Avatr Previews the T09: a Patrol-Sized PHEV Flagship From a Brand Planning an Australian Launch

Image credit: Avatr

Another week, another Chinese flagship SUV wearing a 9. Avatr, the premium brand backed by Changan, battery giant CATL and Huawei, has surfaced its biggest model yet in Chinese government certification filings: the T09, a plug-in hybrid six-seater that measures 5,285mm nose to tail. And this one matters more than most reveals out of China, because Avatr has said it is planning an Australian launch.

The Changan connection is the part Australian buyers already know, even if the badge is new. Changan owns Deepal, which has been selling the S07 and E07 here since 2024 and has a dealer network on the ground. Avatr sits above Deepal in the Changan stable, the way Lexus sits above Toyota.

How Big Is It Really? We Checked Our Own Numbers

The filing lists 5,285mm long, 2,025mm wide and 1,810 to 1,820mm tall on a 3,150mm wheelbase. Rather than take the usual overseas comparisons on faith, we lined it up against the large SUVs in our own database.

T09 figures from Chinese MIIT certification filings. Zeekr, Nissan and Denza figures are current Australian specs from the CarSorted database.

So it is 110mm longer than a current Patrol Ti and 46mm longer than the Zeekr 9X that is already locked in for Australia, but it sits about 120mm lower than the Nissan. That is the whole 9-series formula in one line: full-size 4WD footprint, road-focused height, unibody construction instead of a ladder frame. This is a limousine wearing hiking boots, not an off-roader.

Two PHEV Powertrains, One Missing Number

The filings list two plug-in hybrid setups. The first pairs a 105kW 1.5-litre turbo-petrol with a 180kW front motor and a 310kW rear motor. The second steps up to a 150kW 2.0-litre turbo-petrol, keeps the 180kW front motor, and adds dual 225kW rear motors. Add the second one up and there is 780kW of hardware on board, though combined system outputs are never a straight sum and Avatr has not published one. Both run a ternary lithium battery from CATL.

The number that matters most is the one the filing leaves out: battery capacity, which means electric range is anyone's guess. We will put a figure on it when one officially exists, not before.

What the filing does list is kerb weight: 2,880 to 3,035kg depending on variant. For context, that starts about 70kg above a Patrol Ti (2,812kg in our database) and tops out heavier than almost any SUV wagon we hold, including the 2,900kg Zeekr 9X. Weight like that has real ownership consequences in Australia, from payload arithmetic to what your licence class covers once you hitch something to the back. If the T09 lands here, GVM and towing figures will be the first things we chase.

Image credit: Avatr

The Look: Boxy Body, Jewellery Everywhere

Avatr's existing cars are curvy things, so the T09 is a hard swerve: boxy fenders, an upright tail, and a rectangular metallic grille with a patterned insert that reads a bit Zeekr 9X from some angles (a blacked-out version will be optional). The brand's split-level front lighting carries over but grows larger and more segmented, and the full-width rear light bar picks up an unusual crystal-look treatment. Chrome runs along the doors, bumpers and D-pillar, and the launch imagery leans hard on a two-tone gold-over-white paint job straight out of the Maybach playbook.

Above the windscreen sits a LiDAR unit, expected to be Huawei's latest 896-channel hardware. The interior has not been shown yet. Given the segment and the captain's chairs, expect screens and settings menus in quantities that would embarrass a Harvey Norman.

Our Take: the 9-Series Pile-Up Is Coming, and Australia Is the Test Market

Count them: Zeekr 9X, Wey V9X, Denza N9, IM LS9, Aito M9, Li Auto L9, and now the Avatr T09. China's premium brands have collectively decided that a three-tonne, five-metre-plus PHEV flagship is the new status symbol, and Australia keeps showing up early on their export maps. The Zeekr 9X is already confirmed here. If the T09 follows, the interesting fight is not with the Patrol or LandCruiser crowd, who want low range and a ladder frame. It is with each other, and with the German establishment at what we would expect to be a much lower price than a comparable BMW X7 or GLS.

The honest caveats: the T09 has not been confirmed for Australia, right-hand-drive production is unclear, there is no battery capacity, no range figure and no price anywhere in the world yet. Avatr as a brand planning an Australian launch is the confirmed part. Everything about this specific car reaching our shores is still an if. We will track it, and when real Australian numbers exist they will be in the database the same day.