Audi Q7 hybrid: 1.2 miles/30 mph on electricity alone
It's huge, it's powerful and it's a um, green? The upcoming Audi Q7 hybrid, coming to "certain markets" late next year, is supposed to spit out about 23 percent fewer emissions and use 23 percent less fuel than the standard Q7 3.6 FSI, according to Audi. The Q7 hybrid uses a 288-volt nickel metal hydride battery and a parallel configuration. Either the gasoline electric engine can move the car, or they can work together. Earlier we said that the Q7 hybrid can go up to 31 mph on electricity alone, Audi today says that number is 30 mph. You can drive for just over a mile on the battery, too.
We still don't have official MPG numbers for this petrol/electric hybrid prototype, but we were estimating around 23 mpg; Audi says it'll get 28.8. The Q7 3.0 TDI quattro gets 34.9 using diesel.
Press release after the break.
[Source: Audi]
AUDI Q7 CHARGED WITH THE TASK OF CUTTING EMISSIONS
Petrol/electric hybrid Audi SUV waits in the wings as new cleaner, more economical TDI engine joins the range
- Updated TDI engine first seen in A5 coupe is adopted by Q7, bringing reduced emissions, increased power and torque and improved performance
- Revised Q7 3.0 TDI quattro available to order now in standard, SE and S line trim priced from £38,075 OTR to £41,475 OTR
- 240PS@4,000rpm, 550Nm from 1,750rpm to 2,750rpm, 0-62mph in 8.5 seconds, top speed 134mph, 34.9mpg, CO2 260g/km
- Working Q7 petrol/electric hybrid prototype reduces consumption and emissions by over 20 per cent – production version is expected to go on sale in certain markets towards the end of 2008
The even more efficient 2008 Model Year Q7 3.0 TDI quattro, which is also now equipped with an exhaust-cleansing Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF), is available for order in standard, SE and S line trim priced from £38,075 OTR. It forms part of a Q7 development programme which also includes petrol/electric hybrid versions that slash fuel consumption and emissions by over 20 per cent.
Featuring an advanced common rail direct fuel injection system using sophisticated piezoelectric quartz crystal technology, the upgraded V6 TDI engine benefits from enhancements that boost combined cycle fuel economy in the Q7 3.0 TDI quattro from 33.6mpg to 34.9mpg, reduce CO2 output from 279g/km to 260g/km and bring down the 0-62mph time by 0.6 seconds to 8.5 seconds. Power rises from 233PS to 240PS, delivered at 4,000rpm, and torque increases from 500Nm to an even healthier 550Nm, available from just 1,750rpm.
Diesel is of course far from the only source of responsibly delivered power to be championed by the Vorsprung durch Technik brand. As well as exploring the possibilities opened up by second generation 'future fuels' such as the biomass-to-liquid (BTL) SunFuel, Audi is also testing fully operational prototypes running on bioethanol (E85), CNG (compressed natural gas) and petrol/electric hybrid power.
Q7 hybrid reduces consumption and emissions by over 20 per cent
The Q7 hybrid is expected to go on sale in its first markets towards the end of 2008, combining its familiar 280PS 3.6-litre FSI petrol engine with an electric motor situated in the drivetrain powered by a 288-volt nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery, which adds a further 51PS. The Q7 hybrid reduces fuel consumption, and therefore C02 output, by approximately 23 per cent compared with the Q7 3.6 FSI as we know it today.
Designed in a parallel configuration in which all major assemblies are arranged in line, helping to reduce weight and energy loss, the 3.6-litre FSI V6 with its 375 Nm torque peak is boosted by up to 285Nm by the electric motor. Channelled via a six-speed tiptronic gearbox and through the quattro four-wheel-drive system with asymmetric 40% front / 60% rear torque split, this joint output enables a 0-62mph acceleration time of just 7.6 seconds (standard Q7 3.6 FSI 8.5 seconds) and combined fuel consumption of 28.8mpg (standard Q7 3.6 FSI 22.2mpg). The Q7 3.6 FSI's 309g/km output is reduced to 237g/km thanks to the electric motor and a number of revisions to ancillaries such as the power steering pump.
Fundamentally, three driving modes are possible. The FSI engine and the electric motor can each work on their own as the drive unit, or the vehicle can combine the power of the two for acceleration. In this mode, the petrol engine is responsible for basic operation, whereby it also needs to supply energy to the battery.
Recuperation conserves energy
The electric motor on the other hand can operate independently and almost inaudibly at speeds of up to 30mph, considerably reducing exhaust and noise emissions in built up areas. It is also able to feed kinetic energy back into the system and so recharge the battery when the vehicle is braked or coasting. During this operation, known as recuperation, the motor reverses its function to become an alternator.
The capacity of the NiMH battery allows the vehicle to be driven up to 1.2 miles on purely electrical power – coasting and braking feed additional energy into the system. When the capacity limit of the battery has been reached, the combustion engine is activated to recharge the battery. Through regeneration measures such as these, the Audi Q7 hybrid recuperates about 720 kWh of energy a year – approximately a sixth of what a four-person household uses – based on an average of 12,000 miles per annum.
If the Audi Q7 hybrid is coasting without the accelerator pedal being depressed, the combustion engine is switched off – this is possible at speeds up to 74mph. It is also switched off if the vehicle remains stationary for more than three seconds. To continue the journey, all the driver has to do is to remove his foot from the brake and to depress the accelerator pedal again.
Like the standard Q7, the hybrid also has space for three rows of seats and a large luggage compartment. The battery system that supplies energy to the electric motor is located in the spare wheel recess at the rear of the vehicle. Compared to earlier generations of hybrid vehicles, the electric motor and the battery are extremely lightweight. The battery weighs 69 kg and the hybrid module with the electric motor 40 kg.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Chris M 6:27PM (11/01/2007)
Congradulations, Audi! You've finally achieved what the Prius has been doing for over a decade!
Well, it is much bigger than a Prius, perhaps similar in size to the Highlander Hybrid?
Snarky comments aside, it is good to see more new hybrid models, improving fuel economy and opening up new possibilities for future plug-ins.
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Patrick 1:27AM (11/02/2007)
According to the greenfleet website, the Audi and the Hyundai were "driven conservatively by a motoring professional".
This means that their run and data were not representative.
Given that the Peugeot 207 HDi was run with an "everyday driving style" and the price difference between these two cars, I think it would have been a lot fairer to cover the Peugeot and not the Audi. Please remember that it's the German car manufacturers who blocked the clean car emissions bill in EU last week, and not the French and Italian manufacturers (who have, and by a country mile, the best fleet average emissions).
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rgseidl 10:40AM (11/02/2007)
Audi did not set out to maximize all-electric speed or range. It's a regular full hybrid, not a plug-in. The vehicle will be marketed most heavily in those countries (e.g. US and Japan) where diesel is not yet well established. They'll only sell few in Europe, if only because gasoline is taxed much more heavily per unit of energy there.
I suspect Audi will be bringing a T2B5 diesel version of the Q7 to market as well sometime before 2010, giving conmsumers an additional option. Btw, the current TDi gets 34.9 miles per *imperial* gallon on the NEDC drive cycle. This context is important when interpreting the number.
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Karkus 11:33AM (11/02/2007)
How many times does this need to be repeated here?
Bloggers, get your MPGs straight ! (and label them please). Imperial gallons are 20% bigger than US gallons!!!!! You should know this by now, and know how to figure out the conversion, and be able to figure out which your source article is talking about. Here's a tip in case you need help: if your source is from Europe/UK/Australia, it's going to be in imperial gallons. Divide by 1.2 to get US MPGs.
So now, let's look at this article.
Audi lists 28.8 mpg - since costs in this source are in pounds, it's imperial gallons. Divide by 1.2 and you get 24 mpg (US). That's close to the 23 your reference above, and now suddenly these numbers agree pretty well.
Having said all that, 23 MPG US isn't very impressive considering the Highlander/RX 400 is a similar SUV but get higher MPG.
And what's the point of advertising electric only range/speed? It's a regular HEV (not a PHEV). Those electric only speeds are very similar to the Highlander and Prius.
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wkihm 11:46AM (11/25/2007)
It is great to hear how Audi has continued to push their Hybrid powertrain to production. Considering the fact that large cars have more to gain from this style of technology, it is nice to know that the Q7 is on the horizon.
In the near future, large hybrids will not match the efficiency of compact hybrids because of design and manufacturing factors (not to mention simple physics). But if the market continues to ask for more efficient products, the development of more models will follow. After all, it's the consumer's requests that the manufacturers attempt to satiate.
The Q7 is a step in the right direction.
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