Compare the2023 Audi Q8VS 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Audi Q8 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Q8’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the Q8 and Atlas Cross Sport have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Q8 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Atlas Cross Sport’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Q8’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Q8. But it costs extra on the Atlas Cross Sport.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Q8 Prestige helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the Q8 and the Atlas Cross Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

The Audi Q8 weighs 555 to 890 pounds more than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Audi Q8 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Q8	Atlas Cross Sport
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	296	307
Neck Injury Risk	30%	30%
Neck Stress	235 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	14 lbs.	59 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	82/59 lbs.	67/229 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	238	277
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	34%	39%
Neck Stress	120 lbs.	129 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	47/47 lbs.	297/97 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Audi Q8 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Q8	Atlas Cross Sport
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	141	208
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	282	309
Hip Force	593 lbs.	594 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Q8 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 127 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Atlas Cross Sport is not even a standard “Top Safety Pick.”

Warranty

The Q8’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

Reliability

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 17 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Engine

The Q8’s 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 100 more horsepower (335 vs. 235) and 111 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 258) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Q8’s 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 59 more horsepower (335 vs. 276) and 103 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 266) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Audi Q8 is faster than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Q8	Atlas Cross Sport turbo 4 cyl.	Atlas Cross Sport V6
Zero to 60 MPH	5.9 sec	8.1 sec	7.9 sec
Quarter Mile	14.4 sec	16.3 sec	16 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97.6 MPH	84.5 MPH	87.4 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

Regenerative brakes improve the Q8’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Q8 has 3.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Atlas Cross Sport (22.5 vs. 18.6 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Audi Q8 higher (5 out of 10) than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport (3 to 5). This means the Q8 produces up to 16.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Atlas Cross Sport every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Q8’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Atlas Cross Sport:

	Q8	Atlas Cross Sport
Front Rotors	14.8 inches	13.2 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	12.2 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Q8 has larger tires than the Atlas Cross Sport (285/45R21 vs. 245/60R18). The Q8’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Atlas Cross Sport (285/45R21 vs. 265/45R21).

The Q8’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Atlas Cross Sport SE’s standard 60 series tires. The Q8 Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line’s 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Q8 has standard 21-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Atlas Cross Sport SE. The Q8 Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 21-inch wheels on the Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line.

Suspension and Handling

The Q8 has a standard driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Atlas Cross Sport’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Q8 Prestige handles at .83 G’s, while the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Q8 Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion (26.9 seconds @ .69 average G’s vs. 27.8 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Towing

The Q8’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (7700 vs. 2000 pounds).

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Q8 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Atlas Cross Sport. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Volkswagen. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 32% lower rating, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the Atlas Cross Sport SEL, the Q8 Prestige offers an optional passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Q8’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Q8 Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Q8 has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer headlight washers.

A manual rear sunshade is optional in the Q8 and power rear side window sunshades are optional in the Q8 (except Premium) to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a rear sunshade.

The Q8’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Atlas Cross Sport has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Q8 Prestige offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Atlas Cross Sport.

The Q8 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning costs extra on the Atlas Cross Sport.

The Q8 Prestige’s Park Assist Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Park Assist Plus will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park and it doesn’t offer remote control parking.