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It costs almost twice as much as the next Q7 in the range, the 4.2-litre V8 TDI S Line, which itself gets to 62mph in 6.4 seconds and has a not inconsiderable 335bhp.

So is the Q7 V12 TDI a complete waste of time? Or, should Audi be heartily congratulated for producing a car which makes the Renault Clio V6 seem sensible?

While I’d never want to see every school mum filling up a V12 at the black pumps, my belief is that cars like this push the envelope of what’s possible.

The V12 TDI’s emissions of 298g/km of CO2 might seem high in isolation, but it’s an amazing achievement to get an engine with 738lb/ft of pulling power so clean.

Audi has almost single-handedly made drivers believe diesel engines and very high performance can go hand in hand.

And the search for power and speed is intrinsically linked to eking out efficiency. Simple adaptations of the same technology used to garner extra horsepower in the V12, could boost economy to new levels in more conventional engines.

Less than a hundred Q7 V12 TDI’s will ever be sold in the UK, but a design trick or component buried deep inside its engine could find its way into millions of diesel next-gen Audis.

So while the Q7 V12 TDI seems like a barmy concept, the engineers working on it could come away with some very sensible ideas indeed.

Which cars do you think have pioneered new technology and which are just mad, bad and downright ugly? Have your say by leaving a comment below.

Used Audi Q7 Car Review