Audi management is keenly aware of recent missteps and aims to quickly rectify issues in rapid succession based on feedback seen and heard from around the world at every level. The first salvo in this offensive? Filling a family-sized hold in the lineup with the new Q9 SUV.

On Monday, the 2027 Audi Q9 three-row crossover SUV’s interior was revealed with upscale materials, life-sized cup holders, what can only be described as truly over engineered technology, and seating for the entire family. The Q9 will be unveiled on July 28 ahead of arriving in the U.S. near the end of the year. It will take aim at the Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class and BMW X7, the former of which was just facelifted and the latter of which is about to be redone in similar fashion as the BMW 7-Series.

While the exterior hasn’t been revealed, yet, I can say visually and while standing next to the Q9 the thing is large. Long, wide, and tall, this is easily the largest production Audi in history and should measure right up against the GLS and X7.

All four doors can open electronically with a pull of a real exterior door handle. The driver’s door can be setup to shut when the brake pedal is pressed, when the driver’s seat belt is fastened, or it and any other door can be electronically opened or closed at the push of a button on the touchscreen, though it takes three taps to get there and you must hold the digital button until the door’s opened or closed, and the doors each have sensors in them so they won’t open into anything. Safety first!

Those doors also feature electronic controls from inside the cabin. A button opens and releases the door. There’s no mechanical backup like in a Porsche Cayenne Electric, rather, each door has a small capacitor that stores energy. That capacitor can open the door in case of an emergency to ensure no matter what, unless the door’s no longer on the vehicle or is so smashed it can’t physically open, it has the ability to unlock and open regardless of the vehicle system’s power supply.

Inside the Q9 feels like a return to form in many ways for Audi. There’s basically almost no shiny piano black plastic anywhere (hallelujah!). Trim on the center console ranges from open-pore wood to carbon fiber weave, which all look and feel lovely. Most plastics are matte instead of shiny to minimize finger prints like the old days. Stitched leather lines the dashboard, and is augmented with wool-like cloth trim that spans the lower section of the dashboard to hide inset speakers that are part of the 4D surround-sound system. A strip of ambient lighting arcs across the base of the windshield and acts as a communicator changing colors in various situations. If automatic emergency braking where to kick in it would flash red to alert the driver, and when turn signals are engaged the corresponding side will flash green to keep your eyes up away from the gauge cluster and closer to the road. It can even be synced to the beat of the music, if you are into that kind of thing.

The triple-screen setup pairs a digital gauge cluster with a touchscreen canted slightly towards the driver all under one curved piece of glass that looks right out of the A6 E-Tron. It’s accompanied by a standard front passenger touchscreen display with YouTube, web browsing, and video watching capabilities including the ability to pair Bluetooth headphones. There’s a real volume knob on the center console alongside, unfortunately, a only a handful of key function buttons that are all one single piece of plastic. The rest of the controls including climate control, vent controls, and infotainment functions are all housed in the touchscreen display. There are two cooled wireless smartphone chargers at the front of the center console, each with Magsafe compatibility and up to 100 watts of power output along with two USB-C ports. Perhaps above all else, the front cup holders, which have a flip away cover, are American sized and can hold a Stanley cup for those in need. In fact, the rear-seat cup holders can hold Stanley mugs as well, which my daughter will be thrilled to hear (feel my pain, please).

Audi’s trick, and highly over engineered yet functional, one-piece stalk that incorporates the gear selector, turn signal, and wiper controls into one unit is here in the Q9 (and is still fantastic).

Families will take note that the rear doors open a full 90 degrees. The Q9 will be available in six- and seven-seat configurations with the ability to hold up to three car seats across when optioned with the second-row bench seat thanks to three tether anchor points. The outboard second-row seats slide and tilt forward making it so car seats (that are unoccupied, of course) don’t have to be removed to access the third-row. The third-row is adult sized with plenty of room for my 5-foot-10 frame to sit (albeit a bit knees up) comfortably behind a 6-foot-5 adult in the second row. While we don’t have final measurements, yet, there’s real cargo room behind the third row, and with that row folded the space for cargo (or activities) looks immense.

The available Bang & Olufsen 4D surround-sound system has 24 channels, 22 speakers, and 2 actuators in the front seats. Those actuators induce motion and vibrations into the seats to make it so you physically feel the music. It’s like the sound vibrations are being put into your body.

Everyone seated in the Q9 will have quite the view of the sun and the stars. Most of the roof is glass to the tune of 16 square feet. An electrochromatic-like function using Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC) technology can be optioned, and it can make the entire panel of glass, or just certain sections, opaque to block the sunlight and up to 99.5% of UV rays. Further, embedded lighting can be optioned with 84 LEDs placed inside the glass panoramic roof to make it a true statement piece.

Audi provided The Drive with travel, accommodations, some German pretzels, and access to the vehicle for the purpose of writing this story.

The Beijing Auto Show is always full of surprises, but this year, a giant took the stage. XPeng has officially pulled the covers off its newest flagship SUV, the XPeng GX. This big vehicle is designed to be the best of the best for the Chinese company. With a starting price of RMB 399,800, which is about £42,200, it is not a cheap family runaround, but it offers a lot of features that usually cost much more in other electric cars. This six-seater has more computer power than many professional workstations. XPeng wants to prove that its cars can be as luxurious and advanced as the top-shelf offerings from famous luxury brands from Europe.

When you first look at the XPeng GX from a distance, you might think you are seeing a Range Rover. It has a similar boxy, strong look that many luxury buyers love. But the GX is actually longer than the British classic. It measures 207.3 inches from front to back. The wheelbase is a roomy 122.6 inches. But even though it is a giant SUV, it moves through the air very easily. It has a drag coefficient of 0.255 – better than many small, sleek cars. It sits on large 22-inch wheels that help it stand tall and look expensive.

Inside the car, the space is the real star. Most SUVs with three rows of seats feel like a cardboard box in the very back. The XPeng GX uses a layout with two seats in each of the three rows. The doors close themselves softly, so you never have to worry about slamming them. XPeng says this is a car built for families and it isn’t wrong. The trunk is big enough to hold six large suitcases, even when every seat is full. There is a fridge that stays quiet while it keeps your drinks cold. The front passenger seat can even lean back 180 degrees for a nap. If you want some privacy, the glass can dim itself using AI technology.

There are two versions of the new GX available – the first is a pure electric option. This model uses an 800V system that allows for very fast charging. XPeng calls this 5C supercharging. On a full charge, this version can travel 466 miles. It uses two electric motors for all-wheel drive to make sure it has plenty of grip on the road. This makes it one of the long-distance leaders among modern EVs.

The second version is an extended-range EV. This model can go 267 miles using just its battery. It also has a small gas engine that acts like a generator, and when you use both, the total range jumps to 985 miles. That is a serious distance for any vehicle. You could drive for days without needing to stop for fuel or a charge. Like the pure electric version, this one also comes with all-wheel drive as standard equipment.

XPeng calls the GX its first “robotaxi-ready” car – it has the hardware to drive itself in the future. It uses four special AI chips designed by XPeng. These chips are very powerful and can think much faster than a human. To help the car steer, XPeng worked with Bosch to build a steer-by-wire system. This means there is no metal rod connecting the steering wheel to the tires. Instead, the car uses wires and computers to tell the wheels which way to turn. This allows the AI to steer faster and with more precision.

Safety is another area where XPeng is showing off its strengths. The company says the XPeng GX has “aviation-grade” safety – it has backup systems for everything, just like a commercial airplane. If one system for steering or braking fails, there are five more layers of backup to keep you safe. The car can also stop itself automatically if it sees a crash coming. It can do this at speeds up to 93 mph. It even works on ice and snow, which is usually very hard for computers to handle.

But this is not the first time XPeng has tried to sell a luxury car. They tried it once before with the G9, but it did not go very well. Now, the GX has to fight against other popular Chinese EVs like the Li Auto L9 and the NIO ES8. Pretty much anywhere in the world, a car with all these features for £42,200 would be an instant hit. But in China, the competition is so tough that some people think the price is a bit high.

If you want to spend a little more, you can get a special paint job called “Kunlun Cloud Realm.” This paint is put on in 15 different layers, with each layer 230 micrometers thick. This makes the car look like it was painted by hand by an artist. It gives the GX a lustrous, deep look that you usually only see on cars that cost in excess of £150,000. XPeng is trying very hard to make sure this SUV feels like a true luxury product from top to bottom.

XPeng is changing from a car company into an AI mobility company. They are already making robots, eVTOL aircraft and are working on robot taxis. The XPeng GX is a big part of this new plan. If the self-driving technology works as well as they promise, the high price might be worth it. People might be willing to pay more for a car that can handle the boring parts of driving for them. For now, the cars are already arriving at stores in China.