Audi is determined to make the Q7 different from its siblings.
The Q7 SUV will use the same platform and assembly plant as the Volkswagen Touareg and Porsche Cayenne, but only about 15 percent of the Q7's parts are shared with Porsche and Volkswagen.
An Audi spokesman says that is "significantly less" than Audi shares with parent Volkswagen on the Audi A3 and VW Golf that are built together in Brussels, Belgium and in Curitiba, Brazil.
The reason? Cost savings and diversification.
"Engine, length, interior, body, electrical system, frame -- it's a completely self-standing car," said Audi's Q7 project leader Gerhard Hametner during a recent interview with Automotive News Europe.
The Cayenne, Touareg and Q7 are all built at VW's factory in Bratislava, Slovakia. But to make sure the Q7 is different from its siblings Audi set up a separate purchasing group to select suppliers for its SUV.
Faurecia makes the seats for the Q7. Johnson Controls makes the seats for the Cayenne and Touareg.
Carcoustics, a German textiles firm based in Leverkusen, is supplying the Q7 with interior carpets, beating out Touareg supplier HP Pelzer.
Brose makes door modules for the VW and Porsche SUVs. But the Q7 has a standard door equipped at the factory. Brose's role was limited to supplying the window regulator and some seat components.
Other new suppliers also have been hired for the Q7. ArvinMeritor will be building a factory in Bratislava to supply sunroofs for the car.
"If we find a better solution in terms of quality and cost, then we are free to source from another supplier," an Audi spokes-man said. "We have a different focus and therefore we have different sources."
Audi will launch the Q7 in Europe in March and two months later in the US.
