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Audi Reportedly Confirms the RS Q7
The Q7 just received a hefty redesign for the 2016 model year in the U.S. market that included a massive weight loss of 716.5 pounds, with 156.5 of those pounds in the body alone. Now, a new report from the folks at TopGear claims that a source from Audi has confirmed that the new, lighter SUV will receive a bonkers RS version.
TopGear didn’t go into exactly who released this information, but it seemed rather well informed for this to be some sort of wild rumor or speculation. According to TG, when it asked its Audi source about a performance-oriented version of the Q7, the source said that the upgraded Q7 will be built in traditional “Audi style,” which the publication takes as saying the RS is all but a certainty.
The source went on to elaborate on possible drivetrains and he even tossed out the option of a high-output TDI engine. If the RS Q7 does go diesel, however, that would all but eliminate it from U.S. sales for at least a few years due to Americans’ lack of interest in diesels. The source was quick to say that if it did go diesel that the big RS certainly wouldn’t use the V-12 TDI, as that is simply too heavy for this type of vehicle.
The likely candidate for the RS Q7 in the opinion of TopGear and myself would be Audi’s existing 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8. In the U.S., this engine sees use in the RS 7, and it creates a whopping 560 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. This is enough to get the RS 7 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and would likely get the SUV to the same speed in around four seconds. Alternatively, Audi could crank the wick up a bit, and push that number under four seconds in order to compete with the likes of its platform mate, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S.
According to TopGear’s source, we’ll have to “wait some time” before the RS Q7 hit dealers, but he does speak as if it is definitely coming.
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