RJC 1

Had a lovely visit with the Audi dealership today and spent some time in a $93k Q8....only option missing was the 22's or YR 1 which it desperately needs to complete the look.

The Q8 simply doesn't have the "presence" of the Q7...if the car mags consider the Q7 a mid-sized SUV, then the Q8 should then be considered small (the Q8 is noticeably shorter in height and length albeit a bit wider)

The road noise was nearing unacceptable on the interstate (I-95 on FL coral based roads), even the sales person commented before we did (Q8 had 21's on All Season Hankook's). Our Q7 does not exhibit the same amount of noise under the same conditions/roads etc., although ours runs on summer non-run flats stock F1's with now 11k, yet are still 50% quieter than what we experienced in the Q8.

The engine has plenty of power to the contrary of what some have felt, the issue appears to be the throttle response settings, as if you put your foot into it...it moves. The vehicle felt noticeably quicker than the Q7...the extra trq no-doubt paid off. The beautiful silver valve covers with the red coil packs Audi is known for are now gone. It appears the cost savings has gone beyond the touch screen set-up.

The 8 spd trans was very good (as always) in near all aspects.

The interior was nice but not a knock out, the touch screens were very good looking yet no more impressive than what's been on others, the Q8 however provides one of the best haptic feedbacks I've experienced, almost has the same sound and feel as our beloved buttons. The few buttons left which are on the 8's center console produce a watered down version (cheaper) of the crisp sounds and feel Audi is renowned for. The screens can become very messy looking even more so when turned off

The leather dash was nice but as others mentioned here, the upper door panel needs leather to match...I found the problem to be the grain pattern pressed in the plastic does not match the smooth grained dash leather at all.

The double pane glass was nice but didn't find the cabin to be quieter than the Q7's...interesting, maybe this was due to the aforementioned tires?

Frameless windows are programmed to do something clever...once lowered most frameless set up's exhibit rattling of the unsecured window when closing the door, but the Q8's glass automatically rises about 3 inches after opening the door to prevent this from happening. While this doesn't replace the frames (which I prefer) it helps make the frameless set-up more palatable.

The ride was very comfortable in comfort mode but dynamic mode was quite harsh, speed bumps at anything more than a few mph were brutal in that mode. The vehicle was PDI'd but the sales person felt perhaps they still had the tires overinflated at 55psi.

When looking at the rear especially the design of the lights, kept reminding me of the smaller Lincoln SUV's, at first I thought it was just they way it looked in pictures, but this proved not to be the case. I also prefer the Q7's grille...it looks richer. less plasticky so to speak. The Q8's even w/o BOP/YR 1, is just too black w/o the wheels and trim to match.

Our 19 Q7 will be here in a few days and we will make the final decision on taking it or a Q8 then. I need to spend more time in the 8 with different tires to see if the road noise is appreciably better as we didn't have the time to test another today.

At this point in time, we are leaning toward taking the 19Q7, being glad it's the last year for so many of the things we like, and less of the things we don't.

JT4

Great (real world) review, thanks for taking the time to post this..

sr007

RJ1C, thanks for sharing your perspective on the Q8. While Q7 remains the more practical 3 row SUV, the Q8 was designed to be a sportier SUV (hence less interior space). Although I'm surprised by your experience with road noise, considering just how quiet the Q7 is. I'm guessing its time to test drive one now.

rjabend

I am surprised at the noise comments. My Q8 is probably the quietest car I have ever driven or rode in.

BigKutta

Nice review. I too saw a Q8 in the flesh at an Audi dealership, and was a bit underwhelmed, and perhaps because the auto show/launch vehicles look so much sexier. I didnt get in it or test drive it but maybe at the next service

RJC 1

We were surprised too...what tires did yours come with?

RJC 1

Have to get either of the 22's to make the Q8 look its best, even with 21's it's still so-so (no offense to anyone).

RJC 1

Maybe it was just the all season Hancock tires and the nosier road surfaces, but as mentioned the Q on the same road is so much better.

RJC 1