Audi SQ7 vs Cupra Terramar

What's the difference?

There are newer options than the current Audi SQ7 and SQ8, including those which use the same platform, but don't write these luxury large SUVs off just yet.

It's a rare thing that a vehicle costing $200,000 has an air of pragmatism about it, but the SQ7 does. Its sensible leather upholstery, decent practicality, towing capability and near-excess of interior space make it a great family wagon.

As a counterpoint, the sharper looking SQ8 has minimal trade-off in comfort and interior room (at least for five) and is the kind of statement piece you'd expect for the price — especially in one of its loud paint colours.

Whichever way you leap, it's true that while the SQ7 and SQ8 are ageing, they are doing so gracefully and remain a superb option in this segment.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with accommodation and meals provided.

There may be a lot of factors we don’t know yet, chief among them being price. One thing is for sure, though, the Terramar looks to be an intriguing and anything but dull mid-size SUV alternative for up-sizers or family buyers who love to drive.

While it might not be one of the more affordable options, it certainly makes the argument for a semi-premium alternative. Seems like Cupra’s last combustion car is certainly one worth waiting for.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

If you're getting an SQ7, you'll want to tick the 'Black Pack' box because otherwise there are a lot of high-gloss silver details, especially at the rear that don't suit this tall and slightly awkward SUV.

The SQ8 is more convincing, appearing wider on the road with its new 'singleframe' grille design seemingly sucking it even closer to the tarmac like some kind of overgrown Audi RS3.

Both get an attractive new 2D design for the Audi rings and L-shaped grille details. These aid the SQ7's front end which is more muscular and purposeful than before.

The attractive lights have moved higher up the front end for enhanced presence, too. You get Matrix LEDs as standard but these candles are the hardcore HD Matrix items that feature laser light for further even longer light throw at night. They are simply awesome.

Fresh 22-inch alloy wheels and minor changes to badges finish off the exterior treatment for both cars.

The SQ8's bold specification — finished here in 'Sakhir Gold' — sets it apart from other SUVs as the metallic gold paint shimmers in the sunlight. The SQ8 is also available with whopping great 23-inch alloy wheels that you see here.

Inside, both cars share a similar architecture with 10.1-inch touchscreen for the multimedia and an 8.6-inch item below for heating and ventilation settings. 

The SQ7 is a great example of a design ageing without dating, its confident horizontal lines and well-proportioned cabin features are as attractive as they were at launch, if less impressive than the related VW Touareg's whopping 15-inch screen or the minimalist Range Rover Sport.

Adding to the feeling of quality is that signature Audi smell — a combination of leather and the Sensory Package's perfume, no doubt. The SQ7 keeps a round-bottom steering wheel which remains one of the best in the business, it's just the right size and diameter trimmed with dimpled leather.

Final flourishes include the optional contrast red stitching and seatbelts as well as eye-catching turned aluminium trims.

The Terramar looks sharp. In the metal it’s clear this is a departure from its platform-mates, the Tiguan and Skoda Kodiaq.

In fact, with its rounded nose, sleek light fittings, and light-bar emblazoned and spoiler-fitted rear, the Terramar is looking, if anything, a bit Porsche in its silhouette.

Up front, the aggressive grille design is in part meant to evoke the fangs of a big cat, while down the side the ‘wave’ line in the bodywork of the doors is meant to not only look sporty but bring a unique highlight to the Terramar’s side profile.

Around the rear, the roofline culminates in a tidy spoiler piece, while the big rear diffuser references quad exhausts at the edges without actually featuring them.

The brand is also moving away from the standard gloss colour gamut, and onto something a bit unusual leading the charge with matt colour options and aggressive blacked-out wheel designs.

I, for one, love it. In a segment with so many derivative designs, the Terramar wears overt aggression, but at the same time measures it with an air of finesse and confidence. A design like this is hard to come by.

Inside, expect the usual Cupra highlights, and by that I mean expect the unexpected. Like its Formentor and Tavascan siblings, the Terramar’s interior is full of unusual textures, colours and materials.

Aside from the tidy steering wheel the brand has moved away from leathers, replacing soft-touch surfaces with a kind of Neoprene. It feels good and avoids feeling nasty through clever use of texture and colour.

The usual Volkswagen Group switchgear is here, new-generation big screens, with thankfully refreshed software which is both faster and easier to navigate than before. The digital dash elements, as usual, are the best on the market both in terms of design and customisation.

Even the seats have interesting shapes in a bucket-like design clad in a mix of neoprene and recycled ‘Seaqual’ fibres. Across the dash you can see highlight pieces not in chrome or gloss but in a kind of matt silver with a three-dimensional lizard-scale look.

Perhaps the best part of all of this is how evident it is that clear design thought has been given to every single piece of this car. It’s the opposite of the (supposedly) grand old days, where sticking another badge on a Tiguan would have done, and we’re all better for designs like this being in the market. 

The difference between aged and dated is best summed up, though, by the excellent usability of the SQ7's cabin controls.

The separate screen for ventilation, for example, makes it simple to adjust seat or vent temperatures without interrupting the main screen's navigation instruction or other media systems.

When using wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto the top screen is entirely devoted to the other software with no remnants of Audi's system. It runs smoothly at all times.

Switching back to Audi's system, and there's a lack of contrast to the dark main screen and navigation. The touch targets are huge, though, and the satisfying click of the haptic feedback is welcome when driving. It seems expensive and natural in a world of feel-free touch operation.

Audi's 12.3-inch digital driver's display remains one of the best in the business. Legible and customisable with bespoke sport modes and the ability to show a full-size map, if you wish.

You can keeping devices charged with a wireless pad or there are two USB-C ports under the cushy centre armrest. A 12-volt socket is also available, and two more charge points are found in the back.

If there's one criticism in the front, it's the fairly limited storage. The door bins are big enough for a 600mL bottle but not much more and beneath the armrest the tray is shallow. The only other storage spots are the two cupholders which are the perfect size for a small take-away coffee.

While on the critiques, the drive mode selector is awkwardly hidden near the passenger below the touchscreen.

The seats are amazingly comfortable with ample support and power adjust for everything, including under-thigh length and bolsters. Several massage programs can be accessed through the menus, too.

Continuing the comfortable seating, the SQ7's second row is capacious with plenty of head, leg and toe room even for those over 180cm.

The bench slides forwards and backwards manually and the backrest is adjustable. A fold-down armrest contains two more small cupholders, and there are two separate climate zones, two vents and heated outboard seats.

However, folding and unfolding the second row is a bit complex and quite heavy work with a strange mix between electric and manual movement to access the third row — a Nissan Pathfinder does this better.

Once back there, the third row is passable for adults providing the second row is slid forward.

There are ISOFIX ports and top tether anchors for both power-deployed third row seats, so you can fit up to five children's seats in an SQ7.

The SQ8's second row is still generous but you do lose a small amount of headroom owing to the sloping roof design.

You also sacrifice some boot space, at 608L with five seats and 1755L with the second row folded. That's still a lot but the spacious SQ7's 793L/1921L figures are even better and 295L with all seven seats up is respectable. Both have sturdy 40/20/40 split-fold rear seats.

As the vehicles are equipped with air suspension, owners can raise or lower the boot floor to make it easier to load bulky objects if needed. A power tailgate is standard on both models.

A retractable luggage cover, netted pocket, boot lights and some underfloor storage complete the boot, however both cars lack a spare tyre of any sort. A tyre inflation kit is included.

Up front the presence of big blocky seats, easy-access touchscreens, and a bit more space available on this 'MQB Evo' platform adds up for a solid practicality offering for those in the front seats.

Storage comes courtesy of big bottle holders in the doors, two more with variable edges in the centre console with a small tray next to it good for keys or wallets, a wireless phone charging bay in front and an armrest console box behind.

It doesn’t have the insane modularity of its Skoda Kodiaq cousin, but the intent of the Terramar is to be much more driver-focused and it feels it.

Similarly, the back seat doesn’t feel as lavish as it does in many rivals. It’s still sufficient, at least in the outboard positions, for an adult my size.

At 182cm tall, I have a bit of airspace for my knees and plenty of arm-flailing room with soft-touch materials in the doors, but the bucket seats up front and dark headliner trim close in the space compared to other cars on this platform.

This second row is also on rails, but moving it forward even a little bit will eat significantly into the space you have.

Amenity-wise there are pockets on the back of each front seat, bottle holders in each door, adjustable air vents on the back of the centre console with a third climate zone back there, as well as dual USB-C outlets for powering devices. The armrest console offers two more cupholders.

Expect a pretty solid boot space, internationally measured at 508 litres which would position it up there in terms of mid-size SUVs despite its more coupe-style roof when compared with its contemporaries.

Sorry, we don’t have local pricing and specs. We don’t even know what variants it will be sold in.

What we can tell you is this won’t be your grandma’s Tiguan. The Terramar is set to sell its Cupra credentials, arriving in Australia with at least the 195kW/400Nm 2.0-litre turbocharged engine which also powers the Volkswagen Golf GTI.

The Australian division is also hoping it will be able to get at least one variant into this market “starting with a five” (the late $50,000 region) although it is unclear whether that will be for a punchy version or a potentially-planned entry-level 1.5-litre MHEV number.

From there it’s safe to assume that it will reach well into the mid-$60K region for the 195TSI version we tested for this review, and beyond especially for the plug-in hybrid version, which the local division is also keen to get its hands on.

Regardless, you can expect standard kit like LED headlights, big alloy wheels, some variation of the Volkswagen Group central touchscreen (the car we drove had a 12.9-inch unit similar to new Skoda and VW products), and a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster. Expect wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, built-in navigation and wireless charging.

The car we drove also had Cupra’s signature blend of non-leather and sustainable material choices to clad the seats and soft-touch surfaces. The front seats had power adjust in the high-spec pre-production example we drove, while the rear row is on rails, allowing you to maximise either boot space or rear passenger space.

Rivals? Well this is the interesting part, in this semi-premium part of the market there aren’t many, at least not directly.

In fact, the closest rival when the Terramar arrives will be its Volkswagen Tiguan platform mate, as entry-level Terramars will be priced similarly to very high-grade versions of mainstream options like the Nissan X-Trail, Hyundai Tucson or Kia Sportage.

Those in a similar semi-premium price-bracket include the Mazda CX-60 or Peugeot 3008/408, while you can even get into some appealing premium options like the Lexus NX in the early-$60K bracket, a part of the market also complicated by some very good EVs like the Ford Mustang Mach-E.

Tune back in closer to the Terramar’s Australian launch window, which we understand is late 2025, for all the local details when it comes to pricing and specification.

The SQ7 and SQ8 both use a 4.0-litre twin-turbo 'hot vee' V8 petrol after the diesel SQ7 was abandoned in mid-2022.

It is the same engine you'll find in just about every application of this MLB platform, including the Porsche Cayenne, Bentley Bentayga and Lamborghini Urus — though it makes more power elsewhere.

In Audi's two medium-sporty SUVs it produces 373kW at 5500rpm and 770Nm between 2000-4000rpm.

In practice, it's a swelling, punchy engine without much top-end sparkle — though 4.1 seconds to 100km/h is nothing to scoff at.

The V8 also produces a rather splendid soundtrack, striking the right balance between Detroit burble and motorsport bark for this application.

An eight-speed torque converter auto transmission has been retuned for improved shift logic and it remains buttery smooth. It's pleasing enough just manoeuvring slowly around a car park, where you can feel just well calibrated the long travel throttle and transmission logic are.

Two powertrains have been revealed for the Terramar, including a 2.0-litre four-cylinder (195TSI) all-wheel drive version, which produces 195kW/400Nm, as well as a 1.5-litre four-cylinder plug-in hybrid which can put down a combined 200kW/400Nm.

Both have been confirmed for Australia, although we understand a 1.5-litre four-cylinder mild-hybrid (MHEV) version is also likely for production, producing 110kW/250Nm driving the front wheels alone. Check back closer to the Terramar’s Australian arrival - scheduled for late 2025 - for local powertrain details.

For the purposes of this review, the pre-production version we drove was a 2.0-litre, 195kW, all-wheel drive version.

With 2340kg to heave around, not even the 48-volt mild hybrid system can save the SQ7's fuel consumption — it's a thirsty beast.

The rated ADR combined cycle (urban, extra-urban) figure is 11.8L/100km and indulging in the ample performance resulted in 16.5L/100km on the trip computer. The SQ8 was much the same.

The SQ7 is certified to tow up to 3500kg (braked), equal to a Toyota LandCruiser or Nissan Patrol.

A fairly large 85L tank gives the SQ7 a theoretical driving range of around 720km from a fill-up. Naturally, 98 octane unleaded is required.

The 195TSI version tested here has a combined fuel consumption number of 8.8L/100km in its international spec sheet and it requires mid-shelf 95RON unleaded fuel.

If that’s a bit high for you, the plug-in hybrid version uses a new-generation PHEV set-up from VW Group, with claimed fuel consumption as low as 0.5L/100km.

It's equipped with a relatively large 25kWh battery pack allowing a WLTP-certified driving range of 112km in electric-only mode.

It is capable of charging up on an AC unit at a rate of 11kW for a charge time of 2.5 hours, while on a fast DC charger (rare for a PHEV) it can top up in just 26 minutes.

Our drive loop started in South-East Sydney where the SQ7's burbly V8 and air suspension fitted right in, easily soaking up the worst of the concrete expansion joints and sharp-edged potholes.

It is a joy to waft around in the refined SQ7 with its remarkably good vision out the front and back (with 360-degree cameras to help elsewhere). Standard rear-wheel steer allows the back tyres to rotate up to 5.0 degrees, giving the 5072mm long SQ7 a better turning circle (12.5m) than a Q3 small SUV.

Its driven home further by the excellent drive mode customisation. Along with the standard programs, you can set an 'Individual' mode up with various selections for the suspension, steering, powertrain response and exhaust noise.

Following the SQ7, our time in the SQ8 took in some more twisting roads and the combination of 23-inch alloys with firmer suspension settings meant that, even in 'Comfort', 'Auto' or 'Balanced' drive modes, the coupe-styled model had a busier ride.

Both SQ7 and SQ8 featured 'Sport' adaptive air suspension, sitting 15mm lower than normal with the ability to drop the ride height up to 40mm in 'Dynamic' mode or raise it 50mm in lift mode to get out of sticky situations.

Audi chose not to specify the Dynamic pack on the SQ8, though, and the difference is noticeable compared to the SQ7. The coupe SUV rolls a little more in hard cornering and doesn't engage the rear end in quite the same way.

Back in the SQ7, turn in may feel a little less sharp owing to the taller height but the active roll stabilisation and Quattro electronically-controlled limited-slip differential splitting power between the two rear wheels makes for a more confident vehicle with better punch out of corners.

Grip is prodigious and the SQ7 is always in control with 285/35R22 Bridgestone Turanza T005 tyres.

A 2.4-turn lock-to-lock steering system is well-judged, remaining light in Comfort but adding enough weight and precision in Dynamic.

The brakes — 400mm front rotors clamped by six-piston calipers with optional ceramics — are reassuring and feel Autobahn ready. 

The Audi SQ7 with Dynamic Pack is like an Olympic swimmer that's put on some kilos and had a few kids but can still gap his teenage son in a 50-metre freestyle race.

This is perhaps the perfect expression of Audi's 'S' models USPs, being totally normal when pottering despite huge reserves of talent. 

The eyebrow-raising factor about Cupra building a mid-size SUV is that it seems to be the antithesis of the brand’s aggressive and sporty philosophy. Sure, it gets away with the Formentor, but only because the crossover proved to be quite distinct from something like its VW T-Roc platform-mate.

Perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised to find the brand has done it again. As soon as you sit in the Terramar it’s clear this SUV isn’t your average family hauler.

The bucket-style seats immediately hug you, the dash is set nice and low giving you a clear view of the road ahead, and the steering wheel, which the Terramar shares with every other Cupra model, feels suddenly smaller, but just-right under hand.

As soon as you set off, things improve. The 195TSI engine is a belter, and works very nicely with the dual-clutch auto to provide a solid basis for hard acceleration.

While DCT transmissions in the past have been notable for laggy engagement, this latest version (common to other new VW Group products, like the incoming third-generation Tiguan) has been smoothed out, making it feel almost like a traditional automatic from a standstill.

The steering is superb. Not only does the wheel feel ergonomic under hand, but the steering itself is ultra-sharp, making even an SUV this size respond with a feline reactivity.

Wide (255 aspect) tyres reinforce the Terramar’s confidence in the corners, and accelerating out is met by the dual-clutch allowing you to properly ride out the gears, paired with an agreeable engine note.

Standard adaptive dampers feature, giving the Terramar more of a sophisticated feel of the road than many of its platform-mates, although with large wheels and a sportier Cupra-specific damper set, there is a concern that it may ride hard on Australian roads. On the quality European tarmac we tested it on, however, it was comfortable enough.

Sound insulation in the cabin seemed up to the task as well, with the Terramar providing a nice ambiance for countryside driving thanks to low levels of tyre roar and wind noise.

Factors against it? The rear window aperture is a bit small making visibility directly rearward a bit limited, and the lack of physical control dials for core climate and multimedia functions can be distracting when you’re trying to alter them on-the-go.

Other than these small detractors, though, the Terramar is an impressive mid-size SUV. It’s comfortable and quiet, but has attitude in spades and attacks the road with a certain level of confidence well outside the realm of most family haulers in this size-bracket.

It might not be the most affordable option in this category when it arrives, but a keen driver whose budget doesn’t quite stretch to a Porsche Macan will appreciate what the Terramar has to offer.

Don’t expect the Terramar to fall short on the safety front with active standard items including freeway-speed auto emergency braking, lane keep assist with departure warning, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and exit assist, as well as adaptive cruise control, traffic sign assist and more.

It also scores the standard array of six airbags with an additional centre (interaction) airbag, however the Terramar is yet to be rated by Euro NCAP or ANCAP so check back closer to its local arrival to see how it performs.

Audi recommends SQ7 and SQ8 owners bring their car in for a service every 12 months or 15,000km.

Service pricing is not cheap, with a five-year package costing $4600 for either model. For reference a basic service plan for a BMW X5 costs $3450 for five years.

Audi has moved to a five-year, unlimited kilometre warranty with owners able to extend that (for a fee) up to nine years with Audi Advantage. An extra two years of warranty and scheduled servicing costs $4360 for the SQ7 and $4160 for SQ8.

Additionally, customers get access to Audi's loyalty programs with event invitations, ambassador experiences and discounts offers from select partner companies.

Cupra currently offers five-year, unlimited kilometre warranty in Australia, which we expect will extend to the Terramar when it arrives Down Under. 

We also expect it to have the same service pack regime, which is most affordable when pre-packaged at the time of purchase. Check back at its local launch for pricing and further details.