Audi Q7 V12 TDI to launch in 2008

Audi's range-topping 12-cylinder diesel version of the new Q7 SUV will be in showrooms from next year, reports Dutch magazine Autotelegraaf. Previewed in concept form at the North American Auto Show in Detroit earlier this year, this behemoth of a machine will be entering production in the second half of 2008. The 6-litre V12 TDI engine is able to produce 360kW of power (500 hp), while torque is 1,000 Nm (737 lb/ft) at only 1,750 rpm. No great surprise then that the Q7 is propelled to 100 kph (62 mph) from standstill in just 5.5 seconds and can achieve an electronically-limited 250 kph (155 mph). Read: it could go faster. Despite this hair-raising performance, Audi have achieved Euro V emissions compliance due for introduction in 2010 and a fuel consumption figure of 11.9 l/100km (19.8 mpg). But before the V12 TDI's introduction into the Q7 range, its 4.2-litre sibling will join the line-up, claiming the title of 'most powerful diesel production car'. But only just. It nabs the title from its Touareg V10 TDI cousin by a mere 13 hp. The Audi's 4.2-litre V8 engine produces an output of 240 kW (326 hp), enabling a 0-100 kph sprint of 6.8 seconds. The 4.2 model however is only Euro IV compliant and its fuel consumption marginly worse (0.8 l/km) than figures quoted on the Q7 V12 concept. Pricing is yet to be announced for the V12 but the new 6-litre diesel should be available in the second half of 2008, with the V8 model hitting showrooms this summer. An American release is likely but not certain.