Fancy a taste of expensive...
Fancy a taste of expensive Bordeaux? Well, you won"t have long to wait ò€“ Bugatti will take the wraps off its much-rumoured four-seater hyper-car at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. And here"s the first grainy teaser picture.
The imposing-looking...
The imposing-looking newcomer is set to go on sale next year, and will rival the BMW X5 and Mercedes M-Class. Bigger than both by at least 30cm, it measures more than five metres in length - that"s longer than the A8.
Inside, there are three rows of seats with space for seven. Audi claims class-leading legroom for middle-row passengers, thanks to a sliding bench. Adding to the versatility, all the rear chairs fold flat, giving up to 2,035 litres of stowage - about the same as the M-Class. As well as having a similar dash layout to the A6 and A8, the Q7 marks the debut of options such as Audi"s lane departure warning system. This vibrates the steering wheel if the car drifts out of line.
There"s also a device which alerts the driver to vehicles entering their blindspot. Underneath the car is the firm"s quattro four-wheel-drive system, which sends 60 per cent of torque to the rear rims. Optional air-suspension can raise the Q7, giving more than 20cm of ground clearance for off-road use - and that"s backed up by a hill descent assist system. Engines at launch will include a 350bhp 4.2-litre V8 petrol and a 233bhp 3.0 TDI turbodiesel. The firm"s 326bhp 4.2 TDI will arrive later, while a 3.2 petrol V6 is also likely. Expect the range to kick off at í‚á£38,000.