The stricter emission regulations that push the automotive industry towards an all-electric future make it almost impossible for companies to make vehicles such as the Audi Q7 V12 TDI anymore.
The super SUV came out at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show and made its way to dealers towards the end of the year in limited quantities.
It may look like a regular first-gen Q7, save for the beefed up wheel arches, silver mirror caps and oval pipes. It also had a revised suspension and upgraded brakes, but the icing on the cake was the V12 diesel engine, which Audi claimed was based on the technology of the R10 TDI racer, although the two had no common parts.
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The unit pumped out 500 horsepower and a massive 1,000 Nm (738 lb-ft) of torque. The thrust was directed to the quattro all-wheel drive system through a ZF six-speed automatic transmission. The Q7 V12 TDI boasted a 0 to 100 km/h (0-62 mph) sprint of 5.5 seconds and had a limited top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph).
And it’s still capable of going flat-out today, as this 2010 example, with over 164,000 km (101,905 miles) on the clock, was recently subjected to a top speed run on the Autobahn.
On the go, the sensation is that of a big, old SUV, and that is hardly a surprise. Acceleration from a standing start won’t blow your mind, the reviewer claims, and gear shifts aren’t that sharp. However, once it starts going, it feels like it can break speed records, and that’s what makes it so special.