[RahulNagaraj]

Audi could be the latest carmaker to go fully electric before the end of the decade. According to a media report, the German brand is planning to phase out IC-engine powered cars from 2026.

The report suggests that Audi will not be introducing any new petrol or diesel cars from 2026. Apart from pure IC-engine powered vehicles, Audi is planning to discontinue all its hybrid models as well.



The plan to go fully electric is said to have been confirmed by Markus Duesmann - CEO of Audi to a German news site. The report also states that the timeline for Audi's push towards electrification is in line with the introduction of the Euro 7 emission norms.

Audi had previously announced plans to introduce 20 fully electric models by 2025. The company already has a number of pure-electric models on sale, including the latest e-tron GT.

Source: Sueddeutsche Zeitung

Link to Team-BHP news

[armaan_singh]

I don't think the Infrastructure will be quite ready in 5 years, at least unlikely in India. Does that mean Audi will sell older models over here ?

[chinmaypillay]

Not sure how full electric will pan out for countries where the infrastructure is not yet ready. Shouldn't they be doing a feasibility on this? Already the lack of diesels are hurting their prospects real bad, now with no engine (ICE) it would not be difficult to understand what will happen :P

[dragracer567]

It seems like the VW group is overcompensating after the diesel gate fiasco. Even in developed countries, the infrastructure won't be sufficient to sustain a fully electric car fleet let alone countries like India. A more feasible target would be 2032!

[TrackDay]

If I am reading right, the article says that the last ICE car from the brand will be introduced in 2026. That means production of the ICE models introduced that year could well continue into 5 or 6 years down the line. That puts production of ICE cars till 2032 at the minimum and is not a bad thing.

However if they were to stop production of ICE cars in 2026, it will be like that rare friend who shows up for a party at least an hour or two in advance. If they know to have fun like how Tesla does, then it's fine.

[GTO]

I think TrackDay is spot on. Audi can't risk discontinuing an option that there is still HUGE demand for. For all that we talk of EVs taking over the world, they account for 1% of car sales worldwide, and just 2 - 3% even in electric-friendly markets like USA.

Audi might not invest in IC engines anymore, or introduce newer models. But they will certainly keep selling the models / engines they already have on sale. Imagine the plight of Audi India - VW group has anyway discontinued the diesels in India. Without a petrol, they might as well start packing their bags.

Originally Posted by TrackDay

That means production of the ICE models introduced that year could well continue into 5 or 6 years down the line.

Longer, man. Also, German car manufacturers sell the same gen for a longer time (typically 7 - 8 years on each generation).

[kits]

Audi Q4 e-tron is cheaper to lease than my A5 (45 tfsi) over here in Sweden. Taxes, congestion charges etc will also be much lower. I am seriously considering the switch.

Although, cities with more apartments than houses, will take much longer to switch to electric. Also, VW may be making these statements for brownie points after their debacle.

[RahulNagaraj]

Audi to phase-out IC-engines in 2033; to go electric in 2026

Audi has officially announced that the company will be going fully electric by 2026. All new Audi cars being launched from 2026 will be electric-only, with the company discontinuing the development of new IC-engine powered models.



However, the company also stated that they will continue to sell the current line-up of IC-engine powered cars and SUVs, post-2026. Audi has given itself time till 2033 to slowly phase out its IC-engine models. The company will also cease to manufacture IC-engines completely from 2033, becoming an 'EV-only' brand in the process.

The German luxury carmaker joins the likes of Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar and Volvo to announce a complete shift towards electrification. The company has already introduced a number of electric vehicles globally, including the e-tron and e-tron GT, while also having many others in the pipeline.

Link to Team-BHP news

[Livnletcarsliv]

I think most of the BHPians here are concerned about the lack of infrastructure.

But, I have a different thought though.

By 2033, it will not just be Audi that will be fully electric. Audi will join other brands like Daimler, Volvo, JLR, etc, etc that will be fully electric by then. Let also not forget the pure electric brands like Tesla, Ather, Ola, Revolt, Okinawa, Simple Energy, etc, etc.

The current EV model line of other brands like Bajaj, TVS, Tata, MG, Hyundai, upcoming EV models from brands like Kia, M&M, Maruti, Nissan, Toyota, etc, and finally with the imperative focus of all the brands in India towards EV's I am 100% sure that it is achievable in India.

Globally, all the countries are not the same. So it doesn't make sense for the Auto brands to wait for all the respective countries to create the full infrastructure by then. With the current pace, roadmap, strategy, I am sure India, by 2030, will have appropriate and enough infrastructure to become at least 60%-70% (I am expecting 90%) electric vehicle country.

If the UK is going to make it mandatory that all vehicles sold in the UK from 2031 should only be electric and no ICE will be allowed to sell, this is absolutely the right and appropriate roadmap for every Auto brand.

[COMMUTER]

This is not going to end well at all for the renowned auto brands by then. They will only exist in name but will be pocketed easily by the Chinese who have the means to produce dirty lithium batteries without any whimper from the deluded environMentalists. These environMentalists aren't worried about the adverse effects of lithium mining either.

All these countries which are manufacturing decent cars have stringent and impractical environMental laws in place. They wouldn't be able to manufacture anything by 2033 as the laws keep getting more an more stringent with every passing year. The Chinese who, according to the environMentalist, are living in a place which can't contribute to world pollution irrespective of being the most polluting country in the world, will have their say on global automotive scene.

If manufacturing something is polluting then getting it manufactured from a place which doesn't care two hoots about causing very high pollution from thousands of miles away and shipping it using the unimaginably higher polluting ships must just worsen things exponentially.

Logic like this would sadly get shouted down.

[vjbox]

While I can understand this giant push for going all electric by these manufacturers, the concern remains not just with the public charging infrastructure, but its the private charging setups that most of the common people will lack. All of us in urban mostly live in cramped localities where space is at a premium and even in upmarket areas, we see cars being parked in the roads by the owners due to lack of parking facility (true to some independent houses too). I really wonder how such owners can afford to charge their cars on a regular basis? There only bet is to take it to a paid charing station nearby every time they need a charge and such stations will likely suffer from long queues.The same issue will also be with apartment complexes where there won't really be a consensus among the members to setup common electric charging stations and even if done, there is going be a chaos when it comes to charging all those cars in the lots.

While I was talking to the Volvo SA on the upcoming XC40 recharge, he had to admit the fact that whosoever buys the car will have to keep it a city only car and can't really afford to take it for outstation trips with ease. This will be the case for at least the next 3-5 years. For context, in my frequent trips to Bangalore from Chennai, I hardly noticed electric charging stations and the ones that existed had literally only one dock. Imagine you planned the trip keeping the one dock in mind and if it didn't work due to lack of maintenance etc, you are going to be in a soup. As much its welcoming to see the shift, how many of these high end manufacturers are going to follow the foot steps of Tesla who worked on an extensive grid of charging stations across the country while they slowly started to sell their cars ?

[shortbread]

Originally Posted by vjbox

While I can understand this giant push for going all electric by these manufacturers, the concern remains not just with the public charging infrastructure, but its the private charging setups that most of the common people will lack. .....

Imagine you planned the trip keeping the one dock in mind and if it didn't work due to lack of maintenance etc, you are going to be in a soup. As much its welcoming to see the shift, how many of these high end manufacturers are going to follow the foot steps of Tesla who worked on an extensive grid of charging stations across the country while they slowly started to sell their cars ?

Hi vjbox, I understand your worries but they stem from one major miscalculation......that everything remains constant, it won't.

EV range continues to progress rapidly & charging stations will increase in number.

I am someone who believes thoroughly in the EV revolution, because as an energy source it provides maximum flexibility.... BUT, if you told me even 2 years ago that electric cars could sell more than a few hundreds in India, OR that there will be thousands of charging points across the country, I would have scoffed. No chance!

Yet today EVs are a part of mainstream Indian conversation, simply look at how active the Electric Cars section on Team BHP is? I was so sure this would be as dull as the Motorsport section, but proven wrong again, everyone's on here actively debating the pros and cons of electric automobiles.

Charging stations will be a big booming business, it's easy to set up. This will be the relief many without their own charging facility.

While it will take time, residential living in India will gradually evolve as well. Accomodation will also take into account dedicated parking space, rather than the haphazard make-do arrangements in place today.

For all our flaws we as humans also have many strengths, they include the ability to evolve,adapt as well as progress, we are never stuck in a constant.

The EV revolution will be built on the same strengths.

[shashank.nk]

Originally Posted by vjbox

As much its welcoming to see the shift, how many of these high end manufacturers are going to follow the foot steps of Tesla who worked on an extensive grid of charging stations across the country while they slowly started to sell their cars ?

I agree with you on the private charging setups, but I'm positive a solution will be found in the next 3-5 years. Also, one won't need to charge often once we start seeing EVs with a range of 400-500kms unless you have a high usage of say 2000kms a month.

Originally Posted by shortbread

EV range continues to progress rapidly & charging stations will increase in number.

I can confirm this is already in progress. My client was recently sanctioned 300 EV charging points by the Govt of Karnataka, the details of where is still awaited but he's pushing to get permission to set it up on NH4 and NH 75 as within the city he foresees most people opting for a private charging setup.

Its expected to come up in the next 3 years or so and even though 300 charging stations is nothing compared to total number of cars on road, remember this is just one contractor and the first phase of sanctions, there are many such businessmen waiting in line and the days of taking a EV on a 600/700 km round-trip isn't really 10 years away, more like 3-5.

Slight OT on an Audi future plans thread but hope the Mods won't mind.