New spy shots have us wondering if the rumored Q9 SUV could finally be on its way. Whatever’s testing in these photos, it looks good so far. Although Audi has not confirmed the Q9’s existence, the company has owned the trademark for the name since 2013 and reports suggest that the SUV is on its way soon. First tipped as a coupe-crossover like the e-tron Sportback, a later report cast doubt on that.
Autobild wrote early last year that rather
than being sporty, the Q9 would take on the big, luxurious BMW X7 and Mercedes
GLS. That makes sense since the Q8 kind of has the big Audi Sportback SUV
market covered. The Audi Q9 is also supposed to be bigger than the Q7. Although
it has three rows, the Q7’s third row has been accused of only being big enough
for small children, despite a recent update.
The current generation Q7 debuted in 2015,
though, so a third-gen model could reasonably arrive soon. It would make sense
for it to grow if it does, so there is a chance that this is just that. If this
is, however, the Q9, early reports suggested that it would be unveiled late
last year. Any delays could easily be explained by the pandemic, though.
What is perhaps more curious is that our
spy photographers report that this vehicle is wearing the camouflage that
Chinese Audis test under. Another theory is that the camouflaged test car could
be a mule based on the VW Atlas and wearing a front Audi clip. The size of the
Chinese market means that Audi could be making this SUV exclusively for it. Unfortunately, it’s still too early to know for sure.
