Yesterday we mentioned how Audi has stormed ahead on the Chinese car market with its A6L sedan and it seems its status as a luxury car brand is doing well elsewhere too - almost surprisingly in Germany itself. The home turf war between Audi, BMW and Mercedes would surely be harder fought that anywhere else in the world, with local loyalties and prejudices held more tenaciously.

But according to Car and Driver, Audi has the best image in Germany compared to the market perception of BMW and Mercedes. Jens Meiners says:

Good news for Audi in the luxury segment: last month’s sales figures for Germany are out, and the A8 surpassed both the Mercedes-Benz S-class and the still-fresh BMW 7-series. This tells you something about the A8′s excellent image here [in Germany]. On common German home turf, Audi is entirely on par with Mercedes and BMW. In fact, one could argue that it has achieved the most comfortable position. Audi quite simply stands for superior innovation and design. Mercedes-Benz, by contrast, seems to go after every niche and struggles to recast itself as a sportier, more youthful brand; BMW tries to shift its focus from aggressive sportiness to “sustainability.”

We’ve always been skeptical about Mercedes-Benz’ push to become “younger”. That might seem cynical of us seeing as we’re still on the youthful side of 40, but really I’ve come to appreciate recently that Mercedes does luxury sedans like no other. They’re just not for me. And we love BMW sportiness, but the whole new ‘i’ thing just doesn’t do it for us.

So could Audi become the world’s next number one luxury German brand? They’re certainly counting on it and a model like the A8 does well across the board. If the Audi A9 coupe makes production,we’ll be very interested to see how it’s received.

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With Audi moving downwards with its A1, upcoming A2 and smaller SUV models like the Q3 and rumoured Q1, you might think the trend over at Audi was to start making smaller models. But appears a new, larger model could be in the works which would be a step above the A8 limousine.

It would come in the form of a new Audi A9 coupé and would become the range’s new flagship. Car suggests that the next stop for Audi is world domination as it looks determined to continue an ever-expanding line. The A9 would be based on the A8 sedan and would be a four-seater coupé which could appear in 2014.

It’s too early to say what engine range the new halo model will have, although Car has a few suggestions ranging from the 3.0 V6 TFSI with 211 hp, to the 4.2-litre V8 TDI with 350 hp. We’re not keen on the idea of an Audi Q1 making production, but this kind of model makes sense for us as Audi tries to produce something that will compete with BMW and Mercedes, and be an original its flagbearer outside the sedan-limousine box. The A8 is lovely, but perhaps doesn’t quite make the grade.

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The future Audi A9 flagship sedan could come in three versions, according to AutoBild magazine. The sedan-coupé model to appear might turn up only later, after a 2014 debut of an Audi A9 coupe and A9 cabriolet. While we’re spoiled for choice in an ever-expanding Audi model range, these new versions will be designed to compete with the Mercedes CL and SL range, with prices starting at about €80,000.

The Audi A9 should prove to be Audi’s complete dive into the higher-end luxury realm, but we may have to wait until about 2015 for the sedan model which could be priced above €100,000. It will be even more luxurious than the current Audi A8 and should maintain the sedan-coupe look in keeping with the A5 Sportback and Audi A7.

The Audi A9 should get the W12 engine along with the new four-litre, twin-turbo V8 recently announced on the Bentley Continental GT and expected for the new Audi S6. The Lamborghini Estoque could be developed alongside the Audi A9, but more news on that later, as well as a new Audi model to slot between the Q5 and the Q7.

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