While Audi engineers step up their efforts to evaluate the upcoming, second generation Q7 SUV on the road, back at the firm’s Ingolstadt headquarters, designers have returned to the drawing board after the brand’s new head of R&D Ulrich Hackenberg was reportedly unhappy with what they had come up with.
The kicker? This is the second time that Audi has revamped the styling of the next Q7 during its development phase, with the firm’s former design boss Wolfgang Egger being the first to order changes to the original concept.
With that said, we do not know if the prototype that our spies nabbed in Germany comes from an earlier or a more recent phase in the design process. It is evident, however, that the rear lights are not the final production units, with the same applying for the entire front end.
It’s less complicated under the skin where the Q7 rides on the model VW Group’s MLB modular platform, with the same structure to be utilized on the next Porsche Cayenne, VW Touareg as well as the upcoming SUVs from Lamborghini and Bentley.
Among other highlights is a reduction of weight of more than 300 kg (+660 pounds) over the current model, while the engine range should include a variety of V6 and V8 units, an e-tron hybrid and possibly, a four-cylinder diesel.
By John Halas
Photo Credits: CarPix for CarScoopS
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