| Drivetrain | All-Wheel Drive |
| Transmission | 8-Speed Automatic |
| Horsepower | 500 hp |
| Torque | 568 lb-ft @ 3000 rpm |
| Curb Weight | 5,214 lbs |
| Width | 78.5 in |
| Height | 67.2 in |
Reviews(1)
-
Karl
8 /10
2024 Audi SQ8 - Overview
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The 2024 Audi SQ8 has received a facelift to help it keep up, aesthetically, with the 523-hp V8 BMW X6 M60i ($94k), the 429-hp Mercedes-AMG GLE 53 Coupe ($92k), and the 468-hp Porsche Cayenne S Coupe ($108k) - and comes in at just under $97k. It already had the power to do so, thanks to a twin-turbo V8 splitting the difference between its rivals with 500 horsepower and 568 lb-ft of torque, and it continues to be one of the most entertaining sporty SUVs on sale in the USA. Even bolder styling has it standing out alongside these German rivals, which is essential when going up against such stiff and engaging competition, and it helps that it still boasts the same value with a strong list of features and high levels of comfort. But will this combination be enough to finally tip the scales in Audi’s favor, or will it continue to seesaw with other premium automakers?
New For 2024
- Base Trim Engine
- 4.0L Twin-Turbo V8 Gas
- Base Trim Transmission
- 8-Speed Automatic
- Base Trim Drivetrain
- All-Wheel Drive
- Base Trim Horsepower
- 500 hp
- Base Trim Torque
- 568 lb-ft @ 3000 rpm
- Fuel Economy
- 15/21 MPG
- Make
- Audi
- Model
- SQ8
- 0-60 MPH
- 4 seconds
- Segment
- Midsize Luxury SUV
- Torque
- 568 lb-ft
- Top Speed
- 155 mph
- Exterior Design
- Performance
- Fuel Efficiency
- Interior & Cargo
- Infotainment & Features
- Reliability
- Safety
- Value For Money
- Sleek coupe styling is more attractive than a regular SUV shape
- Performance is great - and it's a hoot to drive
- The interior is premium and comfortable for the family
- It's still practical enough for daily use
- It's not cheap (and more expensive than its traditional SUV counterpart)
- It's a gas guzzler
- Space is compromised by coupe-like styling
Most of the changes to the new Audi SQ8 SUV are cosmetic. These include an updated grille and front bumper, as well as new LED headlights that utilize lasers for high beams and programmable LED DRLs on the top Prestige trim. The taillights have also been updated, and there are new wheel designs and new paint colors. Naturally, the interior has been refreshed, too, with new seat designs. All of this makes the SQ8 look quite a bit like its e-tron counterpart.
2024 Audi SQ8 Price: Which One to Buy
Though it may not be the most expensive Audi on the market, the SQ8’s price is still quite high. The Premium Plus sells for $96,600 MSRP, while the Prestige will cost you $103,600. As well-appointed as each trim is, there are still several packages on offer, and the destination and handling fee adds an extra $1,195.
The difference in price is just $7,000, which is less than 10% for a car this expensive, so there is no reason not to splurge and get the Prestige. For that ‘little’ extra money, you get an even more upscale interior, ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, laser LED headlights, a head-up display, additional driver assists, and more. More important is which packages to add. If you care about how the car handles, then the S Sport package is a must with its active roll stabilization and sport rear differential. However, if comfort and luxury are more important, then the Luxury package may be more appealing, adding a Dinamica headliner and extended leather upholstery, with massaging front seats.
Interior and Features
The update for 2024 includes facelifting the exterior and improving the overall quality and appearance of the interior, but Audi has stuck with the three-screen interior tech setup.
Few SUVs boast such a luxurious interior space, with soft leather coating almost every surface and top-notch build quality ensuring not just safety but also nigh-silence while driving. The dashboard looks clean and sophisticated, but the touchscreen is a bit small for a luxury car at just 10.1 inches, though the digital gauge cluster is larger at 12.3 inches. The third 8.6-inch touchscreen lower dowen on the center console manages the climate functions. The shifter and steering wheel are nice and chunky, which coincides nicely with the car’s engaging driving character. In terms of practicality, the Audi is about on par with rivals, offering a decent amount of passenger and cargo space.
Space
No matter where you are situated inside the cabin, there is never a lack of space. Both rows have around 40 inches of legroom, but the ceiling, with its standard sunroof, isn’t quite as generous. Regardless, the seats are all extremely comfortable, with heating and 12-way power-adjustment standard for those up front. Thus, all it takes is a few presses of the buttons to achieve a commanding driving position. This is essential, given that there are some blind spots you’ll want to minimize.
Cargo
Despite the fact that it places a bit more focus on sportiness, the Audi SQ8 can still hold quite a bit of junk in its trunk. With the rear seats in the upright position, a solid 30.5 cubic feet of space is available - more than enough for any regular shopping needs while still leaving room to stow the kids’ school bags on the way home. Not many premium performance SUVs can match this. The trunk volume almost doubles when the second row is folded down, providing 60.7 cubes.
The cabin offers several spots to store smaller items, including a pair of cupholders in the center console, two more in the rear fold-down armrest, a glove compartment, and pockets in each door. The front armrest also lifts up to reveal a decent-sized cubby.
|
Audi SQ8 |
BMW X6 M60i |
Mercedes-AMG GLE 53 Coupe |
|---|---|---|
|
Seating |
||
|
5 Seater |
5 Seater |
5 Seater |
|
Headroom in inches - Front | Rear |
||
|
37.1 | 38.1 |
39.3 | 37.5 |
40.2 | 36.9-37.8 |
|
Legroom in inches - Front | Rear |
||
|
41.6 | 40.2 |
40.4 | 35.7 |
40.3 | 40.9 |
|
Trunk/Cargo Space |
||
|
30.5-60.7 ft³ |
27.4-59.6 ft³ |
23.1-63.2 ft³ |
Materials and Colors
Unlike some lower-tier Q8, the S variant starts out with high-quality Valcona leather upholstery. This is presented in a choice of three interior colors: black, Rotor Gray, or Arras Red, all with RockGray stitching and Black carpets, dashboard, and headliner. Opting for the Luxury package upgrades the upholstery to extended leather, running up the door panels, armrests, and dashboard, while switching out the headliner for Dinamica. The trim around the cabin is comprised of high-gloss Gray Oak wood and Carbon Vector inlays.
Features and Infotainment
There isn’t a lot left off the list of standard features, as the Premium Plus is already a more advanced trim than the usual entry-level Q8 Premium. As such, it comes equipped with heated power-adjustable front seats, quad-zone climate control, LED ambient interior lighting, and a power tilt-and-telescoping steering column. The infotainment consists of three screens - a 12.3-inch configurable digital gauge cluster, an upper 10.1-inch touchscreen for most of the apps, and an 8.6-inch screen for the climate controls. The suite’s features include wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, navigation, HD Radio, and Bluetooth with audio streaming. There is a standard 17-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system, but the Prestige upgrades this to a 23-speaker version. It also gets ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a head-up display, and more
|
Premium Plus |
Prestige |
|---|---|
|
Heated 12-way Power Front Seats, Leather Upholstery |
|
|
S |
S |
|
12.3-, 10.1-, and 8.6-inch Digital Displays w/ Navigation |
|
|
S |
S |
|
Quad-Zone Climate Control |
|
|
S |
S |
|
Head-up Display |
|
|
N/A |
S |
|
23-Speaker Bang & Olufsen Sound System |
|
|
N/A |
S |
Performance
The incredible acceleration belies the large size and high weight of the SQ8, but its handling is affected, though it is still a truly fun-to-pilot SUV.
No matter the trim, the engine in the Audi SQ8 is a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 that develops 500 hp and 568 lb-ft of torque. Paired with a slick eight-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission, this setup allows the Audi SQ8 to sprint from 0-60 mph in just four seconds. Of course, being an Audi, the SUV gets a quattro AWD drivetrain as standard. Trailering is excellent, and the SQ8 has 7,700-pound towing capacity with the factory tow hitch ($750) fitted.
We had an opportunity to try out the new SQ8 at its launch in Cape Town, South Africa. Our tester ran on 23-inch alloys, which had become an option on US cars in the meantime; they weren't available from launch.
Test Drive Feedback
Senior Road Tester
Numbers tell only part of the story... the SQ8 will make occupants with more sensitive stomachs feel queasy when you floor it, such is the rate at which it gathers pace.
While the changes for the new year may all be aesthetic, we still decided to take the 2024 SQ8 for a spin to see if it’s as good as we remember. Naturally, it’s still extremely rapid, but what really matters is how it puts all that power down going around the bends and this doesn't come at a cost to comfort. To this end, we found the SUV competent but not overly thrilling, while the suspension does an excellent job of soaking up bumps.
2024 Audi SQ8 First Drive Review: Speedy Sophisticate
Audi has handed one of its top SUVs a substantially refreshed appearance.
Fuel Efficiency
While the SQ8’s gas mileage is not particularly good, for a heavy vehicle that puts a focus on quick acceleration, 15/25/17 mpg across the city/highway/combined cycles isn’t terrible either. The Audi’s fuel capacity of 22.5 gallons helps to make up for this a little, allowing the vehicle to cover 382 miles on a full tank.
|
4.0-liter Twin-turbo V8 8-Speed Automatic AWD |
|
|---|---|
|
Power | Torque |
|
|
500 hp | 568 lb-ft |
|
|
0-60 |
|
|
4 seconds |
|
|
Top Speed |
|
|
155 mph |
|
|
MPG |
|
|
15/21/17 |
|
|
Max. Towing Capacity |
|
|
7,700 lbs |
|
Safety
A one-time holder of the IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award, the SQ8 continues to be one of the safest SUVs on the road with a long list of driver-assistance tech.
When it comes to luxury SUVs like the Audi SQ8, the NHTSA often only tests the rollover safety rating. Here, it scored the average four-star rating that most tall, heavy vehicles do. However, the IIHS has comprehensively tested the base-level Q8, giving it top marks of Good in all fields. It earned an IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award in 2023.
Standard safety features include ABS, stability and traction control, and a total of eight airbags, while the more advanced driver-assistance suite comprises Audi pre sense front (accident preparation and front-collision alert with automatic emergency braking), front and rear parking sensors, a surround-view camera, blind-spot assist, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, and the obligatory rearview camera. The Prestige adds a little to this with intersection assist, automated parking, and traffic-sign recognition as standard, while night vision assistance is available.
|
Premium Plus |
Prestige |
|---|---|
|
Adaptive Cruise Control w/ Lane Guidance |
|
|
S |
S |
|
Front-collision Alert w/ Automatic Emergency Braking |
|
|
S |
S |
|
Lane-departure Alert w/ Lane-keep Assist |
|
|
S |
S |
|
Blind-spot Monitoring & Surround-view Camera |
|
|
S |
S |
|
Night Vision Assist |
|
|
O |
O |
Reliability
While there is no reliability rating for the Audi SQ8 from JD Power, the regular Q8 received a middling score of 74 out of 100 for Quality & Reliability when it was last evaluated for MY2023. The 2024 SQ8 was recalled for improperly mounted driver-seat airbag, which is an issue that carried over from the 2023 model year. The warranty for the 2024 Audi SQ8 is pretty average too, covering new vehicle issues and powertrain repairs for four years/50,000 miles, while offering roadside assistance for the same period.
Design
With the changes made during its facelift, the SQ8 has come out looking bolder than before. Now, the mid-tier performance SUV looks more like its electric e-tron sibling, courtesy of a large octagonal grille with a unique black-and-white pattern. The L-shaped matrix-design LED headlights are new too, and they're upgraded to laser high beams on the Prestige, where they're paired with digital LED DRLs with four selectable lighting signatures. The surround of the grille neatly connects with these elements, giving the whole front fascia a broader appearance. The lower bumper features a thin vent strip that leads into a pair of much more aggressive vents. Both the front lip spoiler and rear diffuser speak to the car’s performance chops. The wheels are 22-inch alloys as standard, with optional 23s, and the Prestige can also opt for digitalized OLED taillights, if the standard LEDs aren’t impressive enough for you. Further customization is available through the Black Optic package, which swaps out most of the chrome exterior accents for racier black ones.
Verdict: Is The 2024 Audi SQ8 A Good SUV?
While sporty luxury sedans like the S8 may stand out in a market awash with SUVs, the SQ8 is more easily lost in the crowd. At least, that is what we would have said prior to this year’s stylish refresher. Now, the vehicle looks more the part of one of the last refuges of the gas-powered V8 engine that makes the Audi sound as good as it feels. Sure, it may not be as quick on its feet as the BMW X6 but the SQ8 is still extremely refined, powerful, and comfortable on the road. However, and this is rarely the case, the Mercedes alternative is actually a little cheaper. In the past we’d say it was better-looking but Audi has shored up that weakness while not sacrificing anything that made it a top contender before, including a strong list of features and a very practical interior. It may very well be in the best position it has been for years, and of the German trio, it could be the best all-rounder at the moment.
