Porsche’s upcoming flagship SUV, codenamed K1, has changed dramatically during development.
Autocar reports the K1, which had previously been confirmed to be an electric-only model, will be offered with V6 and V8 engines, including plug-in hybrid powertrains.
Tentatively scheduled for launch in the UK in 2028, the K1 will reportedly share the Premium Platform Combustion (PPC) architecture with the upcoming Audi Q9, as a means of helping to offset the high development costs of its electric vehicles (EVs).
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Like the Q9, which is set for launch in 2027, it’ll reportedly be built in Slovakia due to rising manufacturing costs in Germany.
While it’ll be larger than the Cayenne and offer a seven-seat layout – a first for Porsche – Autocar reports it’ll also be offered with four- and five-seat layouts.
Like the Q9, the K1 will take on the likes of the BMW X7 and Mercedes-Benz GLS, and will be primarily focused on markets such as the US, the Middle East, and China.
Engines will reportedly include a twin-turbo 3.0-litre petrol V6 and a twin-turbo 4.0-litre petrol V8. The current Cayenne offers turbo-petrol 3.0-litre V6 and twin-turbo 4.0-litre petrol V8 power, with both engines available with plug-in hybrid systems, so the K1 isn’t set to be a radical departure.
An electric version will still be launched, and will slot in above the Premium Platform Electric-based Macan Electric and Cayenne Electric.
That will give Porsche a trio of electric SUVs, plus a trio of combustion-powered SUVs with the K1 at the top, the Cayenne in the middle, and a new PPC-based mid-size SUV codenamed M1 that will be a de facto replacement for the old petrol Macan.
The K1 had been confirmed in 2023 as an electric-only model based on the SSP Sport platform, before Porsche announced in September 2025 that it would halt development of this platform. Porsche CEO Oliver Blume confirmed its launch was postponed until “well into the 2030s”.
At the same time, Porsche confirmed its new flagship SUV – referring to it as a D-SUV, per European segmentation – would be launched with combustion or plug-in hybrid power.
This was due not only to delays for the SSP Sport platform, but also, per Mr Blume, because of “a clear drop in demand for exclusive battery-electric cars”.
Porsche has also been battered by tariffs in the US, declining demand in China, and a protracted development program for the electric 718 sports car replacement, all of which have contributed to losses for the German brand.
It confirmed last September it will extend the lifecycles of all its combustion-powered models still in production, noting that “new generations of successor models have been added to the Cycle Plan for these vehicle models”, while the launches of “certain” all-electric models will be delayed.