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.
With its new Audi Q9, it is said that the K1, which has been slated to launch in the UK in 2028, will share Premium Platform Combustion (PPC) architecture as part of an effort designed to help offset high development costs of its electric vehicles (EVs) and their future successors.
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Cayenne Electric
It’s said that, like the Q9 which will be launched in 2027, it’ll reportedly be built in Slovakia because of rising manufacturing costs in Germany.
It will be larger than the Cayenne, with seven-seat layout – it’s going to have been an early model for Porsche and has four- and five seats on its menu, Autocar says.
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.
Macan Electric
An electric version will still be launched, and will slot in above the Premium Platform Electric-based Macan Electric and Cayenne Electric.
This means that Porsche will be given a trio of electric SUVs, and ‘a group of combustion-powered SUV with the K1 at top, the Cayenne in the middle (and renamed M1) PPC-based mid-size SUV code named 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”.
However, Porsche said it confirmed that its new flagship SUV – known as a D-SUV (Europe segmentation) would be launched with combustion or plug-in hybrid power.
Cayenne
This was not just because of delays for the SSP Sport platform, but also due to ‘a clear decline in demand for exclusive battery-electric cars’, according to Mr Blume.
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.
Last September it confirmed that all its combustion-powered models will continue to be in production, noting that “new generations of successor models have been added to the Cycle Plan for these vehicle models” and launches of “certain” all-electric models would be delayed.
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