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Audi has launched it's new range-topping SUV, the Q8, at a special event in China. The new five-door SUV is based on the same platform as the big Q7 (and is virtually the same length and width) but is far lower, and sleeker. And it's five-seat only.
In spite of the lower roof, it's still practical, with a 605-litre boot (expanding to 1,755 litres with the back seats folded) and the rest of the interior is lifted more or less directly from the A8 luxury saloon. That means you get the double-decker touchscreens and the all-digital 'Virtual Cockpit' instruments, as well as some pretty impressive build quality.
The touchscreens come with haptic feedback for their virtual buttons, and the tech count includes natural language voice controls, a heads up display, a WiFi hotspot, Audi Connect online services, car-to-infrastructure communication which can warn other of hazards on the road, remote parking, and semi-autonomous motorway lane-keeping, powered by up to five radar sensors, six cameras, twelve ultrasound sensors and a laser scanner.
On the outside, Audi says that it has made a conscious effort to move away from the 'cookie cutter' styling of some other models, and the Q8 gets an aggressive new radiator grille treatment, and more stylised air intakes and front bumper. At the back, there's an all-LED brake light setup similar to that seen on the A7. You can have wheels of up to 22-inches in diameter, and there are standard-fit LED headlights.
As with the A7 and A8, all the initial engines offered in the Q8 will come with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system, and although they kick off with familiar badges (50 3.0 V6 TDI and 55 3.0 V6 TFSI petrol) they are in fact new engines, developed to be shared with Bentley, Porsche, and other high-end Volkswagen Group models. As well as those V6 units, there will eventually be an SQ8 (featuring the big triple-turbo V8 diesel from the SQ7) and a seriously powerful RS Q8. A plug-in hybrid, with a 51km one-charge range and sharing its tech with the Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid, will also be available in due course.
Sales will start later this year, and the Q8 will be more expensive than the larger Q7, so expect prices to stick pretty close, model-for-model, to those of the A8 luxury saloon.