Replacement for today’s A6 Allroad gets fender extensions, bespoke bumpers and a choice of petrol and diesel engines
December 22, 2024 at 07:47
- Audi’s 2026 A7 Allroad has been spied undergoing winter tests ahead of next year’s launch.
- The ICE-powered A7 is the successor to today’s combustion A6, and counterpart to the A6 e-tron EV.
- Plastic fender extensions and adjustable height air suspension will again mark the Allroad out.
You can still buy a combustion Audi A6 alongside the new A6 e-tron, but next year the ICE car gets a comprehensive overhaul and a name swap to become the A7. We’ve already spied that car and it’s hot RS7 brother testing, and now we’re getting a look at the Allroad.
The original A6 Allroad debuted in 1999 and helped Audi plug a gap in its range when it had no real SUVs to rival the BMW X5 and Mercedes ML. A crossover before anyone had really heard of that term, it got chunky plastic arch extensions and adjustable-height air suspension, two features that the new A7 Allroad is still rocking more than a quarter of a century later.
Related: Audi RS7 Getting Ready For A Super Wagon Fight With BMW M5 Touring
A pair of vertical air intakes can be seen at either side of the front bumper, which contains conventional rather than split headlamps as seen on the electric A6 e-tron. And as with today’s Allroad, we expect buyers will be able to have the black plastic body kit painted in body color if they prefer a stealthier look.
At the rear the combustion A7 offers more styling differentiation from the A6 through its boomerang-shaped rear light clusters. A slim transverse light bar connects the two and the four-ring logo at the back will likely be illuminated. You might also notice the tailpipes, which are the real deal this time because Audi has vowed to stop using fakes on its ICE cars.
This prototype seems to be sitting fairly low, but if it matches the 7.3-inch (185 mm) ground clearance available on today’s model when its suspension is cranked right up, there’ll be enough fresh air under the floor to cope with most of the obstacles these cars will ever encounter.
Allroads have always been more expensive than regular A6s, and that means they get a good range of luxury equipment and aren’t available with base four-cylinder engines in the US, skipping straight to the V6. We see no reason for that to change, so the A7 Allroad will probably get the 362 hp (367 PS), 3.0-liter turbo V6 from the new S5, or something close to it, with a V6 diesel, and maybe an I4 diesel on offer in Europe.
Audi hasn’t revealed the base A7 sedan and wagon yet, so we might not see the Allroad until mid 2025, with the RS6 arriving a little later based on the rollout of the previous model. The question is, will Audi also make an Allroad e-tron to sell alongside the RS6 e-tron? We haven’t seen one testing yet, but you’ll be the first to know if we do.
