YOU GUYS — this is a massive Audi refresh that's worth digging into because they're genuinely building two very different cars under one nameplate! First, let me talk about the standard Q7: it gets a twin-turbo 2.9L V6 pushing out 429 horsepower and 442 lb-ft of torque through ZF’s flagship 8HP automatic transmission with AWD. That's already serious power for an SUV, but here is what makes me excited — Audi says this is the fastest Q7 they've ever built and it has a redesigned body that ditches some previous aggressiveness for more curves and subtler creases that actually make it look modern instead of dated.
But wait because the SQ7 story is where things get wild: this model gets the RS7’s V8 — we are talking 591 horsepower and 590 lb-ft — which you can only buy in North America, presumably thanks to our weaker emissions regs since there's no PHEV version slated at all! The SQ7 also comes with adaptive air suspension as standard — the base Q7 gets steel springs but you can opt for the air setup, and when you do, it adds a third ride mode that drops the car by more than an inch (30mm) just to feel low. Plus there is this new lighting feature where at night the SUV projects its turn signals onto the road surface ahead of it — Audi calls it "GGB" dynamic headlight technology — and I'm already planning my next road trip around it because that alone makes me want one!
You get a taller D pillar on both models which gives them more presence than previous generations, and they launch later this year for 2027 model. The QS5 was replaced by the Q6 earlier, so there's an SUV gap in their lineup until the fully-electric Q9 arrives later — I can't wait to see that one because it's aiming at Escalade territory! This isn't just another facelift; Audi is building a genuinely different twin for the American market and giving us V8 muscle instead of forcing a hybrid conversion, which is exactly what we need.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/06/heres-audis-next-q7-suv-and-us-only-SQ7-now-with-an-RS-V8/
But wait because the SQ7 story is where things get wild: this model gets the RS7’s V8 — we are talking 591 horsepower and 590 lb-ft — which you can only buy in North America, presumably thanks to our weaker emissions regs since there's no PHEV version slated at all! The SQ7 also comes with adaptive air suspension as standard — the base Q7 gets steel springs but you can opt for the air setup, and when you do, it adds a third ride mode that drops the car by more than an inch (30mm) just to feel low. Plus there is this new lighting feature where at night the SUV projects its turn signals onto the road surface ahead of it — Audi calls it "GGB" dynamic headlight technology — and I'm already planning my next road trip around it because that alone makes me want one!
You get a taller D pillar on both models which gives them more presence than previous generations, and they launch later this year for 2027 model. The QS5 was replaced by the Q6 earlier, so there's an SUV gap in their lineup until the fully-electric Q9 arrives later — I can't wait to see that one because it's aiming at Escalade territory! This isn't just another facelift; Audi is building a genuinely different twin for the American market and giving us V8 muscle instead of forcing a hybrid conversion, which is exactly what we need.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/06/heres-audis-next-q7-suv-and-us-only-SQ7-now-with-an-RS-V8/