Audi

Audi, a subsidiary of Volkswagen, is a German manufacturer with a long and storied history. Audi evolved from the takeover of NSU Motorenwerke AG and Auto Union, which was comprised of Audi, August Horch, DKW and Wanderer - each represent one of the four circles in the Audi emblem.

The New Audi A3 Comes with Subscription Fees in Europe

European-market cars are a great way to see what some of America’s favorite luxury brands have in store for the New Continent, but the Euro updates don’t always make their way here. One we’re hoping skips North America is Audi’s new subscription scheme, recently introduced with the new A3 in Europe. We’ll see the new car in 2025, but let’s keep our fingers crossed this change stays out of North America.

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Imported Audi, Porsche, and Bentley Models Held Back Over Forced Labor Allegations

Thousands of vehicles manufactured under the umbrella of Volkswagen Group are being held at U.S. ports for allegedly violating the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). Enacted in 2021, the law is supposed to prohibit the utilization of slave labor in Western China. While the impacted automakers include Porsche, Bentley and Audi, we’ve seen plenty of brands being accused of leveraging forced labor in the Xinjiang region of China, where the country is said to have forcibly concentrated the Uyghur ethnic minority.

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Audi R8 Endures Delayed Demise to Satisfy Demand

While Audi had previously confirmed 2023 as the last year of the R8, production of the model has continued into 2024. The automaker will reportedly be keeping the mid-engine coupe around through March to satisfy demand.

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Audi Sends Off the RS 6 Avant with a Limited-Edition GT Model

Beyond being one of my absolute dream cars, the Audi RS 6 Avant is just a very impressive car. It’s getting even more impressive in 2025 with the super-limited RS 6 Avant GT, a unique special edition with a throwback livery and handcrafted details. The automaker hasn’t detailed North American pricing yet, but the car starts at $235,777 (219,355 Euro) on the Old Continent.

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Used Car of the Day: 2002 Audi A6

Today we bring another UCOTD with concise ad copy. This one is a 2002 Audi A6.

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Used Car of the Day: 1997 Audi A6 Quattro

We haven't featured that many Audis here, especially a 1997 Audi A6 Quattro.

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Audi Applies Safari-Style Treatment to Q8 e-tron

There is no shortage of machines jumping on the off-road bandwagon as of late. Rigs like the Porsche 911 Dakar and Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato get big grins and all the ink but jacked up machines like the Wilderness line at Subaru are pushing these builds well into the mainstream. Audi is dipping a toe into these muddy waters with the all-electric Q8 e-tron Edition Dakar.

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Huawei Asks Mercedes, Audi to Collab on Software

Chinese smartphone giant Huawei has apparently broached the topic of software collaboration with a pair of German automotive companies. According to reports, Huawei wants to bust out of the situation in which it finds itself partnered on such projects solely with brands in China.

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2023 Audi TT Given Sendoff Limited Edition Model

Audi is discontinuing the TT this year and will be offering a Final Edition built in limited quantities. Based on the Roadster, the model is focused on giving a visual nod to the original that debuted in 1998 so you’ll have something to talk about with friends. But the first thing they’re going to bring up is why the cloth top is gray rather than the original black.

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Gas-Powered Audi RS Models to Continue on Dedicated Platforms - For Now

As part of the VW family, Audi is going electric sooner rather than later, but it’s not entirely ready to give up on combustion. The automaker recently confirmed that the company’s RS performance vehicles would be split across gas and electrification and that the two would ride on different architectures.

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Used Car of the Day: 2015 Audi A3

I am back from two days of playing with new cars in suburban Chicagoland, and I bring you a German treat -- this 2015 Audi A3.

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Porsche and Audi Recall Almost 6,700 EVs for Insufficient Battery Sealant

Large automakers save money by sharing platforms and engineering designs across individual brands, but the practice means that problems affecting one model tend to impact related vehicles. Porsche and Audi recently issued a recall that illustrates that point, as the vehicles share most of their underlying engineering and could have batteries with insufficient sealant.

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Used Car of the Day: 2007 Audi A3 S-Line 3.2 Quattro

Today's UCOTD is a 2007 Audi A3 S-Line 3.2 quattro with an automatic transmission. Hey there, a wagon!

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2022 Audi Q4 50 E-tron Quattro Review – Not Getting What You Pay For

Sixty-five grand doesn’t fetch you what it used to, it seems.

Yes, sure, prices inflate over time, we all know that. But even accounting for that fact, and even accounting for the fact that electric vehicles are commanding premium prices and likely will for the foreseeable future, I was nevertheless disappointed with the experience of being loaned a 2022 Audi 50 e-tron quattro* for a week.

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They Kept Your Car for How Long?

Hands up if you’ve ever had a car repair stretch on longer than your liking. Chances are, most of us have been without our wheels for an unexpected spell – whether that was at the hands of a so-called professional garage or one’s own wrenching ineptitude is often up to our own personalities. This author has sadly fallen into the latter category more than once.

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2022 Audi Q3 S Line Review – Sporty or Just Weird?

The idea of a compact, sporty entry-luxury crossover is appealing.

It’s a sort of a “have your cake and it too” proposition – you get the utility of a crossover, but it’s also fun to drive and at least a little bit upscale. Sure, it’s expensive, but perhaps not out of reach for the upwardly mobile young (or youngish) urban professional.

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Dieselgate Resurgence: Ex-Audi CEO Faces Conviction in German Regulation Scandal

Reports have emerged in Germany that former Audi CEO Rupert Stadler is about to become the upper-echelon automotive executive convicted in the diesel emissions fiasco perpetrated by Volkswagen Group. A Munich court issued a preliminary assessment on Tuesday, stating that an accusation of fraud had been substantiated.

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Audi to Rename Entire Vehicle Lineup

If you thought Audi’s naming scheme for electric vehicles was a little confusing, buckle up because things are about to get more complicated. The brand is preparing to rename its entire lineup to further differentiate between EVs and combustion models. While rumors about the company dumping e-tron badging for something different have circulated for weeks, CEO Markus Duesmann recently confirmed some of the details in Germany. In the future, all combustion-reliant Audi products will be issued odd numbers while electric models are to be given even ones.

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Used Car of the Day: 2012 Audi A3

Yes, we're featuring yet another wagon in this slot. We're automotive journalists, what can we say?

This one is a 2012 Audi A3 Premium Plus S-Line with the DSG automatic transmission.

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Audi Wasted No Time Shutting Down RS4 Avant Rumors

Enthusiasts and auto journalists are a predictable lot. Show us a high-performance wagon, preferably in brown, and we drift off into a warm haze of sideways-skidding family-hauling daydreams. Europeans have long gotten the cream of the crop when it comes to hot wagons, but Americans have gotten a few over the years, including the current Audi RS6 Avant. A couple of days ago, Motortrend got everyone’s hopes up with a report that Audi would bring the smaller RS4 Avant to America, but the automaker wasted very little time in shutting the rumor down – hard. 

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Audi Grandsphere Concept Coming in 2024 as Next-Gen A8

Audi began rolling out its exotic “Sphere” concepts in 2021. The Grandsphere Concept previewed an electric flagship sedan, and we’re now learning that it will likely arrive as an A8 successor in 2024. 

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Hey Audi F1 Fans, Check This Out!

Hi there, folks. We're working on another initiative with our corporate parents/partners to promote our forums. In this case, it's all about Audi and F1.

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Used Car of the Day: 2007 Audi RS4

Today's used car of the day is a sporty Audi sedan that asks $27,500. This 2007 Audi RS4 sedan has a manual transmission and is in Pennsylvania.

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2022 Audi A3 Quattro Review – Sleek Sport Sedan Seeks More

It’s really easy to love a sporty entry-luxury sedan that has all the right handling moves and doesn’t totally break the bank.

It’s a bit less easy to love a car with Audi badging that seems to be short of some luxury features, features that you no doubt could have – if you just spent a little more.

It’s also a bit less easy to love a luxury car when there are a bit too many interior reminders of the mainstream brand it shares its platform with.

That’s the 2022 Audi A3 Quattro sedan I drove in a nutshell.

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The New 2024 Audi RS6 and RS7 Performance Prove More is Almost Always Better

The Audi RS6 Avant and RS7 enjoy legendary status in the United States. The cars are two of the brand’s hottest performers here, falling second only to the R8 supercar. However, there’s always room for improvement, and that’s exactly what the automaker is doing for 2024. Audi is working on a new Performance trim for both cars that pushes even more power from their twin-turbo V8 engines and brings other go-fast upgrades to the chassis.

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Audi Teases New E-tron Models Ahead of Reveal

You're not alone if you find Audi’s EV naming convention confusing. Understanding the differences between various e-tron, e-tron GT, and Sportback models is more complicated than it should be, and unfortunately, things are unlikely to get easier as new models roll out. Audi recently teased new Q8 e-tron and Q8 Sportback e-tron models that are essentially renamed versions of the standard e-tron. We don’t know the pricing or release date details yet, but the two EVs debut on November 9, so we don’t have long to wait. 

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Used Car of the Day: 2004 Audi Allroad

A wagon with a manual transmission? Only one owner? Under 130K miles? Only $11,000?

Pinch us, we're dreaming.

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2022 Audi Q3 Review - Out Of The Shadows

Ever since the late David E. spaketh his missive and/or advertorial on behalf of a sports sedan, a pair of German brands have been the symbols of having made it...or at least being on a clear path to making it. Audi, on the other hand, was the third wheel - occasionally gaining respectability, but too often finding itself fighting against the memory of a vengeful Sunday evening “news” program.


Lately, however, Audi has been cutting their own path, with a distinctive style unlike any other automaker. The four rings within a gaping black grille are being recognized and appreciated as genuine markers of a fine luxury automobile - and not, as once was the case, as simply a nicer Volkswagen.

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The Grand Tour's "A Scandi Flick" Crashes, Bangs, and Contrives to Fill Its Length

It’s been nearly three years since The Grand Tour switched its format away from the elaborate traveling tent and to its all-special format. On Friday, Amazon released the fifth such special, and the first “post pandemic” episode (their term, not mine). In “A Scandi Flick,” the familiar trio heads across Scandinavia in three rally-inspired all-wheel drive sedans. It’s certainly not the show’s worst work, but it’s far from the best. You’ll need to suspend disbelief and leave your thinking skills in another room.

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Audi, Chevrolet, GMC, Honda Among Latest String of Recalls

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has listed its’ automotive recalls for June 2 through 9 and the list includes Audi, Chevrolet, Ford, GMC, and Honda vehicles for various types of recalls.

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Rental Review: The 2020 Audi A5 Sportback, a Bit Damp

It’s a new week, and I’m back with another German car Rental Review for your enjoyment! Today’s rental is one of two American market entrants into the premium compact five-door liftback segment, and not a car one expects to find in an Enterprise lot. Presenting a 2020 Audi A5 Sportback, two years and 50,000 rental miles later.

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Audi Urbansphere: A Trojan Horse

Back when everyone still bought into the hype surrounding self-driving cars, automakers were releasing concept vehicles framed as a “lounge on wheels.” The theory was that once autonomous vehicles hit the mainstream, companies would begin dropping futuristic models with swanky interiors because drivers would no longer be responsible for piloting the car for the duration of its journey. However, the public eventually learned that autonomous driving technologies had failed to progress as promised and would likely come with a host of restrictions plenty of drivers wouldn’t be interested in once the wrinkles had been ironed out.

But there are a whole host of markets to be tapped, the public has a relatively short-term memory, and there’s always a chance that some major headway was made during the last few years of development. So we’ve seen a resurgence of mobility talk from the industry, especially as it relates to all-electric vehicles. Case in point is the Audi Urbansphere — an autonomous concept vehicle designed for “Chinese megacities” but allegedly perfect for a metropolitan area near you.

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Audi Approved for $3.3 Billion EV Factory in China

Audi and FAW Group, the state-owned partner it is effectively required to have in order to preferential treatment from the Communist Party of China, received some good news this week. Government officials have approved the duo for a new, jointly operated production facility in Changchun.

With Volkswagen Group having shifted its focus toward China in recent years, the market has become all-important for the German company. VW is currently the top-selling brand for the entire region, with its Audi subsidiary typically being the highest volume premium automaker from Europe. Building in China is good optics for brands hoping to remain popular there and has the added benefit of placing manufacturing complexes closer to relevant suppliers, especially if you’re swapping to electric vehicles.

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Audi Reveals Ken Block's S1 E-tron Quattro 'Hoonitron'

Ken Block is a man of many talents, many of which have nothing to do with driving. But he’s still best known for showboating from behind the wheel in the highly entertaining and well-produced Gymkhana video series. Here, Kenneth and the Hoonigan team choose a visually engaging locale and creatively rips up the pavement in some of the coolest custom-built rally cars ever to grace the screen.

Due to Block’s partnership with Ford, the majority of those cars wore the Blue Oval. But he’s since entered into a new professional marriage with Audi where he’s supposed to help push the brand’s all-electric agenda. The unification has apparently yielded its first mechanical offspring, with the insane-looking Audi S1 e-tron Quattro Hoonitron having debuted on Wednesday. Predictably electric, the vehicle is heavily inspired by the Group B legend that shares the parts of the name that don’t utilize the word tron.

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Buy/Drive/Burn: Near Premium Midsize Sedans From 2011

Today’s Buy/Drive/Burn trio are near-premium sedans from the midsize segment. This set was a suggestion from commenter CoastieLenn on our B/D/B entry from last week. The year is 2011 – does Acura, Audi, or Volvo get the Buy nod?

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Audi Resurrects Historical Horch Nameplate, Creates New Luxurious Rare Ride

Audi recently announced a new, super luxurious version of its largest sedan, and it’ll wear some branding not seen in a very long time. Wake up Horch, it’s 2022.

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Volkswagen Group: Audi Employs Ken Block, Porsche Making 718 Electric

Despite being the target of a German lawsuit accusing the manufacturer of not being green enough, Volkswagen Group is probably the legacy automaker touting the merits of electrification with the most enthusiasm. While undoubtedly influenced by the diesel emissions catastrophe that cheesed off every regulator in the Western world, its brand has actively been delivering EVs and praising alternative energy automobiles whenever possible.

There was more of that this week. Porsche has reportedly decided to make the 718 to be an all-electric model by 2025 and Audi recently announced that it’s employing rally icon and Hoonigan founder Ken Block (who broke with the Ford Motor Co. earlier this year) to develop EVs.

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Audi Skysphere Concept Previews Transforming Automobiles

It often feels like the automotive industry has hit a creative wall where every concept vehicle has to be another electric vehicle offering next-generation connectivity and some self-driving claims that will later be tamped down. We’ve gotten used to being disappointed but there has been one brand that’s been furnishing concept vehicles that are at least interesting.

In 2018, Audi debuted the PB18 E-Tron Concept (AI:RACE) in an attempt to highlight what’s possible with a pure EV using the skateboard platform. Without a driveshaft hogging interior space, the automaker felt it could build a supercar with an interchangeable driving position that allowed the pilot to transition from a central F1-style cockpit to something that’s more suited to the daily commute. The company has since decided to build on that idea with the Skysphere Concept, which alters the roadster’s exterior based on whether it’s you or the car that’s doing the driving.

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Audi Press Car Used to Help Flood Victims

Press-car abuse is a part of the automotive journalism industry. So, too, is damage caused by normally diligent journalists who made a mistake/had some bad luck. I don’t intentionally abuse vehicles, but I’ve dented and dinged and broken a few things because sometimes shit happens.

What I have not done is use a press car to help flood victims. Nor have I been scolded for doing so, even though the car wasn’t apparently damaged.

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Audi Abandoning Subcompact Cars Over Regulatory Pressure

Audi is discontinuing the A1, citing Europe’s regulatory landscape as the main cause. Eager to limit the amount of CO2 coming out of tailpipes, the European Union has placed strict limits on petroleum-powered passenger vehicles. For Audi, the price of manufacturing a subcompact automobile-dependent upon internal combustion is getting too high. Installing a smaller motor would negatively impact drivability while slotting in a hybrid powertrain means more R&D costs and jacking up the MSRP to a point where consumers might lose interest.

There’s just not much incentive to build small, efficient vehicles when the profit margins have been made razor thin and people aren’t buying them in great numbers. And this is a lesson that’s being learned by all automakers, not just those associated to Volkswagen Group.

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Audi Transitioning Solely to EVs Doesn't Include Chinese Market

Volkswagen Group has been prattling on about electrification for years and ultimately decided that Audi would be the tip of its progressive spear. The brand has cachet as both a luxury and performance division, while simultaneously possessing VW’s magical ability to produce vehicles that don’t become an eyesore after you’ve had them in the garage for a decade.

While transitioning toward EVs runs the risk of spoiling that, Audi is clearly the VW property best positioned to come after would-be Tesla customers and is not hesitant to issue reminders that it’s serious about being a global leader when it comes to battery-driven vehicles. On Tuesday, the Ingolstadt-based company announced plans to exclusively launch electrically driven automobiles from 2026 onward — adding that it doesn’t even plan on selling internal-combustion vehicles by 2033.

But these rules won’t apply to the Chinese market, which will be flush with internal-combustion vehicles produced within its borders years after the rest of the world has apparently lost the option to purchase them.

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Rare Rides: An Almost New Audi S8 From 2001 (Part II)

In Part I of the D2 Audi S8 story, we covered the foundations of the A8 as Audi attempted a do-over after the V8 Quattro. Today we’re all about S8.

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Rare Rides: An Almost New Audi S8 From 2001 (Part I)

Rare Rides has featured the predecessor of today’s sedan previously, in a very pearly 1990 V8 Quattro. After Audi spent a few years unsuccessfully trying to sell its first-ever attempt at a flagship full-size sedan, it took the lessons learned from the D1 and developed the D2 A8 and S8.

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Junkyard Find: 2007 Audi S6

When I’m wandering junkyards and looking for interesting stuff, I don’t pay much attention to Audis of our current century. No, I want to photograph old Audis, preferably ones from the 1970s. I make exceptions for discarded members of the Audi S family, however, because these cars do such a great job of demonstrating the ruthlessly quick depreciation of German luxury machinery that didn’t get the maintenance it deserved. Here’s an ’07 S6 that didn’t even see 15 years of use, found in a Denver-area yard last week.

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Audi Boss Paints Gloomy Picture for Small Automobiles

While Europe often appears as a safe haven for punchy subcompacts, the reality is that the continent’s biggest sellers happen to be reasonably sized automobiles equipped with a tepid engine option. The Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Corolla, and Škoda Octavia (especially if you happen to travel through any former satellite states of the Soviet Union) are absolutely everywhere. Europe also has a strong taste for many of the compact crossovers that are popular here in North America, giving subcompacts an increasingly small share of the overall market. And it’s projected to get smaller (globally) under the existing European regulations.

Pint-sized economy vehicles aren’t exactly profit leaders for automakers and their margins are only going to become slimmer. The EU is now reaching a point where building them won’t make sense, as tailpipe regulations will eventually force some amount of electrification. This will jack up their price to a point where the kind of people that might have been considering them will probably shop used. But don’t take our word for it; Audi CEO Markus Duesmann recently said this is probably what will kill the A1.

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First Audi ABT RS7-R in North America

The first new ABT RS7-R Limited Edition version of the 2021 Audi RS 7 has been completed by GMP Performance in Mooresville, North Carolina, at their facility in Lake Norman.

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Buy/Drive/Burn: $65,000 European Luxury Sedans for 2020

In the last edition of Buy/Drive/Burn, we discussed three large European wagons with a $65,000 price point. The Buy vote was a toss-up between the E-Class and the A6 allroad.

Today we cover the sedan variants of the same three cars, at the exact same price point. Think you’ll choose differently?

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Rare Rides: The 1990 Audi V8 Quattro, First Time Full-size Failure

In our last Rare Rides, we discussed how the W126 S-Class established the model as a default for the large German sedan shopper. I also referenced the failed attempt at S-Class competition which was the Audi V8 Quattro.

So today let’s expound upon that failure a bit.

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2019 Audi Q8 Quattro Review - Technocratic Sport

Maybe I am softening in my old age, or maybe crossovers are getting a bit better to drive, or both, but I found myself semi-charmed by Audi’s Q8 crossover. Of course, a luxury crossover should be somewhat enticing, lest the buyer feel he or she wasted money each month when that car payment auto drafts out of the bank account.

I say semi-charmed for a few reasons. One, the Q8 is still a crossover, not a sport sedan. Two, there were tradeoffs.

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Buy/Drive/Burn: European Luxury Wagons in 2020

Checking through the Buy/Drive/Burn archives, we’ve considered three sets of wagons previously: American wagons of the Seventies, Japanese wagons of the Nineties, and European wagons of 2004.

But Americans have more European luxury wagon choices in this, the Awesome Year of 2020 than in the decade and a half prior. So let’s revisit the discussion.

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The 2020 Audi A6 Allroad, Did You Realize It's On Sale Now?

It’s an occasion worthy of a future “Rare Rides” label when the North American market is graced with a new large wagon. Only a few of the breed are for sale presently, and that quantity has remained largely unchanged since the late 1990s.

Audi is selling two new ones this year, but they don’t seem to be on anyone’s mind. Not even the wagon-loving car journalists.

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Variation on a Theme: Audi Q5 Sportback

Like it or not, and it seems most of our readers don’t, manufacturers are pressing ahead with the coupification of luxury-grade small crossovers. The BMW X4 and Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe generally offer a more sport and less utility, thanks in no small part to a roofline that begins to swoop dramatically to the pavement just aft of the driver’s noggin.

Audi wants in, of course. The existence of a Q5 Sportback was confirmed earlier this year. Now they’re ready to show a production version, complete with its so-called Singleframe grille aggressively tapered rear end.

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A Scarce Audi Lands Extra Range, Lower Price

Have you seen an Audi E-Tron (officially, “e-tron”) on the street? This writer hasn’t. Yet the electric Audi crossover has been on offer for a little over a year now, slowly paving the way for an all-electric future.

Available to U.S. customers through special order and to dealers who just wish to keep one around, the E-Tron arrived in early 2019 with 204 miles of EPA-rated range. It’s now back after skipping a model year, with two improvements aimed at broader consumer appeal, if not adoption.

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2019 Audi A6 Review - Simply Stunning

Once upon a time, if you were shopping for a luxury vehicle that drove like a sports car, you’d get a BMW or, in some cases, a Jaguar. If you wanted one strictly for its comfort and opulence, you’d get a Mercedes-Benz or a Lexus. If you wanted a sort of ‘tweener, then you’d consider an Audi, particularly since it was one of the few in its segment to offer all-wheel drive. But these days, the German (and Japanese, and British) luxury giants have become so competitive with each other, they’re no longer separated by the unique characteristics that once defined them.

When it comes to the midsize-luxury-sedan trifecta, this trend couldn’t have been any more apparent. The BMW 5 Series seemingly gave up some of its enthusiast-minded “ultimate driving machine” superiority to focus on technology innovation while the Mercedes-Benz E-Class lost its allure for over-engineered excellence during its mix-up with the DaimlerChrysler merger of equals. Meanwhile, Audi took the lead with the A6, dethroning its direct competitors from their winning pedestals in numerous class comparisons over the years just by ticking all of the boxes incredibly well.

Does the story remain the same with the new fifth-generation model, which recently launched in our market?

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Wagon Wonderland: Audi A6 Allroad Practically Confirmed for America

With the Audi RS 6 Avant confirmed for America and the manufacturer teasing wagons via social media throughout the summer, we figured Germany would soon send another wagen our way. And while nothing has been confirmed through official channels, Audi executives are already saying it’s to be the A6 Allroad.

Rumors stated that the model would make its way to the United States ever since the updated A6 premiered at the New York Auto Show in the spring. Audi managed to encourage these rumors without issuing any confirmation — at least until Oliver Hoffmann, managing director of Audi Sport, chimed in earlier this week.

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Rare Rides: The Original Audi 5000 From 1980

Before Audi revolutionized rallying and four-wheel drive cars with the Ur-Quattro circa 1980, the company made front-drive vehicles underpinned by Volkswagen platforms (some things never change). Today’s Rare Ride 5000 hails from the waning days of Audi’s front-drive era, not long before an all-new 5000 set the template for aerodynamic sedan design.

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Audi Still Under Threat of New Dieselgate Fines

Dieselgate never dies. Germany’s Federal Motor Transport Authority (Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt) has informed Audi that it will be subjected to additional fines if it fails to meet upcoming deadlines for retrofitting manipulated diesel models with updated software.

Reports from Bild am Sonntag, later confirmed by Reuters, claim the regulatory authority issued three letters to the automaker stipulating that it had until September 26th to replace the software in emissions-cheating V6 and V8 TDI engines (originally certified as EU6 compliant) lest it be fined 25,000 euros (about $27,500) per vehicle. While fines are only applicable to cars still carrying illicit software, the transport ministry estimated some 127,000 Audi vehicles qualified in Europe last year. There were originally around 850,000.

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Audi Teases AI:Trail Quattro Concept Before Frankfurt Motor Show

Audi is teasing a new model slated to debut at next month’s Frankfurt Motor Show — an off-road specialist called the AI:TRAIL Quattro. With massive wheels and a nonexistent approach/departure angle, the conceptual crossover certainly seems ready to scurry up a mountain. But the overall design is more hyper-modern RC car than traditional baja beast.

It’s not coming entirely out of left field. Audi has shown several electrified concepts using a similarly futuristic design language, among them the AICON luxury sedan, PB18 supercar, and AI:ME city vehicle. Like the AI:TRAIL, each is designed to tackle a very specific portion of the market. All will be on hand in Frankfurt to showcase Audi’s vision of what a car could be.

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Forbidden Fruit No Longer: Audi's RS 6 Avant Is Headed to America

Months of teasing gave way to an admission of intent late Tuesday. After dangling Avants wagons of yesteryear in front of social media watchers since the spring, Audi finally came out and admitted the beastly RS6 Avant wagon will make its way stateside.

Sporting all-wheel drive, a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8, and endlessly customizable drive settings, the next-generation RS 6 Avant lands in America in 2020, but don’t expect to see many polluting showroom floors.

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Audi Ups Its Wagon Tease Game

Despite wagons facing a growing unpopularity that rivals that of free speech, Audi continues winking and nudging at North America, sneakily hinting that the king of all long-roofs might make its way to this side of the Atlantic.

There, it could see dozens, perhaps even hundreds of orders. Cynical? Perhaps, but a niche pocket of enthusiasm does greet any mention of the A6 Avant midsize wagon and its upcoming, beastly RS 6 Avant performance variant. Believed to pack a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 and a boatload of horsepower, the next-generation RS 6 launches for the 2020 model year, but it remains to be seen whether any of these wagons arrive on these shores.

Certainly, Audi wants fans to think they will.

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