CEO Markus Döllner killed the narrative. Three candidates survived.
It isn’t about feelings. It is physics. And regulations.
Audi’s V8 isn’t disappearing quietly. It is retreating to the big ships.
The Q9 Is The Obvious Choice
Think size. Packaging a massive eight-cylinder into a compact sedan? Hard. Into a three-row flagship? Easy. Döllner called full-size SUVs the “perfect fit” for the engine. That’s code for space. Plenty of it.
The standard Q9 will likely stick to the familiar 3.0-liter V6. It moves metal. But don’t write the eulogy for the V8 yet. Audi has already trademarked “SQ9.” Trademarks cost money. People don’t waste money on fantasy. If that performance variant arrives—and the odds look good—expect a mild hybrid V8. It’s the only way to tame the emissions beast while keeping the sound. The Q9 steps up now that the A8 is fading. A range-topping engine makes sense there.
“Full-size SUVs” are the engine’s new sanctuary.
The RS6 Can’t Just Quit
The RS6 Avant? A V8 is in its DNA. The current gen rides on 4.0-liter power. Dropping to a V6 feels wrong. Wrong for the brand. Wrong for the buyer who pays premium prices for that specific throaty noise.
Here’s the loophole. Size buys freedom. Larger vehicles face different EU emission penalties per gram. Audi has room to maneuver. Maybe plug-in hybrid? Layer the electrics over the combustion. Keep the V8 breathing. It’s not a stretch. It’s engineering. Smaller RS models got squeezed out. The big wagon has enough bulk to fight back.
The SQ7 Has Done It Before
Precedent matters. The last two Q7 generations offered the SQ7 badge with that 4.0-liter monster pumping out 500 ponies. It fits. It fits now. The architecture handles the weight and width without screaming in pain.
Will the next one do it? Depends on the ladder. If the new Q9/SQ9 sits at the very top, the SQ7 might drop a rung. Maybe a high-output hybrid V6? Or maybe the V8 stays. Döllner won’t promise anything. He leaves the door ajar. Just barely.
What About Sedans?
The A8. A ghost story now. Audi hasn’t committed to a successor. But they haven’t nailed the coffin shut either. Döllner stops short of total denial. Uncertainty remains. For now, the showroom flagship duty shifts to SUVs. That’s where the real money is. And the V8 follows the money.
This isn’t sentimentality. Audi isn’t saving the V8 out of love for carburetors from the seventies. They are saving it because large machines demand it. Physics. Rules. Space.
The engine lives where it fits. The Q9. The RS6. Maybe the Q7. That’s the sanctuary. The rest is speculation.
So. Do we care if a future sedan gets eight cylinders? Or do we just enjoy the wagons and huts while the battery dominates everything else?
The answer isn’t final. It never really is.
