Audi A7 vs Denza B8

What's the difference?

The Audi A7 is a really likeable car, one that is heavily focused on style but also emanates substance. The 55 TFSI model will appeal to many, but my initial impression is that the best buy in the range could well be the entry-level 45 TFSI. I can't wait to sample it sometime in 2019.

The Denza B8 is an incredibly luxurious car that has a lot going for it, including three rows of seating, a 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity and an eye-popping price tag, but it's held back by its overall heft and cumbersome ride.

If you don’t absolutely need the third row of seating, the smaller B5 is arguably the better pick and while it’s also not perfect, it’s a very compelling package and you’ll be saving thousands of dollars in the process.

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

If you can't find something interesting about the design of the Audi A7, there's a good chance you're visually impaired.

The original A7 Sportback was perhaps ahead of its time in the way it blended the lines of a coupe with the practicality of a big sedan, and the new second-generation version pushes the envelope even further into the future. The vision, according to chief designer Andreas Koglin, was "a clear form with sharp lines and tight shapes", including the distinguishable 'boat tail' at the rear.

This is a technologically advanced looking car - big, long, sleek and stylish. From the LED headlights (or matrix LED and laser lights - yes, frikkin' lasers that have the same 5500 Kelvin as the sun, according to Audi) and daytime running lights, to the long, lean LED tail-light assembly, there's an illuminated, enlightened air to the A7.

Plus, with the matrix lights, both ends of the car do a sort of disco sequence as part of the start up and shut down procedure for the car.

There are a few carefully balanced lines across the body of the A7 that help catch the light, which is something you can't really say about its closest direct rival, the Mercedes-Benz CLS. It still retains the 'big-metal-small-glasshouse' look of the existing model, but there are definitely more angles and interesting elements to this new-generation car.

There are two exterior types offered for Australia - the S line that you see here is the version that'll be fitted to the two higher grade models, while the entry-grade model gets a less aggressive look to its front and rear bumpers. To my eyes, the base car actually looks more luxurious, where the S line models - when not fitted with the optional black exterior styling pack that deletes the chrome trims outside - have a slightly uneasy look in the grille area. With a black edge to the single frame grille, it looks a touch more convincing.

The A7 is still large, at 4969mm long (-5mm) and riding on a longer 2926mm wheelbase (+12mm), spans 1908mm wide (2118mm including mirrors), but it's also a little bit taller, at 1422mm (+2mm). According to Audi, the interior space has been increased by 21mm in this generation, making for a more luxurious cabin than before.

Things are a little edgier in terms of design in the cockpit, too. Gone is the appealing wraparound dashboard design, with a more driver-focused treatment evident. It looks sharper, more shapely, and has improvements to the usability inside, too.

There’s no way around it, the Denza B8 is a big car. It’s almost 5.2 metres long which makes it larger than a LandCruiser 300 Series and more in line with the likes of the Land Rover Defender 130.

It looks quite boxy and tough on the outside, though it doesn’t have any features that define it specifically as a Denza beyond the inconspicuous badging. There are many angles that are reminiscent of the aforementioned Defender.

The body lines look crisper than the smaller B5, as does the semi closed-off grille and LED light script that connect the big LED headlights.

Unlike the B5, the tailgate-mounted spare wheel is much more prominent in the B8 and this therefore exaggerates its heft, not in a good way.

Inside, it’s luxurious and high-end with lots of visual appeal. I particularly like the amount of soft-touch finishes around the cabin and the overall lack of glossy piano black.

While luxurious, there’s also a rugged edge to the interior. This is most present in the large grab handles which you do need to use when getting in and out.

The amount of physical buttons and switches inside is a nice touch as you don’t need to relate on the touchscreen all the time. The fact the gear shift lever rises up when you turn on the car also adds to the special, luxurious feel.

According to Audi, the A7's interior is said to offer a "futuristic lounge type ambience". And if your vision of a lounge in the future includes beautiful textile finishes, quality trims, and your choice of three crisp screens to look at and interact with, it certainly lives up to that.

Unlike the existing model, which seemed to draw a bit more inspiration from the world of watercraft, the new model isn't as luxe looking, with a more tech-focused approach inside. The wraparound finish on the dash is gone, and everything is more driver-centric in its orientation - the screens are tilted just enough towards the pilot and the design of the dashboard helps anchor the person in the driver's seat as the most important in the car.

As a driver, I still struggle to come to terms with climate controls that require you to use a screen, and I think it's distracting, too. At least with the Audi screen there's the possibility to slide up or down on the temperature display to make quick changes, rather than having to tap the screen repeatedly.

The haptic feedback on the screens is something that does take a bit of getting used to, because the response time isn't as instant as some regular touchscreen systems, but the menus are all pretty logically laid out.

And of course, all the storage considerations are dealt with, including good cupholders between the seats, decent door pockets, some loose item caddies and so on. In the back there's a flip-down armrest with cupholders, bottle holders in the doors and map pockets on the seat backs. One really neat addition is illuminated seat belt buckles - clever!

Space back there is mostly good, but it's better if you're short. There's enough legroom and shoulder-room for three adults, but anyone taller than me (I'm 182cm) will likely lack some headroom due to the curvaceous roofline.

The boot is good at 535 litres - enough to deal with two golf bags, the brand claims. The shape of the boot means tall items mightn't fit, but the length and width is good, and you get tie-downs with a mesh net to keep things in order. And there's a space-saver spare wheel under the boot floor.

Hopping into the B8 you need to acquaint yourself with how the flush door handles operate. Generally they pop open when you unlock the car but sometimes they can be a little delayed.

Also inside the car there are electronic door release buttons which are nowhere near as intuitive as regular door pull handles. Sure you’d likely get used to this over time but you’ll need to explain it to new passengers all the time.

The seats in Chinese cars usually look nice but aren’t that comfortable or supportive for long-distance journeys. The B8’s are the opposite, offering great support and almost limitless adjustability. Adding to this is the standard heating, ventilation and massage functions.

Ahead of the driver is a leather-wrapped steering wheel which feels nice and has plenty of physical buttons with a tactile click when pressed.

Behind this, the digital instrument cluster is clear and high-resolution and offers a number of different layouts and informative pages you can cycle through. This allows you to customise the display.

In the centre of the dashboard is the mammoth 17.3-inch touchscreen multimedia system which is the largest central screen I have seen in a car to date. It’s a big screen for a big car and Apple CarPlay satisfyingly takes up the entire screen.

Thankfully, the screen is snappy and has a native user interface that is easy to navigate around without getting lost. I particularly like the swipe-down control centre menu that allows you to change key settings without diving into sub-menus.

My only hassle with the screen is I struggle to reach the far left-hand side due to its overall size. Perhaps a trackpad would solve this.

As I noted previously, the amount of physical switchgear around the cabin makes adjusting key functions easy. Examples include physical buttons to change the drive mode, activate the surround-view camera, adjust the suspension position and switch between EV and hybrid driving.

In terms of storage up front there are two non-ventilated 50W wireless phone chargers, two cupholders with adjustable depths, a shallow storage section under the centre console, plus a fridge/hotbox under the centre armrest.

Moving to the second row and the luxury continues. The seven-seat model features a three-seat bench that three people can easily fit across as the floor is flat, whereas the six-seat model gets uber-plush captain’s chairs.

Regardless of variant, there’s plenty of room in the second row, even for adults.

Second-row amenities include a small screen on the back of the centre console box that allows you to change the climate control and change the seat heating/ventilation, among other functions.

There’s also a button that opens the fridge/coolbox so the second-row passengers can access it. This is a nifty touch though you’d want to make sure small fingers don’t get caught as the anti-pinch function isn’t the strongest.

A feature that’s unique to the six-seat version is a massaging function on the second-row captain’s chairs. This is a very cool touch that no other SUV at this price point offers.

Accessing the third row in the six-seat version is rather easy as you only need to walk down between the captain’s chairs. It’s also simple enough in the seven-seat version as long as you access it from the kerb side.

Third-row space is decent for adults, but this shouldn’t be surprising as the B8 is such a hulking vehicle. The backrests also recline allowing for extra comfort. Amenities include air vents in the headliner, USB-C ports and scattered storage. It’s enough for seats that will likely only get occasional use.

Around the back the B8 has a side-hinged tailgate which is a little problematic as you need to allow space for it to open up in parking spaces. This is hard when the car is already 5.2m long…

With all three rows upright there is 147L of boot space, which is fine, but this expands to a much more usable 920L with the third row folded.

The boot space is square and usable, though there is a large load lip which is body-coloured and would easily get scratched if you drop something on it. Not the best in a family-oriented vehicle.

Boot-related amenities include buttons to electronically fold the second and third row seats and lower the suspension to make things easier to load into the boot, a 12V socket, scattered hooks, as well as a small underfloor section to store the changing cables.

Although it stands out like a sore thumb, it’s great to have a full-size spare wheel on the back of the tailgate. This is very helpful in the unlikely and unfortunate event you get a puncture.

The 2026 Denza B8 line-up starts at $91,000, before on-road costs, for the seven-seat version, which is strategically just under the Luxury Car Tax (LCT) threshold, whereas the flagship six-seat version is $97,990, before on-road costs.

Despite nearing $100K, this notably undercuts key rivals like the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series and Land Rover Defender by a considerable margin, especially once you take the level of standard equipment into account.

The B8’s closest rival is currently the slightly smaller GWM Tank 500 PHEV which is priced even more competitively at $77,990, drive-away.

As a base there are 20-inch alloy wheels, adaptive LED headlights, soft-close doors, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a 17.3-inch touchscreen multimedia system, 18-speaker Devialet sound system, tri-zone climate control, leather upholstery, plus heated and ventilated seats in the first and second row.

Moving up to the six-seat version brings second-row captain’s chairs with adjustable legrests and a massage function, as well as a digital rear-view mirror, head-up display and Nappa leather upholstery.

This amount of standard equipment in a car that’s under $100K is wild and should definitely be enough to put in your consideration list if you’re after a big, three-row SUV. The smaller B5 offers similar levels of specification but goes without the third row.

All three drivetrains offered in the A7 have some form of mild hybridisation. The entry-level 45 TFSI engine is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo producing 180kW of power (at 5000-6000rpm) and 370Nm of torque (1600-4500rpm). It has a 0-100km/h claim of 6.8 seconds, and employs a seven-speed dual-clutch auto with quattro all-wheel drive. It employs a 12-volt mild-hybrid system to assist with stop-start traffic and uses brake regeneration, too.

The high-spec petrol is the 55 TFSI, a 3.0-litre V6 producing 250kW (at 5000-6400rpm) and 500Nm (1370-4500rpm). The 0-100 claim is 5.3sec, and it also uses a seven-speed dual-clutch auto. It has a 48-volt mild-hybrid system that uses a larger capacity battery and a belt-driven starter generator that recuperates energy in stop start traffic and, according to Audi, can also allow the car to coast for up to 40 seconds at speeds of 55-160km/h.

The same 48-volt tech is used for the only diesel model in the range, the 50 TDI. This powertrain uses a 3.0-litre turbo-diesel engine producing 210kW (3500-4000rpm) and 620Nm (2250-3000rpm), and unlike the petrols, it has an eight-speed automatic (not a dual-clutch). The claim for acceleration is 5.7sec from 0-100km/h.

Power comes from a plug-in hybrid set-up combining dual electric motors and a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine.

Total system outputs are a meaty 425kW and 760Nm. They need to be, as the B8 has a kerb weight of 3.3 tonnes. Despite this, Denza claims it can still do the 0-100km/h sprint in just 4.8 seconds.

Power is sent to all four wheels with a rear mechanical diff lock as standard across the line-up. A front diff lock is only offered on the six-seat version.

What’s most surprising about this big beast is it offers a segment-meeting 3500kg braked towing capacity. It also has up to 700kg of payload, depending on the variant.

The mild hybrid tech in each of the A7 models help it offer miserly fuel consumption.

The 45 TFSI model claims 7.1 litres per 100 kilometres; the 55 TFSI model just a touch more, at 7.3L/100km. And as you might expect, the 50 TDI diesel model is the most efficient, using a claimed 6.0L/100km.

We only drove the 55 TFSI on test, and the dashboard indicated display of 9.1L/100km seemed pretty respectable.

Feeding the dual electric motors is a 36.8kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery. Denza claims it allows for an electric range of 115km, according to NEDC testing.

The battery can also be used as a power source for appliances using vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality at rates up to 6.6kW.

AC charging is offered at rates up to 11kW, whereas DC fast-charging is offered at rates up to 120kW.

Additionally, there’s a 91L fuel tank. Denza claims this allows the B8 to have a total range of 1040km (NEDC).

Fuel consumption depends on how often you charge the battery. Denza claims the B8 will use 2.0L/100km from 100 to 25 per cent battery charge and 9.9L/100km under 25 per cent battery charge, both according to NEDC testing. Regardless, this is better than all similarly sized petrol- or diesel-powered SUVs.

A lot of the time when we go on new car launches the test drive route is planned to highlight handling dynamism, with less focus on the day-to-day drudgery most of us will actually encounter.

The launch of the Audi A7 was primarily of that design, too, but (thankfully?) there was some disgusting traffic to deal with on our in and out of Brisbane, where it was clear the A7 is superbly comfortable.

Well, that is, if you get the air suspension system. The ride was impressively cushioned, untroubled by sharp edges and road joins, and the suspension eliminated pothole effects, too. All the cars I drove on the launch were the 55 TFSI model, and all had the air suspension - the cynic in me thinks there's probably a reason for that, and I'd love to sample one without it.

This stint of stop-start driving saw the engine cut out at speeds up to 22km/h when you're decelerating, allowing us to coast to a stop without the engine burning fuel.

Once we exited the city limits and found ourselves on the roads of Mt Nebo and Mt Glorious, the chance presented itself to push the A7 in some bendy bits. With the dynamic drive mode selected, the transmission in sport mode, and about a hundred corners to contend with, the big German luxury hatch showed its skills.

The air suspension kept the circa-1815kg model relatively flat in the bends, but the front seats lacked adequate side bolster support despite being called 'sports' seats. Obviously physics were at play here.

The steering was more eager in the four-wheel steer version we sampled, and that's definitely an option for the enthusiastic owner to consider. Otherwise, the steering was accurate, if devoid of meaningful feel.

And while the engine was strong in its response and the transmission clever in its shift speed and intelligence, it became clear that this was a car that seemed more adept at open road cruising than bruising a series of hairpins. It didn't disappoint in terms of dynamics - it just felt its size.

Eventually when we reached an open road, the effortlessness of the A7 came to the fore. Comfort mode engaged, it paced along beautifully, the adaptive cruise taking its surroundings in nicely. There is a touch of wind noise and the suspension can be loud when you encounter pockmarked sections, but it doesn't feel flustered at speed.

One of the nice elements of the A7's smarts is that it will pulse the accelerator pedal to warn you that you could be saving fuel - say you're approaching an 80km/h zone, and you're driving at 100km/h, the throttle will throb to let you know you could ease off. Neat.

At the end of our day of driving, I was left with the impression that the Audi A7 is more than capable as a luxury saloon, one that was relaxing to drive - even when we encountered a five km traffic jam on the way back into Brisbane. It feels well engineered, without excessive gimmickry and with enough genuine quality to leave you feeling pampered.

Behind the wheel, the Denza B8 primarily acts as an electric vehicle (EV), meaning it’s largely quiet inside the cabin when driving around normally.

Once the battery charge gets down lower, the petrol engine typically switches on to top up the battery. It largely acts as a generator and a lot of the time you can’t tell whether it’s on or off.

You’ll likely only notice it if you floor the accelerator or go up a steeper hill. Even then the engine largely stays quiet and in the background.

When the battery charge gets down low enough and you gun it, the petrol engine can directly power the front wheels. This is rare, though, because the car leaves at least 25 per cent battery charge in reserve.

With 425kW and 760Nm thanks to the dual electric motors and 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine, the B8 is far from slow. In fact, for a 3.3-tonne beast it absolutely hauls thanks to the instantaneous torque the electric motors provide.

However in the standard drive mode there is a noticeable input lag from when you push the accelerator pedal hard and when the car starts accelerating. This is reduced in the 'Sport' drive mode.

Although the B8 may produce lots of power and torque, it feels its weight. When you accelerate hard it pitches back dramatically, much like the Jeep Grand Cherokee. It’s much more pronounced than in the smaller B5, but still smile-inducing.

As standard, the B8 line-up gets an adaptive hydraulic suspension system that is claimed to be able to self-level the car. Despite this, the B8 gets a considerable amount of body roll regardless of which drive mode you select.

Many Chinese cars have floaty, comfort-oriented suspension tunes over firmer and a more dynamic-feeling ride, and the B8 is no exception. It feels like a 3300kg+ SUV.

The kicker is, like many body-on-frame vehicles, the ride gets busy on harsher roads with more frequent bumps. As a passenger you get jostled about in the cabin.

The steering tries to disguise the overall heft of this SUV but as a result it can feel overly assisted and vague at certain points. Depending on the drive it either artificially adds or reduces resistance.

Unlike the related BYD Shark 6, the B8 gets diff locks and a low-range mode which uses a clutch pack on the rear electric motor to allow for more controlled, low-speed crawling.

The adaptive hydraulic suspension allows the car to be lowered down or lifted up. In its highest mode there is a 890mm maximum wading depth.

Interestingly, compared to the smaller B5, the B8 feels more sorted off the beaten path. Its added heft helps round off bumps more easily, plus there’s added momentum behind it.

Lastly, in terms of noise, vibration and harshness (NVH), the B8 is a very quiet car to drive. As I mentioned above, the electric-first nature automatically makes this a quiet car.

Surprisingly, given the B8 is a huge 3.3-tonne box on wheels, there is very little road and wind noise. It seems Denza has put a big emphasis on sound insulation.

The Denza B8 received a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating based on testing conducted on the related B5 in 2025.

There are 14 airbags which notably includes coverage for the third row, plus autonomous emergency braking (AEB), blind-spot monitoring, front and rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, front and rear parking sensors and a surround-view camera.

The majority of the active safety systems do a good job, remaining in the background and only activating when absolutely necessary. However, the driver attention monitor is over zealous and struggles to detect your eyes when you’re wearing sunglasses.

Thankfully, you can turn this off using the touchscreen but it needs to be done every single time you drive the car.

As with all Audi models, there's a three-year/unlimited kilometre warranty offered. Mainstream brands seem to be pushing to five years' warranty, while the premium makers lag behind.

The company also offers a three-year pre-purchase capped price service plan called the 'Audi Genuine Care Service Plan', which you can bundle into your finance package. Exact pricing isn't known yet, but you can expect it to average out at about $650 for every 12 month/15,000km service (based on the previous generation model).

The Denza B8 is covered by a six-year, 150,000km warranty, whereas the battery pack is covered by an eight-year, 160,000km warranty. There’s also three years of roadside assistance.

This isn’t a standout warranty in the mainstream market, though compared to premium marques it’s a notable step up.

Logbook servicing is required every 12 months or 20,000km, whichever comes first.

The first five years' of servicing totals $3762, which averages out to just over $750 per service. This is just a tad more than the smaller B5, but it’s much cheaper than premium rivals.