Let’s get it out of the way; at OutDrive we’re as convinced by performance SUVs as the Pope is of gay marriage. If you need to carry loads, then you want a truck. If you need to carry kids, then look to the station wagon or, gasp, minivans, to fill the gap. Need performance on the school run – and who doesn’t? There’s the sport-wagon. Unlike the Pope, however, we’re willing to give it all a try, and bearing the heavy burden of convincing us is Audi’s 2008 Q7.

Here’s a switch, at one of Vancouver’s most premium French restaurants, Le Gavroche, Kevin and I are arguing over who gets to drive rather than who gets to drink. Somehow I suffer through a $140.00 bottle of wine, but it’s a sacrifice. Sitting out front is a truly premium gentleman’s expresses, the 2007 Audi S8, a car that forces such hard choices.