Q7 or Touraeg?

My wife and I are wanting to get an SUV and have been researching a bunch and have landed between a Q7 and Touraeg. So far we have one child, and plan to have more, we have golden retrievers as well. Big thing that makes me lean Q7 is the 3rd row seating option, and it's a bit bigger than a Touraeg. How's the real world fuel economy difference?
I have access to the car auctions through work, so that's probably where I'd be looking. I'm thinking to try to find one which has a grenaded fuel pump or something like that, since I'm a Diesel tech. I'd also remove the exhaust restrictions and do "that stuff"
Thanks!

Sent from my S60 using Tapatalk

The fuel economy difference is probably not much with the TDIs, as they don't care nearly as much about the added length and weight.

But to be honest, those two vehicles are expensive to own and operate, so if you are worried about fuel economy, then I would equate that to being worried about total cost of ownership, in which case you should probably consider something else altogether. A Toyota Sienna (which can also be had with AWD if you think you need it) will be less costly to own in the long run, even though it will use more fuel (albeit much cheaper regular gasoline) and has just as much if not more room inside. Actually, more (I just looked it up).

Sage advice

oilhammer said:

The fuel economy difference is probably not much with the TDIs, as they don't care nearly as much about the added length and weight.



But to be honest, those two vehicles are expensive to own and operate, so if you are worried about fuel economy, then I would equate that to being worried about total cost of ownership, in which case you should probably consider something else altogether. A Toyota Sienna (which can also be had with AWD if you think you need it) will be less costly to own in the long run, even though it will use more fuel (albeit much cheaper regular gasoline) and has just as much if not more room inside. Actually, more (I just looked it up).

Click to expand...

No, it's not a worry about fuel economy, that's actually more curiosity if there is a difference. I know the cost of ownership is higher, and I am fine with that.
Neither my wife nor I want a minivan, and I would rather not have a gasser. I'm wanting to be able to pull smaller trailers as well, which isn't as good for a minivan.
Basically, we're looking at an SUV, and the only Diesel ones easily available are the Audi Q7,Q5, vw Touraeg, Porsche Cayenne, BMW X5, and then you jump up to a Ford excursion if you go back a few years, or even further back, the Chevrolet suburban. There is the newer equinox, but that's very new and also doesn't have the towing capacity.
So, that, in combination with that I'm a tdi fan and love working on diesels, is why my question is between the Q7 and Touraeg. I'd consider the Q5, but my current Passat wagon probably has more interior space, and so it wouldn't be the logical choice.

Sent from my S60 using Tapatalk

We have a 2015 Passat TDI and a 2015 Audi Q7. We have 3 kids now and the Q7 is pretty dang awesome. We can fit 3 car seats in the middle row, but I will say it's not as convenient as say maybe a GM/Ford, which are a tad bit wider. It is pretty easy to still bucklet them with 2 booster seats and 1 car seat in the middle.

My wife has the Q7 and her in city is about 21mpg. She does a lot of idling and smaller trips to work, so on top of the idling she hits lots of traffic lights. I know the Q7 TDI for her is truly overkill as she only does about 20 miles a day, but we planned on keeping it forever. On the highway about 70mph I'd say we average 28-29mpg. I can hit 30, but I'm usually going about 65-67mph. I usually don't go higher than 70mph, because if we are going on the highway we have our kids and I stay the speed limit. So her city mpg could be higher, but compared to driving my brother in laws 2011 Cadillac Escalade it's night and day difference. That thing only gets about 12-13mpg city. The city is only rated at 19 on the Q7, so 21 isn't that bad for the way she drives it.

So the mpg doesn't compare to a Passat/Jetta TDI, but for a large vehicle it's size that's pretty dang good. The Q7 feels super heavy, but that 3.0 does it wonders and makes it move easily. It has gobs of power and you will notice it if you step on it.

If you plan on only having 2 kids then the Touareg would be fine, and maybe get a tad bit better mpg than the Q7. If you are even considering 3, or just want the extra space, then get the Audi Q7. You won't regret it. It's not a super long SUV and the perfect middle sized SUV, IMO.

The only thing I regret about my wife's Q7 is the speakers. If you can, really try to get that Bang & Olufsen upgrade. They are rare to come by, but I'm not impressed with the regular Bose speakers that come in it. I have a 2015 Passat TDI SEL, so I got the Fender speakers and it sounds soooooo much better than hers. I would think that Bang & Olufsen upgrade would sound so much nicer.

Smashed Ixnay said:

We have a 2015 Passat TDI and a 2015 Audi Q7. We have 3 kids now and the Q7 is pretty dang awesome. We can fit 3 car seats in the middle row, but I will say it's not as convenient as say maybe a GM/Ford, which are a tad bit wider. It is pretty easy to still bucklet them with 2 booster seats and 1 car seat in the middle.

My wife has the Q7 and her in city is about 21mpg. She does a lot of idling and smaller trips to work, so on top of the idling she hits lots of traffic lights. I know the Q7 TDI for her is truly overkill as she only does about 20 miles a day, but we planned on keeping it forever. On the highway about 70mph I'd say we average 28-29mpg. I can hit 30, but I'm usually going about 65-67mph. I usually don't go higher than 70mph, because if we are going on the highway we have our kids and I stay the speed limit. So her city mpg could be higher, but compared to driving my brother in laws 2011 Cadillac Escalade it's night and day difference. That thing only gets about 12-13mpg city. The city is only rated at 19 on the Q7, so 21 isn't that bad for the way she drives it.

So the mpg doesn't compare to a Passat/Jetta TDI, but for a large vehicle it's size that's pretty dang good. The Q7 feels super heavy, but that 3.0 does it wonders and makes it move easily. It has gobs of power and you will notice it if you step on it.

If you plan on only having 2 kids then the Touareg would be fine, and maybe get a tad bit better mpg than the Q7. If you are even considering 3, or just want the extra space, then get the Audi Q7. You won't regret it. It's not a super long SUV and the perfect middle sized SUV, IMO.

The only thing I regret about my wife's Q7 is the speakers. If you can, really try to get that Bang & Olufsen upgrade. They are rare to come by, but I'm not impressed with the regular Bose speakers that come in it. I have a 2015 Passat TDI SEL, so I got the Fender speakers and it sounds soooooo much better than hers. I would think that Bang & Olufsen upgrade would sound so much nicer.

Click to expand...

There, that's the kind of help I was looking for, lol. I've been seeing that they have some of the best fuel economy in class, and since I am already set up with the tdi tools and know how to work on them.

Sent from my S60 using Tapatalk

Mozambiquer said:

There, that's the kind of help I was looking for, lol. I've been seeing that they have some of the best fuel economy in class, and since I am already set up with the tdi tools and know how to work on them.

Sent from my S60 using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

If you can do your own maintenance, then that will save you TONS of money.

This is probably 10 years ago, but my sister was a social worker and had to visit many patients at her home. She had a 2007 Touareg (gasser) and my brother in law was changing the rotors/brakes every 20k miles. She put on about 40-45k miles a year, so he was so tired of it he made her get rid of it, lol. He said it ate up tires just as fast.

We bought the vehicle with 42k'ish miles and we are at 60k now. The tires were replaced at 57k miles. I have NO idea if they were originals or not. The rotors/brakes had to be changed at the same time (57k miles) and my brother in law ended up doing it for free for us. So we are lucky we have him because the dealer wanted $2k just for the rotors/brakes. He did this pretty quick, but the back rotors/brakes were a pain in the butt. He told us to invest in tires and brakes/rotors, lol. I'm hoping everything will last us much longer than my sister's Touareg, because my wife only does about 12k miles a year.

One small thing that isn't that big of an issue since it only takes a few minutes to do is that the Q7 has a larger tank of DEF fluid. DEF is free with the Audi at dealers while it still has warranty, so it isn't an added expense. I'm unsure if it's free with the VW Touareg, but I know VW doesn't give me DEF on my Passat. The DEF tank is small on the Touareg, so you might have to keep it refilled in between oil changes.

Again, you working on your own vehicle will save you tons of money. Two Audi Q7 service packages (the 55k service we did and upcoming 65k service) cost us $1,300, so they are SUPER expensive. I probably could have changed the oil, but it called for brake flushes or something, so I just told my wife to have the dealer do it. Does it need all the stuff it says to do in the book? I don't know, but I don't want to half ass anything, so off to the dealer it goes right now.

I know this isn't a direct comparison you are asking for, but I know the Q7 is SOOO much easier to handle the 2 booster seats and 1 car seat in the middle row compared to my 2015 Passat. The car seat fits easy because there is a base the car seat attaches to, but trying to buckle the kids in their booster sides on each side is a pain in the butt! I have to have them sitting in their seats, then move them around, buckle them, then push their seat back. I HATE my car because of that. Because of this reason, and this reason alone, I have thought about getting a Q7 myself.

I wanted to get an A6, but it's only about 1-1.5" wider than my car, and I'd be in the same situation. The way the Q7 picks up, as heavy as it is, is so much nicer than my Passat with the 2.0 TDI. I love my high mpg's with my car, but the Q7 lacks no power and everything shifts so smoothly.


If there is anything else I can help you with I will do my best.

I would not drive 1 mile and deal with a dealer service department for "free" DEF top ups. I wouldn't drive across the street, LOL. The low cost of DEF isn't worth the hassle of doing it anywhere else but on my own in the driveway or garage.

oilhammer said:

I would not drive 1 mile and deal with a dealer service department for "free" DEF top ups. I wouldn't drive across the street, LOL. The low cost of DEF isn't worth the hassle of doing it anywhere else but on my own in the driveway or garage.

Click to expand...

I am sure of that! I work at a Diesel specialty shop, and know that whenever a place offers anything for free, code scans, def, oil change, whatever it is, they are wanting to get you in the door, and then they will inspect your car for free and find things that need done and charge for those. We do courtesy inspections, but don't note it down unless it's actually needed, such as brakes below minimum specifications. We take photos of the inspections to show the customer, and they decide.

That being said, I'm a mechanic and know how to work on my own vehicle and know that will dramatically reduce operating expenses.

Sent from my S60 using Tapatalk

oilhammer said:

I would not drive 1 mile and deal with a dealer service department for "free" DEF top ups. I wouldn't drive across the street, LOL. The low cost of DEF isn't worth the hassle of doing it anywhere else but on my own in the driveway or garage.

Click to expand...

I understand that, but if I'm already taking the vehicle there for service why not? There is also a Target that is near our dealer that we go to, so if our light turned on I would not hesitate to go there so they could top it off. It might only be $25-30 I'd save, but I'd take free if it only takes up a small bit of my time.

Obviously if you are doing service yourself you're already saving tons of money from the service you'd be paying at the dealer, but if you are by one it'll save you a little bit of money.

I've had 2 gas Touaregs. An '04 and '05. The first one was a lemon. Stayed in the shop for 6 months of the 18 months we owned it. The 2nd one was a deal from VW to get us out of it. They both ate tires. cheap tires or premium tires 19k to 22k, then bald like drag slicks. Just bought 2 2015 Q5 TDI's and what a difference. 24 MPG's around town and 36 on the highway. My wife's car has the B&O sound system that is surround sound. It's very good but the Bose is not bad either. My son and I work on them so servicing them is not a issue(he has a Q7). Crazy service charges: 4 wheel alignment $295.00, fuel filter change $365.00, oil and filter change service $200.00. I couldn't be able to drive any more if we couldn't service our cars.

Two Kids and Two dogs here, originally I was looking at a Treg Exec.. but then the 3rd row and Air Suspension availability on late models lured me over to Audi.

Never Regretted it, if you take off the 20in+ wheels and put 18's with truck tires on it you cut the cost per mileage waaaay down.. for me it was the difference between 20k miles out of $1200 tires or 90k miles out of $800 tires. ($4600 saved every 90k!!!)

Brake jobs are pretty reasonable for what your working with, about $600 for OEM quality or better all around.. not bad given lesser vehicles pay thousands of dollars just to put the Q7 brakes on their vehicles.. its literally an OEM Brembo 6 piston big brake kit, and bigger than the T-Regg.. a dealership will want an arm and a leg but its super easy DIY.

10k and 20k service intervals DIY run about $80-$140 respectively.

If you can DIY and keep it out of the Audi dealership except for warranty work its just like any other Volkswagen IMO.. otherwise those 4 rings are gonna cost yeh extra just between the two.

I would be awfully surprised if there was any real world difference between equivalent Toe Rag and Q7. We normally come in at just under 30 USmpg on the highway (1,000 km/tank) and can go as low as 20 something on short winter commutes. We bought the Q7 because of the huge cargo volume, towing capacity and ability to use 3 rows. As has been mentioned, narrower than a Yank Tank, and good (= large) kids' seats do NOT easily fit 3 across in the second row. Wife can get 4 grandsons in 3 rows as the 6 and 8 YO are in booster seats and love to be in the back row of Gran's Audi or Dad's Sedona. This one replaced a '14 (got T boned by a Ram 1 ton right in driver's door, walked away without a scratch) that was written off, and I was lucky enough to find what I believe was the LAST new '15 in Canada, and it is the first car I have ever owned that has, and will for the foreseeable future stay bone stock. Too busy to work on stuff so contrary to what many seem to think, Audis have always been very reliable and durable for me, and I expect this one to be no more fuss than any other VW diesel. We keep things until they are completely used up, and I am so far beyond pleased with how well this car meets our needs. So much that after a bit of "discussion" with my wife (it is actually HER car) it often gets 5 or 6,000 lbs. of trailer behind it instead of taking my K15 4x4.