The 2016 Audi Q7: What We Know About This New Model So Far

The Audi Q7 is one of the German carmaker’s best-selling models. It’s a rival to the likes of the BMW X5 and the Mercedes-Benz ML, among others. It’s a seven-seater vehicle that combines a large cabin space with a luxurious interior. And it offers comfort and performance to all that drive and sit inside of it.

It has been in production since 2005 and hasn’t changed much since then apart from a facelift in 2009. But Audi have hinted that a new generation of the Q7 will go on sale from 2016 onwards. In today’s blog post, I publish a roundup of what we know so far about the new model.

You can see a sneak peek early next year

A few auto blogs have mentioned that one can see the new Audi Q7 unveiled at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show. You only have to wait less than three months, because the show starts on January next year!

Of course, there are plenty of spy shots taken of the car getting tested in Audi’s native Germany if you can’t wait that long. But it would be better to head over to Detroit to see the finished article. After all, carmakers are notorious for making some cosmetic changes to their test cars.

It’s also more fact than rumor that you’ll see the new Q7 in Detroit as someone from Audi themselves admitted to this fact.

It will use the MLB platform

You might be wondering just what the “MLB platform” is. In a nutshell, it’s a way of fitting engines across a plethora of models using the same mounting points. It doesn’t matter whether the car has a gas, diesel or electric motor. They all get fitted in the same way.

I guess that’s good news for Q7 owners that want to upgrade their engines to something beefier in the future. That’s because it will be a straightforward engine swap – if such a thing is possible! The MLB platform got announced by parent company Volkswagen back in 2012.

The MLB platform also uses high-tensile aluminum. In other words, it makes the car lighter without compromising on strength. At the time of writing, the MLB platform is in use on the Audi Q5, among other models.

And in case you were wondering, “MLB” stands for Modularer Längsbaukasten. That translates into English as “Modular Longitudinal Matrix.”

Matrix LED headlights

According to Audi, its matrix LED headlights offer “high-precision illumination” and a “crystalline sheen.”

They get activated from a speed of 30 km/h in the sticks and 60 km/h in suburban areas and cities. That’s as long as the automatic headlights are set to “on.” They also offer a whole host of other safety features from what the guys at Saxton 4×4 tell me.

Existing Audi models that use matrix LED headlights include the super-luxurious Audi A8.

So, will you be heading over to the 2015 Detroit Auto Show? If so, why not post up what your thoughts are on the new Audi Q7!