Audi Preparing to Launch New EV Sports Car to Rejuvenate the Brand
The new electric Audi sports car will be shown in concept form at the Munich auto show, ahead of a production launch two years from now.
Audi CEO Gernot Döllner said an electric sports-car concept will be revealed in early September ahead of the Munich auto show, according to German newspaper Bild.
The car is said to be “not a TT, not an R8, but something in between” and will serve as “an identity builder” for the brand.
Döllner made it clear that this concept car will go into production, putting the targeted launch date as two years from now.
Audi is gearing up to reveal a new electric sports car this fall. The announcement came via an interview with Audi CEO Gernot Döllner in the German newspaper Bild, where he spoke openly of Audi’s recent struggles and the need to rejuvenate the brand’s lineup. Döllner referred to this new model as “TT Moment 2.0,” referencing the importance of the TT as a design icon for Audi in the late 1990s, and confirmed that the electric sports car will be shown for the first time ahead of this year’s Munich auto show in September.
The September reveal is expected to be positioned as a concept car and will likely feature some design elements that stray more toward fantastical than practical. Still, Döllner was quick to confirm that this will not remain just a concept, stating that “the car will be built” and setting the launch for two years from now.
2023 audi tt rs
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The new electric sports car will serve as an indirect successor to the Audi TT, which was discontinued after the 2023 model year.
Döllner didn’t provide any other details on the new electric sports car, but the model is expected to set the stage for future Audis, displaying a new design language, a new interior look, and new technical features. Despite Döllner referencing the TT in regard to what the new model will mean for Audi design, it seems that it will be positioned slightly higher in terms of performance. In the interview, Döllner called it “a highly emotional sports car—not a TT, not an R8, but something in between.”
This isn’t the first time we’ve heard of an electric Audi sports car. Previous reports have suggested a TT successor would be based upon the upcoming Porsche 718 EV, an electric sports car set to replace the current Boxster and Cayman. The Porsche was originally expected to be revealed this year, but reports point to delays for the 718 EV. We wouldn’t be surprised if this new Audi sports car ends up sharing a platform and powertrain with the Porsche, albeit with changes to the tuning and potentially power output to differentiate it from the Porsche model.
Döllner views this new halo model as crucial to right the ship, with Audi having trouble in recent years with delays for new software systems and autonomous driving programs and a lineup that hasn’t made a huge splash with customers. “I don’t want to beat around the bush; we have to get back on track now,” he told the German publication. Döllner dubbed this new model “an identity builder,” and this new identity will be revealed in just over one month.
