Hi, I'm John Davis and this is MotorWeek !

We're firing on all eight cylinders with the speedy Audi SQ7... Then, we'll shed light on headlight alignment tips and tricks... We'll see how Le Mans competitors stay in the 24-hour fight...

Followed by our take on the polarizing Tesla Cybertruck...

So, come drive with us, next!

Closed Captioning provided by Maryland Public Television.

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JOHN: Like, every other luxury-minded European carmaker, Audi has a full portfolio of utility vehicles to choose from, including big ones like the Q7 and big fast ones like this SQ7.

2025 brings a host of updates for this still V8-powered prestige performer, and we can't wait to check it all out.

♪ ♪ Audi's largest SUV, the seven-passenger Q7, launched way back in 2007; but it wasn't until 2020, well into its 2nd generation, that it got the proper high-performance treatment with an SQ7 version.

Well, it's time for the 2025 model year, and while the SQ7 is still rockin' through its 2nd gen, Audi is cranking it up when it comes to style and tech.

All Q7s get revised styling for 2025 with modernized front and rear fascias, along with updated and now customizable LED lighting.

Up front, lower aero treatments are slightly reshaped, and Audi's Singleframe grille gets new patterns that are unique for Q7 and SQ7.

In back, there's a more aggressive looking rear diffuser that better integrates some new exhaust tips.

And rounding it out are some fresh color choices and five new wheel designs.

In addition to the unique grille, SQ7s feature additional aero treatments throughout, quad exhaust tips, and larger brakes behind 21 inch wheels, which can be optioned up to these 22s.

Tech updates come by way of better smartphone integration into the MultiMedia Interface, with the ability to not only use more third-party apps but download them directly to the vehicle.

It's all done through Audi's latest MMI setup which features an in-dash infotainment touchscreen, a smaller touch panel just below for climate controls and additional functions such as handwriting recognition, and, of course, a 12.3 inch virtual cockpit for the driver.

There are some minor material upgrades throughout, and more uniqueness to coincide with trim levels; plus, some new available packages to further customize the space.

All Q7s are outfitted for seven passengers with plenty of adult-size room in the 2nd row bench; the 3rd row, it's best left to the kids.

All of that is indeed great, but the star of this show remains what's under the SQ7s hood.

Oh yeah, Audi still believes in V8s, and this is a great one, the same 4.0 liter twin-turbo engine used by Porsche and even Lamborghini in their SUVs.

Here in Audi tune, it delivers 500 horsepower along with 568 pound-feet of torque.

And wow...this thing is quick, like EV quick, taking off much faster than you're expecting.

At Mason Dixon Dragway it hooked up easily, pounced off the line, and pulled hard the whole way down the strip.

We hit 60 in a mere 3.8 seconds.

Audi keeps the Tiptronic name alive for their 8-speed automatic transmission and it slams through the first few gears quite aggressively, easing off a little in higher ones.

That V8 made all the right noises throughout the quarter-mile but without being too loud.

Twelve point four at 111 miles per hour was our best time.

SQ7s get a unique sport-tuned adaptive air suspension, and it almost eliminated all body roll through our handling course, helping this big utility feel more like a small sports car.

Quattro all-wheel-drive is standard on all Q7s but there is unique tuning here in the S, and we really had to push it hard to initiate any understeer.

The brakes came on strong as soon as we started to press the pedal in our panic braking runs, stopping us from 60 in an impressive 94 feet.

There was some nosedive, but absolutely no discernable fade.

(engine revs/tires screech) For all its performance, the ride quality is sublime, never harsh, making for a very enjoyable drive home from the track.

It also feels built like a tank, weighing more than 5,000 pounds, though that substantial structure allows for towing up to 7,700 pounds.

Government Fuel Economy Ratings are 15 City, 21 Highway, and 17 Combined.

We averaged a good 20.1 miles per gallon of Premium in our driving loop.

As far as high-performance SUVs go, the SQ7s starting price of $92,095 for Premium Plus trim is not unreasonable.

You can upgrade to Prestige trim for $98,195.

While, not exactly commonplace, high-performance SUVs have seemingly been coming at us from all sorts of brands lately, from luxury to mainstream-- which is the direction of choice for Audi, bringing the premium driving experience closer to attainable levels.

So, if you're looking for high levels of luxury, combined with raucous V8 performance, in a vehicle that can still comfortably haul the family, the 2025 Audi SQ7 is eagerly waiting to deliver.

♪ ♪ The race to the checkered flag at the 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the most difficult challenges in all of motorsports.

The incredible merging of skill, effort, engineering, weather and luck needed to succeed there, is mind-boggling.

And now in a world ever-mindful of environmental impacts, these racers now face another enormous challenge.

♪ ♪ Every year in the month of June, the small town of Le Mans, France transforms into a motorsports Mecca.

For the 2024 edition, more than 239,000 race fans converged from all over the world, eager to cheer on their favorite teams.

They stood 10-deep to watch the drivers parade through town.

They flooded merchandise shops, clogged the fan zones and paddocks, filled the grandstands to capacity, and camped out to claim prime viewing spots along the 8-mile public road circuit.

Through sun and rain and dark of night, this iconic 24-hour race is filled with high-speed drama, tragedy, strategy, and adrenaline.

The sheer spectacle of it all is mesmerizing.

Le Mans is the ultimate durability test for driver and machine, as both must perform at their best for an entire trip around the clock.

But in the light of worldwide concern for the environment, that same clock is ticking for motorsports to clean up its act.

Many outsiders view racing as a waste of resources, a frivolous pursuit of ego at the expense of eco.

The old adage "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" still holds true, but the extreme conditions of competition have always served as a testing ground and accelerator for technological development, and that now includes sustainability.

More than ever, that's what drives car sales.

In fact, wide-sweeping changes are taking place in all forms of motorsports.

Race organizers here and around the world have set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2030, with the aim of reducing race-related emissions by 30 percent.

The World Endurance challenge series, which includes the 24 Hours of Le Mans, now runs on 100 percent renewable fuel.

Known as Excellium Racing 100, this biofuel is derived from grape residue.

Leave it to the French to run race cars on wine!

Michelin has developed a tire composed of 71 percent biosourced materials, currently being tested on prototype race cars.

The FIA sanctioning body issues three levels of sustainability accreditation, as a way for teams, suppliers, and race venues to measure and enhance their environmental commitments.

The sustainable endurance award was created in 2021 to encourage positive innovation, social engagement, and low carbon impact.

Since 2023, all teams racing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans are required to compete for this trophy.

Penske Porsche Racing won that honor in 2023 with their racing for charity initiative, and was again challenging in 2024, donating 750 euros for each lap completed to provide medical procedures for disadvantaged children.

The fully-electric Formula E series is maturing into a competitive and viable platform, and now even NASCAR is exploring an EV racer class.

2025 will see the debut of Extreme H, the world's first hydrogen-fueled race series.

Meanwhile, Toyota and others have announced plans to compete with hydrogen-powered cars at Le Mans as early as 2027.

And fans can get in on the green act too, earning 10 percent off ticket prices and other incentives by taking mass transit, bicycles or low-emission cars to the Le Mans circuit.

All of these efforts will have a positive environmental impact, while ensuring the thrill of clean competition will endure for years to come.

We've shown you how to restore worn headlight's clarity, but sometimes a full replacement is needed.

And in that case, you'd best follow the advice from Dan Maffett, lighting up the path to proper headlight alignment on MotorWeek's "Your Drive!"

♪ ♪ DAN MAFFETT: I think we've all had that situation at night when we're driving and get blinded by headlights on a vehicle coming at us that has the headlights misaligned.

Now, no one wants to be that guy, and there's no excuse anymore now that every vehicle you have has some type of adjustment, whether it's in the housing or in the bulb itself.

And to adjust it is easier than ever.

You pull it up to a wall, about 3.0 feet away, you transfer the dimensions of the headlight bulb positions at ride height to the wall with some tape, pull the vehicle back about 24/25 feet, and then turn your headlights on.

And what that's going to do is give you the line, and you want to adjust your headlights 3.0 inches below.

Now, we're going to line up this one behind us, and show you how to lay it out.

So, when you go to adjust your headlights, you want to make sure that you transfer all the dimensions of where the headlight is placed, onto a wall.

Easiest thing to do is pull up very close to a wall.

We're going to use a garage door.

You measure from the ground to the center of the bulb, then from the centerline out to the bulb.

And that gives you the dimensions to transfer, so you can then make sure you're right in the area you need to be.

(tape ripping) Now, once you have the measurements transferred to the wall with these intersections of where your bulbs are positioned at ride height, you want to measure 3.0 inches down, because we're going to adjust the bulbs so that they're hitting 3.0 inches below this center mass.

So...ours, 3.0 inches down is gonna be right here at this lip, we got a little lucky.

And we mark those out on both sides.

Now, we can get in and adjust them.

So once, you have your marks transferred to the wall and the vehicle pulled back about 25 feet, you can get under the hood, locate your adjusters, and even something as state of the art as this only requires a screw driver to adjust.

So, you can find your adjustment, you want to look at the wall and make sure that your light is going up or down, it's either clockwise or counterclockwise, depending on your vehicle.

And we are a little tall, so I'm going to bring this down just a little bit.

And that is going to do us really good.

So, adjusting your headlights has never been easier.

If you have any questions or comments, hit us up right here at MotorWeek .

JOHN: Now that we're up to operating temp, let's go full throttle for another QuickSpin!

♪ ♪ GREG CARLOSS: We had a chance to drive the updated 2025 Porsche Taycan earlier this year, packing additional performance and range behind a tweaked exterior.

And there's even a new Turbo GT model built for more EV excitement.

That trip took us all the way to Spain; but we recently found ourselves much closer to home for a First Drive of the 2025 Taycan GTS outside of Atlanta, Georgia.

Like other Porsche models with the GTS modifier attached, the Taycan GTS ups the game without going all out, with particular attention to handling.

Available as either a 4-door sedan or wagon, dubbed the "Sport Turismo," the GTS rides on a specifically tuned suspension with standard Porsche Active Suspension Management and Porsche Torque Vectoring.

Available is model-specific Porsche Active Ride, using an air suspension system to mitigate body roll and adjust static height for entry and egress.

Still, the GTS doesn't skimp on the extra protein.

Dual-motor all-wheel-drive now provides 596 horsepower.

The temporary overboost function cranks that up even higher to 690 horsepower.

The Taycan GTS now has almost 700 horsepower.

That's just ridiculous.

That is with the overboost function, so that is absolute max power, which you can tap into with my favorite button.

Push to pass.

Let's go ahead and push it now.

10 seconds.

Full power.

That's just good stuff.

It doesn't get much better than that.

The 2025 Porsche Taycan GTS is yet to be EPA certified; however, we expect overall range to be marginally better than the previous model's 246 miles.

With the new GTS starting at about $150,000 or $152,000 for the Sport Turismo, it's no average EV in terms of price, nor in terms of performance.

JESSICA RAY: Volkswagen's smallest utility, the Taos, recently received its first major update since its launch in 2022; and despite the brand's recent upscale shift, the 2025 Taos remains an affordable subcompact class SUV.

Our brief time with it in and around San Antonio, Texas, was perfect for putting the pieces of this refresh together, starting with the updated powertrain.

The same 1.5 liter turbo-4 has been pumped up to 174 horsepower, 16 more than before.

Whether, it's the standard front or optional all-wheel-drive configuration, an 8-speed automatic is in place, replacing the 7-speed DSG found previously on AWD models.

This is said to improve the drive experience and we'd have to agree.

The additional power is absolutely welcome here in the refreshed Taos, as well as the new 8-speed automatic that the 4Motion all-wheel-drive models get.

The shifts are very smooth when you want to put down some power.

And while there's no additional torque, uh, there's still plenty of power to be able to get in and out of normal traffic situations, whether on the highway or just on the street.

No matter the byway, the updated Taos turns heads with its attractive aesthetic, defined by updated bumpers and lighting elements front and rear.

The illuminated emblem further plays into the upscale vibes, as does the interior's new digs.

Particular attention was paid to the fit and finish of materials, with soft touch points all around.

A new dash design sees a floating 8.0 inch center display and a dismissal of control knobs, replaced by touch sensitive switchgear.

The 2025 Volkswagen Taos starts at $26,420, with all-wheel-drive adding $1,700.

The top SEL grade starts at $36,120.

Stay tuned for our full test and more QuickSpins soon!

JOHN: We've all heard about it, you may have even seen one or two on the road by now, but how much do you really know about Tesla's outrageous looking Cybertruck?

Well, you've come to the right place for all the stainless steel lowdown, as we're about to blast into cyberspace for some high-tech truckin'!

♪ ♪ Over at Tesla, they're used to taking on big tasks.

Not only did they make EVs mainstream, they also turned them into status symbols, built a nationwide charging infrastructure to support them; plus, they've even blasted into outer space.

Their latest challenge, getting truck buyers to buy into this stainless-steel origami project in mass, might be their toughest undertaking yet.

But we're not betting against them, as this 2024 Tesla Cybertruck is unlike anything else on the road, and attracts the kind of attention usually reserved for mega-buck Italian exotics.

We're all living in the Cyber Age of course, but just to get even more "cyber-y" we made sure to get our hands on a local owner's Cyberbeast version of the Cybertruck.

It uses a trio of electric motors, one in front, two in back, to crank out 845 horsepower and 864 pound-feet of torque.

Energy comes from a 123 kilowatt hour battery, with 250 kilowatt max charging for recouping 128 miles in 15 minutes.

The Beast is rated at 301 miles, though a soon to be available range extender could push that to more than 440.

The standard two-motor All-Wheel-Drive Cybertruck has a range of 340 miles.

Our tester came wrapped in black, hiding the sheen of those stainless-steel body panels.

But, we were much more interested in what it was like to get behind its oddly shaped steering wheel anyway.

So, we swiped up for Drive and got down to business.

The first thing we noticed was how much space there was between us and the base of the windshield.

Combine that with small windows and a sloping bed cover that makes it impossible to see anything with the flimsy rearview mirror.

Visibility is compromised from every angle.

Sure, there are cameras everywhere to help, but it's a less-than-ideal situation.

The Cybertruck is controlled with a steer-by-wire system which means, strictly electronic signals between the steering wheel and the motors on the steering rack.

And the rear wheels get in on the act too, making for one of the most hyper-reactive vehicles we've experienced.

It definitely feels out of place in a big, tough truck like this, but it also didn't take long to get used to, which could also be said about the brakes and their very natural feel.

There's 12 inches of travel in the suspension with the adjustable ride height maxing out at 16 inches of ground clearance.

Ride quality is smoother than most of its EV pickup competition, but we wouldn't exactly call it car-like.

Coming in at just under 6,900 pounds, the Cybertruck undercuts the GMC Hummer EV Pickup by more than a ton, it's rated to tow up to 11,000 pounds, and yes, it's very quick.

At our Mason Dixon test track, the big 285 series tires on 20 inch wheels easily transferred all of the Beast's power to pavement for consistent blasts to 60 in just 2.6 seconds.

Same as we recently got in a Chevrolet Corvette Z06, and more than a half second quicker than both the Hummer EV Pickup and the Rivian R1T.

Launch control is easy to activate, and the Beast stayed plenty stable at speed, but there was a lot of wind noise and a significant amount of electric whining noises too, though those actually sounded kind of cool.

Power delivery did plateau towards the end of the track, but we still cleared the quarter in 11.6 seconds at 114 miles per hour.

It's not all about acceleration, however.

There are lots of cool features here in the Cybertruck: Power tailgate and tonneau cover for the 6.0 foot bed; Honda Ridgeline-like underfloor bed storage; multiple outlets in the bed for powering and charging; front storage space under the hood; a giant windshield wiper; and Sentry Mode which allows you to access the car's many cameras to monitor all the gawkers while you're away from it.

Tesla-style minimalism inside means using the 18.5 inch touchscreen for almost everything, and of course, you can monitor and control many features from your small screen too.

Rear seat passengers get their own 9.4 inch display, along with plenty of room and flip up seat bottoms for storage.

Fit-and-finish has improved at Tesla, but there are still some squeaks, and cheaper than expected materials inside, plus a fair amount of panel misalignments outside considering the Cybertruck's Foundation Series base price of $93,990; Cyberbeast pricing starts at $113,990.

While sales so far have barely put a dent into its 2-million reservations, it is off to a decent start.

After all, the 2024 Tesla Cybertruck, besides being a unique beast, does truck-like things surprisingly well.

Plus, it's faster than most hyper sports cars.

Still, what the Cybertruck does best is attract a crowd, and we see nothing wrong with that.

Well, that's our show, I hope you enjoyed it.

Now, for more MotorWeek , including daily news updates, podcasts, and even complete episodes, cruise on over to PBS.ORG/MOTORWEEK.

And I hope you'll join us next time for a trip to Little Italy in the Fiat 500e.

Then, we'll get our return stamp home in the Honda Passport TrailSport.

Until next time, I'm John Davis.

We'll see you right here on MotorWeek !

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Learn more at AutoValue.Com and BumperToBumper.Com.

We're Tire Rack.

We test tires, then share our results.

We stock over one million tires.

We offer multiple installation options.

We do this because we believe tires matter.

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