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February 5, 2025

Audi Backtracks On Model Naming


Audi is abandoning its plans to clearly distinguish its combustion engine and full electric range, a move they announced less than two years ago. Instead, it returns to its standard nomenclature starting with the all-new A6 which will be launched in early March.

To jog your memory, Audi announced that it was renaming its model range with odd numbered models signifying combustion engine models, and even numbers, full electric ones.

Going forward, the global alphanumeric model name will consist of one or more letters and a number. The letters A and Q continue to signify the distinction between low-floor and high-floor vehicles. The numbers – currently from one to eight – enable a clear classification independent of the type of powertrain.

The necessary differentiation between models and variants in the portfolio is done using the body style (such as Avant, Sedan, or Sportback), while the powertrain will use e-tron (EV), TFSI (gasoline), or TDI (diesel). An additional “e” suffix will denote plug-in hybrids.

“S” and “RS” will still refer to performance variants of each model.

For example, the gasoline-engine version of an Audi wagon will read as, “A6 Avant TFSI.” Meanwhile, a BEV version of the same car will read, “A6 Avant e-tron.”

“This decision is the result of intensive discussions and also follows the wishes of our customers as well as feedback from our international dealers,” says Marco Schubert, Member of the Board of Management for Sales and Marketing at Audi. “Our nomenclature now provides all customers worldwide with an intuitive orientation in our portfolio. We choose the names of our models in a way that reveals size and positioning at first glance.”

No retroactive name changes for models released in the past two years will be done.

The change has the potential to increase confusion, however, at least temporarily. For example, the A5 sedan and A5 Avant, which had been the A4 model before, will retain their names, even though the previous-generation A5 was a standalone two-door coupe.

Currently, Audi has 81 models available, including all variants of body styles, with the e-tron GT being the single outlier to the naming convention.

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