Report: Audi Q9 Full-Size SUV Coming in 2025
Sounds like Audi is looking to release a three-row SUV — just before its self-imposed all-electric deadline.
Late last month, we got word that Audi was launching a three-row Q6 specifically for the Chinese market. Now, there’s talk of another new three-row Audi people-mover — but this one is apparently headed to the States. According to our friends over at Automotive News, Audi has told domestic dealers that a Q9 is on the menu for the 2025 model year. While the exact details of the powertrain are still up in the air, sources indicate that it will not be fully electric.
For those who’ve been paying attention to Audi’s electric transition, the timing is significant. Because while Ingolstadt’s Vorsprung 2030 strategy says all its new vehicles will be electric starting in 2026, it will continue to produce vehicles with internal combustion engines until 2030. So given that buyers in the United States have demonstrated an unquenchable appetite for three-throw SUVs, the prospect of getting a gas-powered cash cow in under the self-imposed wire is an attractive one.
After all, there’s no reason to think that BMW will drop the X7, or that Mercedes-Benz will put the GLS out to pasture. Meaning that unless Audi wants to continue to leave money on the table? A three-row SUV to compete with its domestic rivals is basically a no-brainer. And while the American manufacturers haven’t produced vehicles on the same luxurious level as the Germans, offerings like the new Jeep Grand Cherokee have proven they’re more than capable.
That said? In the era of the e-tron GT and the RS Q e-tron, it’s tough to get super stoked about a conventionally powered three-row SUV. At this point, the whole segment basically feels like another menu item at Taco Bell, in that it’s the exact same ingredients you’ve been eating for years, just packaged in a slightly different way. And while it might provide what you need to keep moving down the road, it’s not anything remotely exciting. But maybe I’m wrong? Are you excited about a three-row beast from Audi? Let me know!
Photos: Audi