2011 Audi A7 Sportback: Great car, hot looks
Audi is on a mission with new models. After redesigning the luxurious A8 at the beginning of the summer and releasing the new A1 in September – not to mention the various sportier versions of current models – Audi has just unveiled the new A7 Sportback, a five-door luxury hatchback. This vehicle runs against the new BMW Gran Turismo, which also features a hatch. It’s kind of funny that these luxury car manufacturers are turning their efforts toward this configuration, which is normally associated with practicality. After all, these two brands already offer some very interesting crossovers.
But automobile companies always find time for the most popular segments. This time, Audi is targeting buyers who appreciate classic lines, luxury and performance coupled with the ability to carry bulky loads thanks to a hatchback and fold-down rear seats. And with the A7 Sportback, practical does not mean inelegant. Quite the contrary.
Beauty queen
Lately, we’ve seen four- or five-door cars pull off coupe stylings quite successfully – regardless of the brand. The most demanding connoisseurs consider the Mercedes-Benz CLS a classic, while the Volkswagen Passat CC and Hyundai Sonata have earned accolades across the board for their elegance. So it’s not surprising that when Audi (whose stylists are consistently coming up with impressive designs) breaks into the category, it’s with one of the prettiest cars on the market. And that’s compared to all cars in all categories.
When the A5 was launched three years ago, many claimed it was the manufacturer’s most elegant car ever. Personally, I thought it was very nice, but the rear section was a little fad-ish for my tastes. My apologies to the car’s designer, Mr. Da Silva. He went on to become the grand pooba of design for the entire Volkswagen Group, and he is no doubt very proud of the new A7 (whose lines are inspired from the celebrated A5). On the A7 Sportback, however, the design team succeeded in making the car’s side panels more dynamic. They call them tornado lines. But the best part is definitely the rear. Without too much fanfare or any fancy lines, the stylists found a way to create something elegant enough to match the front end. The front features all the same elements found on recent Audi models, including the famous single-frame grille. Its fins are shiny black with chrome accents to convey its quality. Meanwhile, its horizontal positioning accentuates the vehicle’s width, as does the low and wide air intake design.
All this lends the A7 Sportback a very aggressive look. It’s one of those cars that catches your eye. To make sure of that, it features superb LED daylights that add to the vehicle’s dynamic character. As you’d expect from an Audi, the interior is very well crafted. Sport, luxury and top-quality materials have been nicely balanced. In Ingolstadt, they’re very proud of the attractive oak veneer appliqués, available exclusively on this model. Both the driver and front passenger are enveloped by the dashboard, which spans the entire width of the car. Naturally, the materials are nothing but the best and the fit and trim is impeccable. But what is even more impressive is the eight-inch LED screen that pops up, then tucks back into the dashboard when not in use. It displays the main vehicle functions, which are controlled via the button for the MMI system (one of the most intuitive in this category). To the left of this button is a touch screen on which you can select your radio station or write letters – such as “R” for “radio” – to access different controls.
And it gets better. The European version links to Google Earth, which displays your driving route on the LCD screen. Better yet, the headlight control unit is integrated with the MMI navigation network (on option). The navigation reads the route and provides the corresponding information to the headlight control unit. The result? Your high beams get automatically switched on as you approach the highway, your static cornering lights get switched on before you get to the intersection, and, if you happen to take a drive through Great Britain, your lights will automatically adapt to left-side driving.
Unfortunately, this system relies on cellular technology that is not available in North America yet. However, they have partnered with Google to offer 3-D navigation on the North American versions. Of all the options, one worth mentioning is the night screen, which shows any obstacles you otherwise may not see when your high beams are on. Another safety feature is Lane Departure System. Not only does it let you know when you veer outside your lane, but it also gently guides the vehicle back between the white lines. And finally, the cruise control doesn’t just automatically maintain a pre-set distance between you and the next car, it will also completely immobilize your vehicle if the car in front of you comes to a sudden stop.
Don’t forget the driving pleasure
Reading over the list of gadgets available on this car, you might think that the driver doesn’t have to do very much. You can, after all, adjust the firmness of the suspension and other parameters to customize your car’s dynamism. But fear not, these accessories do not diminish the driving pleasure associated with the A7 Sportback. Quite the contrary, actually.
This car’s platform is extremely rigid, and Audi engineers did a great job of infusing their knowledge into the A7 Sportback by means of various materials, such as aluminum, heat-treated steel, cold-treated steel and forged aluminum. These metals work together to give you a very rigid platform and a body that is quite light for a car this size. As for the power train, the only one offered on our continent is a supercharged TFSI 3.0-L V6 that produces 300 hp. It’s coupled with a seven-speed S tronic transmission. And, as always, this dual-clutch transmission is impressively efficient. It goes without saying that gearshifts can be set to automatic, but they can also be controlled via paddles behind the steering wheel. The 0-100 km/hr sprint can be done in 5.6 seconds, while the manufacturer claims that its fuel consumption is less than 9.0 L/100km. This impressive showing can be explained in part by the start-stop system which switches the engine off when the vehicle stops and starts it again when your foot leaves the brake pedal.
On the road, this five-door Audi is a pleasure to drive. You might think that its electro-hydraulic power steering would provide too much assistance or make you feel too disconnected from the road, but we found that it was very precise and provided good feedback when we took the A7 Sportback for a jaunt through Sardinia, Italy. Its road handling is impressive and the car manages to remain neutral, regardless of where you take it. On winding roads, the car took corners with absolute calm. As you’d expect, Quattro AWD is offered factory-standard. And if ever the car’s various accessories to enhance safety and make the car easier to handle are just not enough to match your enthusiasm, the ultra-powerful brakes are there to save the day.
This newbie will be available in Canada by mid-2011 (as a 2012 model) for approximately $70,000. However, some of the accessories we had the chance to try out in Europe may not be offered in the Americas. Regardless, this is an exceptional car from many standpoints. Oh, and I almost forgot, thanks to the hatchback and fold-down rear seats, its cargo capacity is 1,360 litres!