The new third-gen Audi Q7 is V6 diesel SUV that can run on vegetable oil

Audi is readying a Really Big Car called the Q9 that offers up to seven seats, but before that, here’s another Really Big Car that might just undermine it a tad. It’s the new, third-generation Q7. As you can see, it Big.

And it will offer up to seven seats, including for the first time a six-seat option for the full ‘business class’ experience. Quite how that’ll feel when you tank it with vegetable oil remains to be seen.

Because this new Q7 is a diesel-only affair, with a 3.0-litre V6 bolted in offered in 295bhp or 242bhp tunes, mild hybrid assistance in the form of a 24bhp electric motor and electric-powered compressor, and the option of pouring in hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO). No, you now want a bag of chips.

About the hybrid bits. There’s a belt alternator starter, a ‘refined’ e-motor and a small battery. You can go for ‘short periods’ on e-power alone, while the compressor is always on, boosting mid-range power and bettering your efficiency.

There’s a standard fit eight-speed Tiptronic 'box and permanent AWD (something called ‘quattro’), naturally, along with a new limited-slip centre diff that, says Audi, offers up better traction and steering. Including during ‘rapid and sudden load changes’, which is a polite way of saying ‘watch this’.

Audi promises “outstanding ride comfort” and the ability for the Q7 to handle “any terrain with ease”. There’s a standard passive steel-spring suspension setup, or the option of adaptive air suspension, and sportier air suspension. There are big brakes, six-pot calipers, 20in wheels as standard and the ability to run up to 23s, and a data centre’s worth of assistance: auto brakes, traffic alerts, 360-degree camera, park assist… you get the gist.

Audi’s also fitted in a new emergency function that automatically steers the car to an empty hard shoulder if it detects the driver is ‘inactive’ at the wheel. Should the driver fail to respond to the myriad of prompts, it’ll take over and guide it safely to a stop.

It’ll also park itself. And this new car features interesting functionality whereby at night, it’ll project the turn signals onto the ground to give pedestrians and cyclists notice about which way the Q7 intends to go. Yes, that’s right: Big Audi. Dynamic indicators. Writes itself, really.

Saying that, this is no shrinking violet on the roads. Audi calls it ‘muscular’ and ‘confident’. There’s the now obligatory angry LEDs, that singleframe grille, slightly flared arches, rear light strips and a full-on box as a silhouette. Inside, it’s as per what you’d expect from a plush, posh Audi: a massive panoramic OLED display, huge stereo with speakers in the headrests, a new pano roof, storage, charging ports, comfy electrically adjustable seats and a tonne of optional extras.

Still want that Q9?