2023 Audi SQ8 review: The undercover Lambo

So you like the cut of the new 2023 Audi SQ7’s jib, with its thumping petrol V8 and typically Teutonic understated style. But, seven-seaters aren’t for you, the third row a bit of a compromise in packaging you’re just not willing to make.

Still, the lure of the heroic V8 and its 373kW/770Nm outputs is strong, even if the boxy styling of the SQ7 is a little homogeneous in the world of large SUVs. If only there were a five-seater version with a massive boot. And throw in some sporty styling, you think to yourself.

Well, luckily for you, Audi has answered your call.

Meet the 2023 Audi SQ8, the sleeker, sportier twin under the skin of the SQ7.

It’s not a new idea, the SQ8, which has been around in dealerships since it launched in 2018. But a midlife refresh brings some mature updates to the coupe-like SUV, and it starts with that wonderful petrol V8.

It’s the same engine – albeit in a different state of tune – found in a raft of Volkswagen Group product, nearly all of them considerably more expensive than the SQ8 we have here, which starts at $168,800 plus on-road costs.

The roll call is a long one. Porsche Cayenne GTS? $206,700. Bentley Bentayga? $378,600. Lamborghini Urus? $391,968.

Closer to home, Audis RS6, RS7 and RS Q8 all feature a more powerful version of the turbo V8 found in the SQ8. But none of those will land in your driveway for less than $220,000 before on-road costs are added. About the only vehicle with the same mill more affordable than the SQ8 is its fraternal SQ7 twin, and then only by around $4700.

And that makes the 2023 Audi SQ8, in our mind, a bit of a bargain in the rarified world of luxury performance SUVs.

The hero of the subset of performance-focussed SUVs is undoubtedly the Lamborghini Urus. Combining outrageous styling as only Lambo can do with mind-blowing performance from its 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, the Urus sets the benchmark for super SUVs, as the segment is called, at least it is by Lamborghini.

But, for around $200,000 less than the most affordable Urus, the Audi SQ8 delivers almost as much in terms of performance in a package that while, unquestionably chic and stylish, is a whole lot more understated than its sibling from Sant’Agata, Italy. There’s a market out there for that understated style, and it’s one the SQ8 fills with panache.

While at face value, the SQ8’s exterior might match the SQ7, sloping roof line aside, it’s worth noting the sleeker SQ8 is bespoke by almost every measure.

Audi says there are no shared panels across the two, despite the pair looking like twins from most angles. But those profiles hide the SQ8’s true dimensions, some 61mm shorter than the SQ7, 25mm wider, and 85mm lower. Interestingly, despite giving away length to its odd-numbered sibling, the SQ8 is classified as an upper large SUV against the SQ7’s large label.

The added width and lowered height make a difference to the SQ8’s stance on the road, looking purposeful and poised. It looks like a performance SUV, whereas the SQ7 looks more like a regular SUV with some black enhancements.

It’s a different story under the skin, however, the SQ8 and SQ7 siblings filled with commonalities, sharing everything from an engine and transmission combo, to near-identical interior fit-outs, certainly out front.

Audi’s interior designers tend to tread the path of understated restraint. Quality materials, soft touchpoints and clever integration of technology take centre stage in a cabin that is quiet, refined and practical.

It’s not in your face like a Lambo’s, nor is it opulent like a Bentley Bentayga’s. Instead, there exists a subtlety to the interior treatment that feels like your money has been well spent.

The second row remains spacious for adult humans, as you’d expect in an SUV of this size. Four – or at a pinch five with the middle pew firm and compromised by the SQ8’s transmission tunnel – on a long road trip is not out of the question. Comfort, thy name is SQ8.

Separate climate controls for back-seat passengers ensure a cosy ambient temperature.

Of course, the absence of a third row and a sloping roof line are the key differentiators between the SQ8 and SQ7.

Despite sitting a category above the SQ7, the upper-large SQ8 actually has a smaller cargo area. The difference is negligible, though, 605L (against 617L), expanding to 1755L (against the SQ7’s 1890L) with the second row stowed away in 40:20:40 fashion.

Like the ’7, the SQ8 carries a space-saver spare under the boot floor.

It’d be easy to get carried away talking about the minutiae of the Audi SQ8’s interior, infotainment, safety scores and value equation. You know, the boring stuff.

Thanks to being mechanically and (almost) internally identical to its SQ7 Ingolstadt stablemate, you can read about the finer points of the cabin and technology in our review of the SQ7.

Instead, here we want to focus on the SQ8’s party trick: how an SUV of this size behaves on the road and whether it is worthy of the ‘S’ badge. The answer, in short, is a resounding yes.

The big V8 under the bonnet is a heroic engine, at once powerful yet refined in a way V8s aren’t always. It makes 373kW at 5500rpm and 770Nm from 2000–4000rpm. Audi’s excellent eight-speed conventional automatic transmission sends drive to all four wheels.

It’s an utterly charming combination, powerful yet relaxed, and capable yet comfortable.

I’ve been fortunate enough to drive some of the world’s most potent super SUVs – from Audi RS Q8, Porsche Cayenne Turbo and Lamborghini Urus Performante – the rare air occupied by those bellowing monsters is indeed thin, starved of oxygen as those monstrous V8s hoover up everything around them in an assault on the senses. And there’s a certain buyer attracted to that brash performance – the noise, the money, the in-your-face attitude.

The Audi SQ8 manages to almost scale the same heights, certainly in terms of performance, but does so in a discreet manner.

It’s much quieter, for starters, the V8 under the bonnet not engaging in aural warfare with those around it. Some could see this as a downside, but for those without the need to be noticed, it’s a boon, a muted growl rather than a thunderous bellow.

Audi says the SQ8 can complete the sprint from standstill to 100km/h in 4.1 seconds. Yes, that’s slower to the benchmark sprint than some of those super SUVs already mentioned – the Urus Performante, for example, takes just 3.3 seconds, but it will be priced at a gob-smacking $465,876 plus on-road costs when it lobs locally in 2023 – but it’s also plenty fast enough for most people, me included.

In financial terms, the Urus’s 0.8s quicker dash to 100km/h translates to a touch over $37,000 per tenth-of-a-second. Same animal, different breed.

I like the SQ8’s stealth-like performance. I like that it can be sedately driven, you know, like a regular SUV, without anyone so much as casting a glance your way.

I also like, make that love, that when the right situation presents itself, when the road ahead stretches long into the horizon with beguiling bends and turns that tempt and tease, the SQ8 can transform itself into a capable performance car.

And it’s not just about speed – although there’s plenty of that – but about how the SQ8 comports itself on the road.

Here it’s worth pointing out a few technological wizardries at play. For starters, the SQ8, like its SQ7 sibling, rides on standard-fit adaptive air suspension tuned for sportiness. That results in a cushioning, gentle ride in the ’burbs despite the presence of those menacing 22-inch alloy wheels.

But, dial up the sportiness via the drive-mode selector, and the ride, while firming up noticeably to enable better handling and connection to the road, still manages to eschew the harsh brittleness some sportier suspension tunes are known for. It’s quite remarkable.

Also remarkable is the SQ8’s ability to navigate corners. You’d think a large SUV weighing a not inconsiderable 2345kg with the driver on board would struggle to turn with agility and a light-footed nimbleness. You’d also be wrong.

It’s quite remarkable just how poised the SQ8 remains, even under harder cornering. There are several factors at play here. Firstly, the standard-fit four-wheel steering – which turns the rear wheels in the same direction as the fronts at faster speeds, and counter to the front wheels at slower speeds – keeps things nice and tight, tighter than one might rightfully expect.

Our test car at launch was also fitted with the $10,900 optional Dynamic Package that brings Audi’s Quattro Sport differential and electromechanical active roll stabilisation. The latter is of particular note, an Audi-developed system that enhances the dynamic ability of the SQ8.

Where conventional passive stabilisers balance suspension components mechanically, Audi’s set-up features two stabiliser ‘halves’ at each axle with an electric motor located on each axle between the two ‘halves’. The motor can rotate the halves in opposing directions to each other, thus counteracting body roll and increasing stability.

Can you feel it actually working? Nope. But you will notice just how planted the big SUV remains, even when ‘pushing on’ for a bit of spirited fun.

I drove both the SQ7 and SQ8 at launch, the SQ7 not fitted with the Dynamic Package. It makes a noticeable difference from behind the wheel, the SQ8 feeling more planted, more stable, and more willing to be thrown at twisting rural back roads with an abandon usually reserved for sports cars. And there’s nothing wrong with the standard SQ7’s dynamism.

You’d expect that unleashing the potential of the SQ8’s twin-turbo V8 in a meaningful manner would come at a cost at the bowser. Here, we were pleasantly surprised. Audi claims a consumption figure of 12.2 litres per 100km. After a couple of hundred kays, in a variety of conditions, we saw an indicated 12.5L/100km. It’ll need premium 98-octane unleaded

The 2023 Audi SQ8 cuts an interesting figure. On the one hand, circa $170K before options and on-road costs is a ton of money to spend on an SUV, even one as performance-focussed as the SQ8.

On the other, it undercuts its own RS Q8 sibling by around $50K and its VW stablemate rivals by even more.

Sure, some will decry its refined and mature demeanour: ‘too quiet, too boring, too Audi’. And they are catered to in the market with any number of high-performance super SUVs ready and able to accept their hard-earned cash in exchange for a brash, loud, in-your-face motoring experience.

For the rest of us, though, the Audi SQ8 is more than enough. I’ll take mine in Dragon Orange please.