Compare the2024 Audi Q7VS 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander

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

Safety

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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 Grand Highlander doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the Q7 and Grand 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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander.

Earlier warning of stopped traffic, traffic signals, dangerous road conditions, weather, or accidents, can keep driver's safer and prevent crashes. The Q7 has Car-to-X Services, a system that seemlesly communicates important warnings to the driver about impending danger, if they're available. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer a system that can receive automated systems from infrastructure.

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 Grand Highlander doesn’t offer a night vision system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Q7 has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Assist with Automatic Brake Activation, systems which detect vehicles approaching from the sides and can automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. Only the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum offers Parking Support Brake.

Both the Q7 and the Grand Highlander have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Audi Q7 is safer than the Grand Highlander:

	Q7	Grand Highlander
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Restraints	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Head Neck Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Peak Head Forces	0 G’s	0 G’s
Steering Column Movement Rearward	0 cm	5 cm
Chest Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD

The Audi Q7 achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2024 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The Grand Highlander is not a “Top Safety Pick” for 2024.

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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Engine

The Q7 has more powerful engines than the Grand Highlander:

	Horsepower	Torque
Q7 45 TFSI 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid	261 HP	273 lbs.-ft.
Q7 55 TFSI 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid	335 HP	369 lbs.-ft.
Grand Highlander Hybrid 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid	245 HP
Grand Highlander 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder	265 HP	310 lbs.-ft.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Q7 55 TFSI 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid is faster than the Toyota Grand Highlander turbo 4 cyl.:

	Q7	Grand Highlander
Zero to 30 MPH	3 sec	3.2 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	7 sec	8 sec
Quarter Mile	15.4 sec	16.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97 MPH	91 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Q7’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Q7 has 5.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the Grand Highlander Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (22.5 vs. 17.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Q7 has 4.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the Grand Highlander’s standard fuel tank (22.5 vs. 17.8 gallons).

Brakes and Stopping

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

	Q7	Grand Highlander
Front Rotors	14.8 inches	13.4 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	13.3 inches

The Q7’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Grand Highlander are solid, not vented.

The Q7 stops much shorter than the Grand Highlander:

	Q7	Grand Highlander
70 to 0 MPH	160 feet	187 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	141 feet	145 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

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

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 Grand Highlander XLE’s 65 series tires. The Q7 Prestige’s optional tires have a lower 35 series profile than the Grand Highlander 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 Grand Highlander XLE. The Q7 Prestige’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Grand Highlander 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 Grand 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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Q7’s wheelbase is 1.8 inches longer than on the Grand Highlander (117.9 inches vs. 116.1 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 Grand Highlander.

The Q7 Prestige handles at .86 G’s, while the Grand Highlander Platinum AWD pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Q7 Premium Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.2 seconds quicker than the Grand Highlander XLE AWD (26.4 seconds @ .68 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Q7 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Grand 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 Grand Highlander (9.7 vs. 8 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 Grand Highlander doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

Maximum trailer towing in the Toyota Grand 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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because 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 Grand 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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the Q7 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

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 Grand Highlander’s LED headlights. Laser headlights can have double the range of LEDs with a much smaller surface area.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Q7’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Grand Highlander’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

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 Grand 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 Grand 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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander 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 Grand 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 Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Audi Q7 and the Toyota Grand Highlander, based on reliability, safety and performance.