Audi has shot down speculation about a rumored Horch version of the Q9. The brand’s boss says he wants to “raise the perception of the Audi brand.” Despite an A8 version in China, Audi says there are no plans to relaunch Horch. Audi wants us to believe that the new Q9, its long-awaited halo SUV, has its most luxurious interior. That’s not hard to believe, as most current Audi cabins are a little lackluster in the luxury stakes, featuring some cheap plastics and generally way too many piano black components. The Q9 lifts the game, but Audi has stopped short of taking aim at BMW Alpina or the Maybach side of Mercedes. During a recent interview at a preview event for the new Q9, Audi chief executive Gernot Döllner was asked if the firm wants to use the SUV to boost its status within the VW Group, or if it risks stepping on the heels of Porsche and Bentley. Read: Audi’s New Q9 Is So Luxurious You Might Never Touch A Door Handle “It is my goal to raise the perception of the Audi brand,” he told CarBuzz. “But we have to do that step-by-step and within the Volkswagen Group. We have to see where our position in that brand cosmos is. But I would say there’s so much space [that] we are not limited at all. Maybe only by the investment opportunities we have.” As recently as November last year, it was reported that Audi was developing an ultra-luxurious version of the Q9 using its Horch nameplate, aimed to rival the Mercedes-Maybach GLS. The prevailing thought was that this model would follow in the footsteps of the China-only Audi A8 L Horch, with exterior tweaks and a higher-end interior. No Return For Horch Audi Q9 interior However, during the same interview, Döllner was directly asked if there would be a Horch version of the Q9. His response? “There are definitely no plans.” “I would say we have the strong Audi brand, and we have, for the sporty models, RS and S. So we are happy, really happy with that lineup.” On initial impressions, the new Q9 does appear like a solid step-up in terms of luxury from other Audi models, although it’s obviously not as classy as the cabin of a Maybach. The German brand has thankfully eliminated its awful piano-black finishes, but the Q9 still has the same curved display and passenger screen found across the Audi line-up, which doesn’t exactly scream luxury or exclusivity. Audi A8 L Horch
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