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Archive for the ‘Audi Q4’ Category

The Audi Q2 was supposed to be the smallest crossover in Audi’s lineup. It’ll still hold that distinction for a few years, but it’ll eventually cede that title to a new Q1 crossover that’s expected to get the production green light from Audi. Nothing has been confirmed yet, but if the Q1 does come to life, expect it to arrive sometime in the end of 2020.

On paper, this sounds like a bad idea. Audi already has the Q2 crossover, so it’s hard to understand why it’s going to build an even smaller model. Wouldn’t a Q1 crossover overlap the segment that the Q2 already belongs to? If you look at it from a deeper perspective, however, it’s one of those things that just might work given how in-demand crossovers and SUVs are these days. Audi sales and marketing chief Bram Schot even told Auto Express that the company is going to be aggressive if it sees an opportunity to do so. “You cannot ignore the SUV trend,” he said. “The question is how wide and how deep do we make the program with SUVs?” Apparently, a smaller version of the Q2 can fit into that program.

It’s still unclear on how Audi plans to work around developing the Q1, but the prevailing sentiment these days is that the German automaker will use the next-generation version of the A1 as the base for the Q1. That could mean a number of different things, including the likelihood that both models will use the Volkswagen Group’s MQB platform, which also happens to underpin the new SEAT Ibiza and the Volkswagen Polo. If that’s the case, don’t be surprised if the Q1 adopts a similar styling as well.

In terms of power, the Q1 will also benefit from a series of engine options, including an entry-level 1.0-liter three-cylinder turbo unit and a more powerful 1.5-liter engine. A 1.6-liter diesel is also in the cards, though that could be contingent on the markets Audi plans to sell the model. Don’t sleep on the possibility of seeing some form of hybrid technology on the small crossover, too. By the time it hits the market — probably before 2020 — the tech could have filtered down through Audi’s entry-level product lineup.

If anything, you also have to give Audi some credit for being aggressive with its push in the crossover and SUV markets. In addition to the planned Q1, it’s also rolling out an all-new Q4 and a flagship Q8 in the near future. Ultimately, the German automaker will likely have run through the whole alphanumeric naming run for its crossovers and SUVs. There’s going to be a Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4, Q5, Q7, and Q8. All it needs is a Q6 and a Q9, and it’ll be set.

Ask Schot if that’s even possible and he’ll probably tell you not to bet any money against it. “Depending on the business opportunities, we decide on the future product portfolio,” he said.

References

Read our full speculative review on the 2020 Audi Q1.

Read our full speculative review on the 2018 Audi Q8.

Read our full review on the 2017 Audi Q2.

Read more Audi news.

Automakers have latched onto and sucked continuously on the fleshy meat that is consumer demand for SUVs, crossovers, and an imaginary segment known as the coupe-SUV. The latter of which is a filled by a small number of SUVs that have manufacturer proclaimed “coupe-like dimensions” while riding on jacked-up, SUV-like suspension. It’s a mishmash of vehicle types, really, but we’ll leave that discussion for another time. The point is, our insatiable love for SUVs have led automakers to believe that the market is going to continue growing almost indefinitely. So much so that Ford believes it’s going to account for more than 45 percent of the auto industry within the next five or seven years. But, Ford isn’t the only one, as we’ve just received word that the Audi Q8 and, surprisingly, the Audi Q4 are about to go into production.

The Audi Q8, which we’ve already seen in concept form more than once, with the Q8 E-tron Concept getting a ton of attention at the Detroit Auto Show and it’s sibling – the Q8 Sport Concept – garnering its fair share of attention from the Geneva International Motor Show. They were obviously big hits, and Audi is wasting no time on the production version – it’s slated to go into production sometime in 2018 (probably early-2018) in Slovakia. The model will be Audi’s range-topping SUV, dethroning the Q7 and increasing Audi’s personal chunk of the Luxury SUV segment. It will be produced alongside the Q7 s and Q7 e-tron.

Then you’ve got this mythical creature known as the Audi Q4. This model has been rumored for years but was finally confirmed back in 2011 when VAG’s design boss confirmed that it and the Q6 were coming. Well, after that the trail went cold for a while, but then we saw the 2014 Audi TT Offroad Concept and the rumors began to fly that this concept was going to be the basis for the Q4. It wasn’t until 2016 that Audi finally got the Q4 name from FCA. It was trademarked six months later, and now we finally hear that it’s set to go into production as a “compact utility vehicle” at BMW’s Hungary plant in 2019.

Keep reading for the rest of the story

Audi’s alphanumeric “Q#” nomenclature is finally complete after the company announced that it had successfully negotiated with Fiat Chrysler over the rights to the Q2 and Q4 names. Audi CEO Rupert Stadler made the announcement, saying that the two sides have reached an agreement that allowed Audi to take ownership of the two names.

Stadler didn’t dive into the specifics of the transaction, but he did hint that Audi had to give up some of its trademarks to FCA in exchange. In the purest sense, it was a trade that both sides agreed on, ending years of Audi’s relentless pursuit in completing its alphanumeric “Q#” lineup.

With the Q2 and Q4 names now in its possession, the German automaker is expected to waste little time putting the two names to use. The Q2, in particular, will be used on a sub-compact crossover that’s being tipped to make its debut at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show in March. The model will be available in the same choice of engines as the A1 and will use Volkswagen’s MQB platform.

Meanwhile, the Q4 will likely be used on a coupe-like variant of the next-generation Audi Q3. Once it’s released, it would be slotted right smack in the middle of a segment that’s currently inhabited by its two biggest rivals, the BMW X4 and the Mercedes GLE-Class.

As for FCA, there’s no word on what it received from Audi as compensation for letting go of the Q2 and Q4. Back when it those two names were owned by FCA, Q2 was used as the name of its limited slip differential technology while Q4 was the designation for the all-wheel drive variants of the Maserati Ghibli and Quattroporte.

According to Stadler, no amount of the money was part of the deal so it points to the possibility that this trade could’ve been a simple trademark-for-trademark transaction.

Continue after the jump to read the full story.