Compare the2025 Honda PilotVS 2025 Audi Q7

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Recommendations

Safety

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The Honda Pilot has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Q7 doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Pilot deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Pilot’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Q7’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

With its standard Collision Mitigation Braking System, the Honda Pilot is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Audi Q7, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

	Pilot	Q7
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Crossing Child - DAY
12 MPH	AVOIDED	-10 MPH
	Crossing Adult - NIGHT
12 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
12 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-23 MPH
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
	Parallel Adult - NIGHT
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
Warning Issued-Brights	2.4 sec	2 sec

The Honda Pilot TrailSport/Elite/Black Edition’s Multi-View Camera System is available with washers for its front and rear cameras, ensuring crystal-clear visibility in any weather condition. Conversely, the Audi Q7 only offers a rear camera washer, which may not provide the same level of all-weather performance.

Both the Pilot and the Q7 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Honda Pilot is safer than the Audi Q7:

	Pilot	Q7
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	33.6%	44%

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Honda Pilot is safer than the Q7:

	Pilot	Q7
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Restraints	GOOD	GOOD
Head Neck Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Head injury index	104	225
Peak Head Forces	0 G’s	0 G’s
Chest Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Max Chest Compression	23 cm	30 cm
Hip & Thigh Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L	0%/0%	4%/0%
Lower Leg Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Tibia index R/L	.26/.42	.57/.7

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Honda Pilot is safer than the Audi Q7:

	Pilot	Q7
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	53	187
Chest Movement	.6 inches	.8 inches
Abdominal Force	59 lbs.	128 lbs.
Hip Force	276 lbs.	350 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	100	337
Spine Acceleration	39 G’s	62 G’s
Hip Force	540 lbs.	888 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	10 inches	13 inches
Spine Acceleration	34 G’s	40 G’s
Hip Force	444 lbs.	557 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

Honda’s powertrain warranty covers the Pilot 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Audi covers the Q7. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Q7 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 3 times as many Honda dealers as there are Audi dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Pilot’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Audi vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 61 more problems per 100 vehicles, Audi is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Audi With 69 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Honda higher than Audi.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Audi vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda fourth in overall reliability. Audi is ranked 7th.

Engine

The Pilot’s 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 24 more horsepower (285 vs. 261) than the Q7 45 TFSI’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Pilot gets better mileage than the Q7:

			MPG
Pilot
	FWD	3.5 DOHC V6	19 city/27 hwy
	AWD	3.5 DOHC V6	19 city/25 hwy
Q7
	AWD	3.0 turbo V6 Hybrid	18 city/23 hwy

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Pilot’s fuel efficiency. The Q7 doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Pilot uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Q7 55 TFSI requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Pilot has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Q7 doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Pilot higher (6 out of 10) than the Audi Q7 (4). This means the Pilot produces up to 12.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Q7 every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Honda Pilot, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Q7.

Brakes and Stopping

The Pilot stops shorter than the Q7:

	Pilot	Q7
60 to 0 MPH	129 feet	133 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	140 feet	141 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Pilot has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Q7 doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Pilot TrailSport has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Q7; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the Q7 don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

Suspension and Handling

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Pilot is 1.3 inches wider in the front and 1 inch wider in the rear than the track on the Q7.

For better maneuverability, the Pilot TrailSport’s turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the Q7’s (37.7 feet vs. 41 feet). The Pilot’s turning circle is 3.2 feet tighter than the Q7’s (37.8 feet vs. 41 feet).

Chassis

The Honda Pilot may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 450 to 650 pounds less than the Audi Q7.

The front grille of the Pilot uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Q7 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Pilot uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Q7 doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Pilot offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the Q7 can only carry 7.

The Pilot has .6 inches more front headroom, 2.4 inches more front shoulder room, 1.4 inches more rear headroom, 2 inches more rear legroom, 3.2 inches more rear shoulder room, 3.4 inches more third row headroom, 3.3 inches more third row legroom and 10.1 inches more third row shoulder room than the Q7.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Pilot’s middle and third row seats recline. The Q7’s third row seats don’t recline.

Cargo Capacity

The Pilot’s cargo area provides more volume than the Q7.

	Pilot	Q7
Behind Third Seat	21.8 cubic feet	13.6 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	59.5 cubic feet	35.7 cubic feet
Max Cargo Volume	111.8 cubic feet	68.1 cubic feet

The Pilot’s cargo area is larger than the Q7’s in almost every dimension:

	Pilot	Q7
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	19.4”/51.3”/84.2”	19.5”/44.7”/80.7”
Max Width	57.6”	52.5”
Min Width	44.7”	42.6”
Height	33.9”	30”

Towing

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the Pilot uses the Vehicle Stability Assist sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Q7 doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

Servicing Ease

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Honda service is better than Audi. J.D. Power ranks Honda 7th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 11% lower rating, Audi is ranked 18th.

Ergonomics

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Pilot has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Q7 only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Pilot TrailSport/Elite/Black Edition has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Q7 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Model Availability

The Pilot is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Q7 doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Honda Pilot and the Audi Q7, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Honda Pilot outsold the Audi Q7/SQ7 by almost seven to one during 2024.

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