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New Audi Q9 Coming Soon: Specs, price and release info
If size really does matter the new Audi Q9 delivers in every dimension!
Words by: Dan Trent
Published on 29 July 2026 | 0 min read
If the tide really is turning against excessively large and lavish SUVs into a more socially and environmentally conscious automotive era … nobody told Audi! Enter the Q9, the biggest and most luxurious Audi ever made and one powered by – of all things – a diesel engine. Plenty to chew over, as Audi goes after long-wheelbase Range Rovers, the similarly massive BMW X7 and even the likes of Bentley and other luxury marques.
- The Q9 is Audi’s new flagship model which, as Alex Legouix points out in the video above, is appropriate given it’s “nearly as big as an actual ferry”
- Vast interior offers seating for seven for family drivers or six if you prefer a more executive friendly arrangement with full business class style individual seats
- 299 horsepower diesel engine (yes, you read that right) has only the mildest hybrid boost but gets extra help from an electrically driven turbo
- Lots of screens and tech, as well as the biggest panoramic roof ever seen on an Audi • Pricing and full UK specifications to come, with first deliveries expected by the end of the year
Design and models available
From its enormous illuminated grille back the Q9’s design is best summed up as “like an Audi, just more so”. Big enough to make even a long-wheelbase Range Rover or BMW X7 look puny, the Q9 builds on what we’ll tactfully describe as assertive design language familiar from Audi’s other SUVs, most obviously the Q7 and Q8. We’ll know more about models and trims in due course and there are rumours of other engines to come but for now it’s the one powertrain for the UK market, based around that mild-hybrid diesel.
Interior and tech
Well, there’s a lot of interior and a lot of tech! Up front you get the panoramic version of Audi’s MMI display, together with a central touch-screen and additional one for the passenger. There’s also full integration with Chat GPT for those days when you’re driving alone and need someone – or, rather, something – to discuss the weather with. We’ll see what comes as standard and what you’ll have to pay extra for but Audi is making noise (literally) about its banging 1,400W sound system and its ability to send vibrations from the music through the seats for a more immersive experience, something Alex says has to be experienced to be believed. Tech includes next-level OLED lighting that makes even scrolling indicators look old hat, the system projecting your intended direction changes onto the ground beside the car. Insert joke about this being wasted on Audi drivers who never bother using their indicators right here…
Batteries/range or engines
It says something about our age that a car launching with a diesel engine is a talking point in itself, but here we are. Having perfected its diesel tech in endurance racing with multiple wins at the 24 hours of Le Mans it’s clearly not ready to walk away from it yet, the Q9 we’ll be getting fitted with a 3.0-litre diesel putting out 299 horsepower. Both of which sound a little puny for a car this big. There is, at least, boost from a turbo, this powered by an electric motor so you don’t have to wait for it to spool up.
Price and release
Audi says pricing and full specifications will follow soon, with the first cars reaching owners by the end of the year.
What other cars from Audi are due this year?
After a period of seemingly sitting on its hands Audi has already replaced or updated most of its range, most recently with the facelifted Q4 e-tron we were driving just a short while ago.
What other cars that are upcoming will this compete with?
The Q9 joins a literally heavyweight class alongside the likes of the full fat Range Rover, BMW X7 and others. It needs to be mindful of Korean alternatives like theKia EV9 and Hyundai Ioniq 9, though, given they offer a similar combination of size, luxury and option of six-seater configurations with business jet like middle-row recliners for a lot less money.
