Compare the2023 Audi Q7VS 2023 Volkswagen Atlas

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Audi Q7 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 doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The Q7’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Atlas doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the Q7 and Atlas have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Q7 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’ 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.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Q7. But it costs extra on the Atlas.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Q7 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 doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the Q7 and the Atlas 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 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Audi Q7 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas:

	Q7	Atlas
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	99	307
Neck Injury Risk	25%	30%
Neck Stress	186 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	37 lbs.	59 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	61/46 lbs.	67/229 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	102	277
Chest Compression	.7 inches	.7 inches
Neck Stress	118 lbs.	129 lbs.
Neck Compression	38 lbs.	117 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	46/29 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 post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Audi Q7 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas:

	Q7	Atlas
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	14 inches
Spine Acceleration	40 G’s	51 G’s
Hip Force	557 lbs.	800 lbs.

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

Warranty

The Q7’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the Atlas’ (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

Reliability

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 10 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Engine

The Q7 45 TFSI’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 26 more horsepower (261 vs. 235) and 15 lbs.-ft. more torque (273 vs. 258) than the Atlas’ standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Q7 45 TFSI’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 7 lbs.-ft. more torque (273 vs. 266) than the Atlas’ optional 3.6 DOHC V6. The Q7 55 TFSI’s standard 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 59 more horsepower (335 vs. 276) and 103 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 266) than the Atlas’ optional 3.6 DOHC V6.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Q7 gets better mileage than the Atlas:

			MPG
Q7
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	19 city/25 hwy
Atlas
	FWD	3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/24 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/23 hwy

Regenerative brakes improve the Q7 55 TFSI’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Atlas doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Q7 has 3.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Atlas (22.5 vs. 18.6 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Q7’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Atlas:

	Q7	Atlas
Front Rotors	14.8 inches	13.2 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	12.2 inches

The Q7 stops much shorter than the Atlas:

	Q7	Atlas
70 to 0 MPH	160 feet	174 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	139 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Q7 has larger standard tires than the Atlas (255/55R19 vs. 245/60R18). The Q7’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Atlas (285/45R20 vs. 265/45R21).

The Q7’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Atlas’ standard 60 series tires. The Q7 Prestige’s optional tires have a lower 35 series profile than the Atlas SEL Premium R-Line’s 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Q7 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Atlas. The Q7 Prestige’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 21-inch wheels on the Atlas SEL Premium R-Line.

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires available on the Q7 can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Atlas doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

Suspension and Handling

The Q7 offers an available 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’ suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Q7 Prestige handles at .86 G’s, while the Atlas SEL R-Line Black 4Motion pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Q7 Premium Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.5 seconds quicker than the Atlas SEL 4Motion (26.4 seconds @ .68 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Q7 has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Atlas 2.0T (8.3 vs. 7.1 inches), allowing the Q7 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Q7 w/Air Suspension’s minimum ground clearance is 2.2 inches higher than on the Atlas V6 (9.7 vs. 7.5 inches).

Cargo Capacity

Pressing a button automatically lowers or raises the Q7’s third row seats, to make changing between cargo and passengers easier. The Atlas doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

The Q7’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Atlas’ (4400 vs. 2000 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Volkswagen Atlas is only 5000 pounds. The Q7 offers up to a 7700 lbs. towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Q7 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Atlas. 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 SEL, the Q7 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 Q7’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Atlas doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Q7 Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning 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 doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

Laser headlights, optional on the Q7 Prestige, produce their light by firing blue lasers through phosphorus, a process that uses one-half the power of the Atlas’ LED headlights. Laser headlights can have double the range of LEDs with a much smaller surface area.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Q7 Prestige offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Atlas doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To better shield the driver and front passenger’s vision, the Q7 has standard dual-element sun visors that can block glare from two directions simultaneously. The Atlas doesn’t offer secondary sun visors.

A manual rear sunshade and rear side window sunshades are optional in the Q7 (except Premium) to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Atlas doesn’t offer a rear sunshade.

The Q7’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 has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Q7 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.

The Q7 55 TFSI 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 SEL Premium’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park and it doesn’t offer remote control parking.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Q7 is less expensive to operate than the Atlas because typical repairs cost much less on the Q7 than the Atlas, including $386 less for a water pump and $588 less for a power steering pump.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Audi Q7 and the Volkswagen Atlas, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Q7 was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Five/10Best Trucks” for 3 of the last 6 years. The Atlas has never been a Car and Driver “Top Five/10Best Truck” pick.

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