nav, radio, phone, etc) it was on prior to turning it off. So, for example, if you had the radio screen on, turned the car off overnight, and came back the next morning, the radio screen would appear at start up - not the information screen, which is what my Q7 and former S5 does. I don't know if MMI updates have addressed this in the S5 or Q7, but was happy to see the Q8 operate in this fashion.
Congrats on the new ride! We test drove one today and were very impressed. Were offered a 2.8 discount right off the bat, so I'm sure there's more room to negotiate, despite the fact that these just hit the lots. If you don't mind sharing, curious as to what, if any, discount you received (esp. as you're across the border in MA). Thanks
10-29-2018, 02:20 PM
Some initial impressions
