Compare the2023 Audi Q7VS 2022 Toyota Highlander

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
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 Toyota Highlander 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 Highlander doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the Q7 and Highlander 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 Highlander’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.

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

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 Highlander doesn’t offer a night vision system.

The Q7 has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Highlander LE/XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Q7 has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Highlander LE/XLE/XSE/Limited/Platinum has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the Q7 and the Highlander 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, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras 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 Toyota Highlander:

	Q7	Highlander
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	99	292
Neck Injury Risk	25%	38.2%
Neck Stress	186 lbs.	347 lbs.
Neck Compression	37 lbs.	55 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	61/46 lbs.	321/243 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	102	328
Neck Stress	118 lbs.	179 lbs.
Neck Compression	38 lbs.	90 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	46/29 lbs.	545/323 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 Toyota Highlander:

	Q7	Highlander
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	15 inches
HIC	290	366
Spine Acceleration	40 G’s	41 G’s
Hip Force	557 lbs.	664 lbs.

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

Warranty

The Q7 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Highlander’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The Q7’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Highlander’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Engine

The Q7 45 TFSI’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 10 lbs.-ft. more torque (273 vs. 263) than the Highlander’s 3.5 DOHC V6. The Q7 55 TFSI’s standard 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 40 more horsepower (335 vs. 295) and 106 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 263) than the Highlander’s 3.5 DOHC V6.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Q7 55 TFSI 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid is faster than the Toyota Highlander:

	Q7	Highlander
Zero to 60 MPH	7 sec	7.3 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	4.8 sec	5.2 sec
Quarter Mile	15.4 sec	15.7 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97 MPH	93 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

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

The Q7 has 4.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the Highlander (22.5 vs. 17.9 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 Highlander:

	Q7	Highlander
Front Rotors	14.8 inches	13.3 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	13.3 inches

The Q7 stops much shorter than the Highlander:

	Q7	Highlander
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Q7 has larger standard tires than the Highlander (255/55R19 vs. 235/65R18). The Q7’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Highlander (285/45R20 vs. 235/65R18).

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 Highlander L/LE/XLE’s standard 65 series tires. The Q7 Prestige’s optional tires have a lower 35 series profile than the Highlander XSE/Limited/Platinum’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Q7 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Highlander L/LE/XLE. The Q7 Prestige’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Highlander XSE/Limited/Platinum.

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 Highlander 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 Highlander’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Q7 has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Highlander doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Q7’s wheelbase is 5.7 inches longer than on the Highlander (117.9 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Q7 is .8 inches wider in the front and 1.2 inches wider in the rear than on the Highlander.

The Q7 Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Highlander Platinum AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Q7 Premium Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.3 seconds quicker than the Highlander Platinum AWD (26.4 seconds @ .68 average G’s vs. 27.7 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Q7 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Highlander (8.3 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Q7 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Q7 w/Air Suspension’s minimum ground clearance is 1.7 inches higher than on the Highlander (9.7 vs. 8 inches).

Passenger Space

The Q7 has .5 inches more front shoulder room and 1.5 inches more third row legroom than the Highlander.

Cargo Capacity

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

Towing

Maximum trailer towing in the Toyota Highlander is limited to 5000 pounds. The Q7 offers up to a 7700 lbs. towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The Q7 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Highlander uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The engine in the Q7 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Highlander. 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 Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 17% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory seat and mirrors in the Highlander Limited/Platinum, 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 Highlander doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Q7’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Highlander’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

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 Highlander’s 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 Highlander 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 Highlander 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 Highlander 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 Highlander offers 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 Highlander.

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 Highlander doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Q7 owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Q7 with a number “5” insurance rate while the Highlander is rated higher at a number “8” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Q7 is less expensive to operate than the Highlander because typical repairs cost much less on the Q7 than the Highlander, including $104 less for a fuel pump and $345 less for a timing belt/chain.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Audi Q7 and the Toyota Highlander, 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 Highlander has never been a Car and Driver “Top Five/10Best Truck” pick.