We Got an Early Look at the Audi Q9's Interior. It's the Most Upscale Audi Yet

• What's new: Audi's new Q9 flagship SUV is coming this fall.
• Why it matters: Its interior easily matches the comfort, space and luxury of rivals like the BMW X7 and Mercedes-Benz GLS.
• Edmunds says: We got an early look at the Q9's interior in Germany and came away seriously impressed — even if there are some tech bits we don't like.

Upscale comfort

As Audi's flagship, the Q9's interior materials received extra scrutiny. There's French-stitched leather on the dash and door tops, and the perforated leather on the seats in the car I inspected successfully walks the line between softness and implied durability. The seats are also supremely comfortable, and like many in the class, have multiple adjustments along with a massage feature. The faux-suede headliner extends down to the pillar coverings, and the relatively small amount of piano-black surfaces reside where they're less likely to scratch or glare in sunlight.

I was also impressed with the more "hidden" parts of the interior, such as the lower part of the door panel. While the plastic itself is hard to the touch, it has a velvety surface that feels upscale and luxurious. The doors and center console in the Q9 I looked at featured cool, textured carbon-fiber trim panels, though open-pore wood trim will also be available. 

The front seats are heated and ventilated, and the second-row captain's chairs are heated; they're also more comfortable and supportive than the driver's seat in some cars. There's four-zone climate control, and second-row passengers have vents in the middle behind the center console and in the pillar, which is a better placement for kiddos in car seats. There are even pillar-mounted vents for the third row, which could be considered a fifth "zone" if you want to count the third-row booster fan. 

Interior is lit

Augmenting the upscale feel of the materials is an excellent ambient lighting scheme, which pays off in some interesting ways. There are 30 different colors to choose from (I like the deep purple), and the ambient lighting includes pipes on the doors and dash, hidden highlights elsewhere in the cabin, and a cool pattern on the doors themselves. Audi even extends the lighting scheme to the seats themselves, with lit-up areas near your shoulders on the front and second-row captain's chairs; expect rivals to copy that in the next couple of years. You can manually select your favorite color or key it to match whatever drive mode you're in.

The lighting isn't static either; when you use the turn signal, the light bar under the windshield flashes green on the left or right side to show the active signal. Most eye-catching is the moonroof lighting. It's projected deep into the glass from the side, creating a pattern that changes color along with the rest of the interior lighting scheme. 

Panoramic views

Ambient lighting is just one trick the moonroof has up its sleeve. The panoramic roof is standard and uses an electronic sunshade to keep out the harshest glare. Audi says this eliminates the need for a physical sunshade, but in my experience, dimmable panels aren't quite as effective as a physical barrier; time will tell on that one. 

What's immediately apparent is the level of customizability in those panels. There are nine individually dimmable sections. Most surprisingly, the moonroof still opens, which Audi says is a first, and the dimmed sections remain dimmed. However, opening the panel shuts off the ambient lighting. 

Door power

Audi has skipped trendy pop-out electric door handles on its flagship, and I, for one, couldn't be happier. However, the doors themselves are electrically powered. You grab the meaty handle and give it a tug, and the door whirrs open. It's smart enough to pause opening if someone is standing directly in front of the door, resuming with a gentle shove after that person moves. You can close the doors by pressing a button on the door armrest where a handle would be, and in the rear, there's an additional close button on the ceiling to make it easier for third-row passengers to operate the doors. The button works both ways; you can push it to open or close the doors. They also close when you buckle your seat belt or when the driver puts their foot on the brake.

The driver and front passenger can also open and close individual doors using the touchscreen, and can turn on and off the electronic operation of each door. Think of it as a high-tech version of the child lock switch. If you'd rather operate the doors without the fancy electric motors, you can disable the system altogether. 

Room for days

The Q9 is the biggest passenger vehicle Audi has ever made. I'm a little over 6 feet tall, but the Q9 handily passes the "self-behind-self" test, where I adjust the front seat to my preferred driving position and see how I fit in the second row. There's tremendous headroom, and legroom is plentiful, especially considering the second-row seats electrically adjust front and rear.

As for the third row, it's a darn sight better than the cramped quarters of the Q7. I was able to maintain good legroom for myself in the second row and still squeeze into the third. Again, headroom is ample, but knee room is tighter. I fit, but it's definitely designed for smaller passengers than me. But if you carry kids back there frequently, you'll appreciate the additional space.

The Q9 will appeal to well-to-do families, and the second-row captain's chairs feature easily accessible lower anchors for child seats hidden behind a small zipper. However, those seats require you to sling the upper tether over the headrests since there's no pass-through. The good news is that the entire seat tilts forward when you access the third row, so you can keep a booster seat mounted. 

The third row hides its lower anchors behind small, removable plastic covers that are destined to get lost, but at least it makes it simple to attach a car seat, and the upper tether routes under the rear-seat headrest. In total, you can fit four boosters or infant seats into the Q9, making for a lot of pampered tots.

There's plenty of cargo space, too. Exact specs aren't available yet, but there's generous floor space behind the third row for several suitcases, and the rear seatbacks electrically fold in a 50/50 split. If you need to maximize cargo space in a hurry, a "luggage" button in the rear puts all the seats down at the same time; a corresponding "passenger" button makes the interior ready for people again. Electrically folding seats are never as fast as a manual setup, but the wait time on this one isn't so bad that you'll be wishing for the inelegance of pull straps to speed things along. 

Tech in high supply

The Q9 will have the most advanced infotainment tech of any Audi. The touchscreen is enormous and immediately responsive. That's no joke; you tap, and it instantly does whatever you've asked. That's a good thing since so many functions get routed through the screen, including climate controls. While I'd still prefer knobs for adjusting the temperature, the touchscreen is so quick I don't really mind it so much. However, Audi has also incorporated Tesla-style touchscreen controls to adjust the air vents. Fine, it has presets, and the quick screen is useful, but that only makes it the best-case scenario of the worst way to adjust vents. Physical adjustments, please. 

Beyond fast screens, the Q9 has other tricks up its sleeve. One is a MagSafe wireless charging pad. iPhone users (or Android users with the right case) can just plop their phone onto the raised pad and it'll stay there; no need to worry about it sliding a millimeter to the side when rounding a corner and losing your wireless charging.

Bang & Olufsen once again supplies Audi's high-end audio, and the top-spec in the new Q9 is called "4D." It uses a bunch of speakers strategically placed throughout the cabin — including in the seatback headrests in front — to create an immersive experience. Not enough? The 4D part adds a supplemental driver in the seat bottom itself, like what Mercedes' Burmester system does in the S-Class. I got a quick demo, and I have to say it's interesting. The seat vibrates to low bass tones, like a speaker would, not just a constant on-off buzz. It's certainly different and cool in a demo. Whether or not I'd use it every day is something I can find out later, but for now, it got me curious — and thankful that there's an off button, just in case. 

Just-right timing?

Audi is the last of the German luxury makers to enter the full-size SUV market, and its new Q9 has some ground to make up against the BMW X7, which is about to enter its second generation, and the Mercedes-Benz GLS, which has existed since 2007 and gets a big update this year. So far, I like what I see. The Q9 brings some interesting and fun technology to the table, feels more than appropriately upscale and refined, and Audi hints at significant performance under the hood that will be detailed in a few weeks. 

So is this a case of "better late than never"? Or is it more of a "saved the best for last" scenario? Audi will let us drive it soon enough, but early indications show the Q9 will be a strong contender.