The Audi Q9 Starts Life In Europe With A Diesel, But More Engines Are Coming

In case you needed a reminder, diesel engines are dying an agonizing death in Europe. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA), their share in new-car sales plummeted to just 6.5 percent in the first half of the year. That’s a far cry from the mid-2010s, when diesel engines powered more than half of all new vehicles sold on the continent.

Stricter emissions regulations may be accelerating the demise of diesel engines in Europe, but Audi is holding dearly to its long-running TDI. As a matter of fact, Ingolstadt’s massive new SUV is launching across Euroland exclusively with a 3.0-liter V6 diesel featuring a mild-hybrid setup. The company with the Four Rings is doing things differently in the United States, where customers can choose between V6 and V8 gas engines.

We were curious to find out whether there are any plans to sell the Q9 in Europe with something other than a diesel. In a statement to Motor1, an Audi spokesperson revealed that the gargantuan three-row luxury SUV will gain two additional powertrains next year: a gasoline V6 and a plug-in hybrid. We saw it coming, as the company gave us a similar answer earlier this year when we asked the same question about the new Q7.

Photo by: Audi

While Audi hasn’t said a word about whether the V8-powered SQ7 is coming to Europe, the spicy SQ9 is officially under consideration: “We are evaluating if and when an offer could be possible.” While not a firm commitment, there is a chance for the high-performance version to arrive on the continent as a rival to the BMW X7 M60i and the Mercedes-AMG GLS 63 S.

As for why Audi is prioritizing the diesel, it projects that it’ll be the most popular powertrain, despite the engine’s spectacular downfall in Europe. It’s replicating the Q7’s strategy for its bigger brother, and it goes without saying that the V6 TDI won’t make it to America, where diesels were never really popular to begin with, let alone after the messy Dieselgate scandal.

With the A8 about to go out of production, the Q9 becomes the de facto flagship. Although Audi has said a new range-topper is scheduled to arrive near the end of the decade, the VW Group is slashing its lineup in half, so the future looks uncertain for a new model to sit above the supersized SUV. The company’s lineup is in the midst of a reshuffle after axing the A1 and Q2, launching the Q7 and Q9, and bringing back the A2 this year as an entry-level EV.

2027 Audi Q9

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Source: Audi

Motor1's Take: It may seem counterintuitive to launch the Q9 with a diesel when the engine is fading out in Europe, but Audi must have done its homework and knows what customers want. Against all odds, the V6 TDI remains an important pillar for the brand, as multiple models across the lineup use it.

But time is running out for diesels and combustion engines in general. By 2035, automakers must slash their CO₂ emissions by 90 percent compared with 2021 levels. While that’s not the ICE ban the EU originally had in mind before relaxing its overly ambitious decarbonization targets, we can’t see too many combustion-engine cars surviving past the middle of the next decade. If anything, most will be hybrids.

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