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Video: 2012 Audi A7

02:41 min
By Cars.com Editors
May 10, 2011

About the video

Cars.com's Dave Thomas takes a look at the 2012 Audi A7.

Transcript

<v Narrator>Cars.com Auto Review. Hi, I'm Dave Thomas with cars.com and this is a 2012 Audi A7. Now it's based on the next generation A6 which typically comes in a sedan or station wagon body style but this is a slick hatchback.
Now we've seen this body style before. Namely on the BMW 535 GT. However, we think the a seven is a lot better looking. Upfront, it kind of mimics Audi's R8 super car. So it's really aggressive. Around the back, it's more rounded, sleeker, more elegant. Almost like a classic Jaguar. It looks good, but how does the A7 drive? Really well. It has a 310 horsepower super charged six cylinder engine. Now BMW's 535 GT has a turbocharge six. It gets about 300 horse power but you really feel the difference in the weight. The BMW weighs 500 pounds more than the A7. So just imagine having Brian Urlacher and Ray Lewis in the backseat of this thing. May be just one number removed from Audi's A8 sedan but the A7 is not as luxurious inside as that flagship is. The A8 has stuff like suede door liners. You're not going to find that in here. Of course the A8 is also a lot more money. The A7 is laid out more like a sports car. So it has a lot of black a lot of metal trim and this dark brown wood inlay. And believe it or not that's one of only two options you have. And I don't know if I like it. Every Audi has this nice big display screen you see here. pays to move up a little bit pay a little bit more to get navigation and what Audi calls a connect system which is basically a portable wifi network. So you get news, sports, weather all through this screen here using 3g, which is like your phone. Not satellite, like some other car systems. Probably the biggest difference between that BMW 535 GT and this Audi A7, is backseat comfort. While the A7 is roomy enough for me where the driver's seat where I was sitting it's not as big as BMW's which is really comfortable. And if you're a Brian Urlacher or Ray Lewis you're not going to fit back here. You are going to give up a little bit of practicality going with a stylish look versus a traditional station wagon. However, there's still plenty of cargo room in the A7. It's a really deep cargo well. So if you have items like golf clubs they're going to fit really well. And it can handle any shopping trip you're going to do. If you still run out of space, the rear seats do fold flat. There are a lot of ways to spend $65,000 in the luxury car segment and unique body styles like this A7 are just one more option. However, it packs a lot of style and performance and believe it or not practicality that make it worth that price. <v Narrator>For more car related news go to cars.com or our blog kickingtires.net.

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