The Audi Q8 is markedly better, sexier and prettier than its biggest rivals — but few surprises
Naysayers will claim the Q8 is just like Q7 in a different outfit, but there are plenty of differences
AT school I learned about King Midas. Everything he touched turned to gold.
Today, he runs a car company called Audi.
Whatever the reviews, its cars sell quicker than the latest iPhone. The company has the golden touch.
As sure as Katie Price has a good divorce lawyer, the new Q8 will have Audi’s legions of fans digging out paperwork on their current Q7 to see if they are far enough through their PCP deal to chop it in for this sleeker, more handsome bigger brother.
After all, it’s Audi’s new flagship SUV — and the neighbour down the road might get one first.
It is hard to fall head over heels for the Q8. It is like Starbucks coffee — markedly better than the cheap stuff but not rewriting history.
Yet it will shift in bundles, because it’s an Audi.
Last year, despite a downturn in the market, Audi set another sales record, shifting nearly 1.9million cars around the world. It sells 175,000 a year over here.
Naysayers will claim it is simply a Q7 in a different shirt, but that isn’t true.
It is lower and wider but doesn’t have the option of a third row of seats. That is because the roofline is significantly lower, giving the Q8 rakish good looks to put it in direct competition with the BMW X6 and Mercedes GLE Coupe.
I would argue it is prettier than the rivals, partly thanks to the frameless side windows and a few design nods to the original Audi Quattro, such as the exaggerated wheel arches.
When it comes to the interior, words such as “dashboard” and “console” are redundant. The Q8 has a “control deck”.
Those who have driven the new A8 or A6 will be familiar with it. For first-timers, it is a delightful visual assault.
A gargantuan two-screen infotainment system takes pride of place in the cabin, blending seamlessly with the 12.3in virtual cockpit display to create a wall of digital cinerama.
From here, everything is controlled via intuitive touch dials, from the air-con to the mood lighting, and it’s all draped in leather and piano-gloss plastics.
There are just two trim levels — S Line and the new Vorsprung. But the standard kit will make your mind boggle. They include, to name but a few, air suspension, 21in alloys, hi-def LEDs and the Parking Plus system.
A word about those trims. Vorsprung is now the top daddy spec in Audis.
Optioning it in the Q8 adds a Bang & Olufsen sound system, cross-traffic assist, electric sun blinds, four-zone climate control and a truly incredible adaptive cruise system.
Keyfacts: Audi Q8
Price: £65,040
Engine: 3-litre turbo diesel V6
Economy: 41.5mpg
0-62mph: 6.3 secs
Top speed: 152mph
Length: 5m
CO2: 178g/km
That takes the price to £81,000. I drove the S Line, which begins at £65,000 — and I struggle to see how the extra £16,000 would be worth it.
A 48v battery motor is standard on the Q8, which helps with costs and emissions, especially at slow speeds. But at launch, only one engine is available — a very capable but not particularly exciting 3-litre TDI.
Once again, Audi has hit its key selling points — luxury, tech and a safe, predictable driving experience.
The Q8 is guaranteed to give you bragging rights at the golf club bar.
It just won’t change how you think about cars.
Think you can’t afford a Porsche?
Don’t be so sure.
There’s one for almost every budget at the Classic Car Auctions Porsche sale at the Warwickshire Event Centre on Saturday, September 15.
One of the cheapest on offer is a 1984 Porsche 928 in Polizei spec – complete with flashing blue lights and siren. It’s estimated to go for just £5,000.
If you’ve got £12,000 you could be in the market for a 1984 Porsche S4 which has been owned by actor Brian Hall and celebrity chef Gary Rhodes.
If a 911 is what you’re after, a 1984 911 Targa with a full and detailed service history and 91,000 miles on the clock is expected to go for around £28,000. That’s a tidy price for such a modern classic.
A total of 20 cars will be going under the hammer – well worth checking out.
Rugged mini in no country for old men
THERE are durability tests – and then there is forcing three stock Mini Countrymans to face some of the toughest roads in the world.
The challenge covered 10,000 miles, 12 countries and a route beginning in Dallas, Texas, and finishing a couple of months later in Ushuaia, Argentina.
To make the endeavour more arduous, Mini invited a bunch of bloggers and journalists to help with the mission.
If dangerous streets in Honduras and the eye-watering altitude of Ecuador could not finish off these plucky Minis, a 19-year-old Instagram “star” almost certainly would.
But all three PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) were intact when I arrived to tackle my scheduled stretch, which would begin in Cartagena, Colombia, and end 1,155 miles later in Quito, Ecuador. The crew postponed proceedings while they battled to liberate the cars from the port in Cartagena, where officials were holding them hostage.
The cars were eventually freed but we faced a 15-hour journey from Cartagena to drug lord Pablo Escobar’s home town of Medellin and were massively behind schedule.
The Minis coped with it admirably, seamlessly flicking between electric propulsion and the internal combustion engine to save fuel.
The regenerative braking system meant batteries were sufficiently topped up by the time we hit the big cities, avoiding the need to plug in.
There was little time to admire their performance, though, as we had to be on the road early to make it to the next checkpoint in Cali. Landslides, questionable engineering projects and a distinct lack of road surfaces made progress slow, while being cooped up in the little city car for hours on end took its toll.
Next, Cali to Pasto, followed by a two-hour border crossing into Ecuador, and we were on the home stretch.
Key facts: Mini Countryman PHEV
Price: £31,895
Engine: 1.5-litre 3-cylinder turbo petrol & electric motors
0-62mph: 6.8 secs
Top speed: 123mph
Economy: 134mpg
CO2: 56g/km
Ecuador is not just staggeringly beautiful, it also has some of the finest roads in the world, providing the first real opportunity to show off the Minis’ fun handling and surprisingly peppy performance.
It took four days of driving but we arrived in Quito in one piece, the cars showing no sign of giving up.
The Minis’ grit on such a tough trip was impressive but, if anything, it proved that a journalist would break a long time before plug-in technology does.
- BY: LEON POULTNEY
Reader's car of the week
THIS properly cool pic was sent in by Pete Dewson from Winterton, Lincs.
Pete writes: “This is my 1955 GMC pickup, which was imported from New York this year.
“It has a 4.7-litre V8 engine, four-speed hydramatic trans-mission and is all original apart from a disc brake conversion on the front.
And it’s only done 69,000 miles.”
To see your own pride and joy here, send me a picture along with a brief description to features@the-sun.co.uk.
MOST READ IN MOTORS
Bike news: Triumph are on a winner
WIN on Sunday, sell on Monday is an old motorsport adage from the 1960s. It means exactly that and, to a degree, still holds up today.
When it comes to choosing which fast motorbike to buy, nothing says fast more than a big, shiny trophy with “Winner” written on it.
Now, we’re not saying that Triumph is in a one-horse race next year, but it is supplying all the horses with the same engine, so they are pretty much guaranteed success.
The Moto2 class that supports MotoGP has, without doubt, been the most entertaining motorcycle racing on TV this year. When the whole field runs the same engine, winning races comes down to balls, luck and more balls.
For 2019 Triumph will supply their 765cc triple cylinder motor as currently seen in the road-going Street Triple.
Slight adaptions to the exhaust, sump, cylinder head and a few other tweaks gives the motor an increased rev ceiling and more power.
Triumph remains tight-lipped about exactly how much power, but after our ride at Silverstone we’re saying it makes around 135bhp.
The development mule we rode was running a modified Daytona chassis, fancy brakes and lightweight wheels.
On warm, slick tyres it gripped like a stubborn limpet and punched its way out of the corners like an angry Anthony Joshua.
All the while making the most beautiful noise, like an angel screaming.
A full grid of these next year is a sound that will be heard around the world.
We might be able to buy the naked Street Triple with this engine in on Monday, but time and demand will tell if we’ll be able to buy a 765 Daytona in the future. Fingers crossed we can.
For more bikes, search “Bike World” on YouTube or find Bike World on Amazon.
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