2017 Audi Q7: Car Seat Check
CARS.COM — The redesigned 2017 Audi Q7 is a seven-seat luxury SUV that should please most families. With its redesign, legroom in the second row increased by 1.7 inches, an impressive amount, and it easily can hold three child-safety seats across. The third row, however, remains the same as its predecessor with 29.2 inches of legroom. This space is best left to younger kids in booster seats or tweens. Teens with long limbs won’t be willing to sit in the way back for longer drives.
How many car seats fit in the second row? Three
How many car seats fit in the third row? Two
What We Like
- The Q7 has five sets of lower Latch anchors. In the second row, three sets sit under removable covers that run the length of each seating position. In the third row, the two sets are found under removable hard plastic covers. All the anchors are easy to find and use. The five top tether anchors are well-labeled and easy to use.
- Our rear-facing infant and convertible seats had plenty of room in the second row. There was no need to move the front passenger seat forward to accommodate them.
- In the second row, the forward-facing convertible fit well. For the third row, we slid the second-row seats as far forward as possible. Once the forward convertible was installed, its base sat roughly an inch beyond the bottom seat cushion, but this isn’t a concern because more than 80 percent of the car seat was on the seat bottom. The forward convertible also installed easily in the third row.
- The high-back booster seat fit well in the second and third rows. The seat belt buckles in the second row sit on spring-loaded bases that stay upright when moved into that position.
- After folding the second-row seats flat, it took a few minutes to figure out how to tumble them forward, but once we got it, it was easy to do. The opening to the third row is wide.
What We Don’t
- In the third row, the seat belt buckles don’t stay in an upright position and they could be difficult for kids to use independently.
- The Q7’s step-in height is quite high, making it difficult for some kids to get into the SUV on their own.
Grading Scale
A: Plenty of room for the car seat and the child; doesn’t impact driver or front-passenger legroom. Easy to find and connect to Latch and tether anchors. No fit issues involving head restraint or seat contouring. Easy access to the third row.
B: Plenty of room. One fit or connection issue. Some problems accessing third row when available.
C: Marginal room. Two fit or connection issues. Difficult to access third row when available.
D: Insufficient room. Two or more fit or connection issues.
F: Does not fit or is unsafe.
About Cars.com’s Car Seat Checks
Editors Jennifer Geiger, Jennifer Newman and Matt Schmitz are certified child safety seat installation technicians.
For the Car Seat Check, we use a Graco SnugRide Classic Connect 30 infant-safety seat, a Britax Marathon convertible seat and Graco TurboBooster seat. The front seats are adjusted for a 6-foot driver and a shorter passenger. The three child seats are installed in the second row. The booster seat sits behind the driver’s seat, and the infant and convertible seats are installed behind the front passenger seat.
We also install the forward-facing convertible in the second row’s middle seat with the booster and infant seat in the outboard seats to see if three car seats will fit; a child sitting in the booster seat must be able to reach the seat belt buckle. If there’s a third row, we install the booster seat and a forward-facing convertible. To learn more about how we conduct our Car Seat Checks, go here.
Parents should also remember that they can use the Latch system or a seat belt to install a car seat, and that Latch anchors have a weight limit of 65 pounds, including the weight of the child and the weight of the seat itself.
