On March 4, Audi will be launching its new internal combustion engine (ICE) C-segment replacement. Up until maybe a week ago, brand reps were saying the model would shift to wear the A7 badge given the recently launched A6 e-tron resides on a whole other platform matrix. Now, they’ve changed course and the new ICE variant will also be named A6.
In a press release from Audi, the brand stated, “Going forward, (the alphanumeric format of its nomenclature) will represent the size and positioning of each model globally in a unified and transparent way. The previous distinction between electric vehicles and models with combustion engines according to their number no longer applies.”
Audi AG’s board member for Sales and Marketing Marco Schubert expanded on that. “This decision is the result of intensive discussions and also follows the wishes of our customers as well as feedback from our international dealers.”
Audi UK boss José Miguel Aparicio explained it to British car weekly Autocar a little more matter of factly. “It’s important to keep assets like the A6 and especially RS 6 [which would have been renamed A7 and RS 7]. This is a sign of us being humble.”
As if on cue (and you know it was because they get it) Audi Tradition opened a 100 / A6 showcase display at the Audi Forum Neckarsulm to celebrate the lineage. See the full press release and gallery for that at the bottom of this story.
This all begs a few considerations, so we’ll address them point by point.
On A6 versus A7
From the looks of the already released A5 and A7 test mules we’ve seen, it appears the coupe-like Sportback profile may be going away. The already-introduced A5 Sportback looks more like a sedan even though it retains the more usable hatchback configuration. We’re not 100% sure on the thinking there but selling a sedan-like form and an Avant as an A7 probably is a bit of a letdown for those expecting the coupe-like fastback form of the outgoing A7 and its derivatives.
RS 6 is Legend. For Now It Will Stay That Way.
Remember when the M3 Coupé became the M4? I always thought that was a mistake. M3 may be the most legendary performance badge in the BMW portfolio, and it got sidelined to the sedan only in order to have someone’s naming formula idea make sense. There are times when making exceptions is called for, and storied badges are one of those times. It makes sense that Audi figured this out before it was too late.
Whatever you think of EVs, sidelining the RS 6 name in kind to an EV only would have been salt in the wounds for the part of the Audi owner base that is already frustrated about internal combustion’s alleged decline.
What of A5/S5/RS 5?
Considering the logic above about expectations of A7 Sportback owners or legendary badges like RS 6, this one leaves us scratching our heads. No doubt the choice to align came after the A5 and S5 launched as sedan-with-hatch and Avant in Europe.
Interestingly, if you click on over to the Audi Deutschland website where the B10 A5 is listed alongside outgoing B9 models amongst all models, then click on body configurations, you’ll get even more confused. Choose “Sportback” filtering of their lineup and you’ll see the B9s. You’ll need to click on “Limousine” (Deutschland’s term for sedan) in order to see the B10 A5 with its notched hatchbacks… or is it hatched notchbacks. In the meantime, Audi UK’s configurator lists it as the A5 Saloon (sedan in British vernacular) and Audi France has it listed simply as “A5”.
Further Analysis
The Sportback thing always bothered me. For starters, I think I remember Mitsubishi have already used the Sportback name when Audi launched its first Sportback with the A3 5-door with the same footprint as a GTI but a lower greenhouse so that it looked like a short Avant sans the typical extended rear overhang Avants are known for.
In every other case of Audi Sportback, the term has meant a sloped fastback roofline that pays tribute to the 100 Coupé S (C1) launched in 1969. That includes 4-door coupe crossovers, well… all but one. And interestingly, when Audi launched a more coupe-like take on the Q7 with the same footprint and frameless doors consistent with A7 Sportback formula, it called its new creation Q8… simply Q8, not Sportback unless you mean the electric Q8 e-tron Sportback that is not the same thing as the Q8. It almost seems weird they didn’t give it a Sportback designation, but the Q8 did eschew the slope-like roof of the other crossover Sportbacks in favor of a straight angled C-pillar that more closely harked the ur quattro. And yes, that’s all terribly confusing.
Final Take
Some will praise the move and some will complain. I’d argue this is the first step in the right direction when it comes to shoring up the nomenclature. On this subject, I’d like to offer a few other suggestions.
- Define what a Sportback is and stick to it.
- Don’t write off the Q8’s ur quattro C-pillar. It’s cooler than any other Sportback crossover you’ve built to date. While the C1 100 Coupé S was a beauty, the ur quattro put you on the map and is more consistent with the spirit of a crossover given the rallying pedigree.
- Make the Avants happen for America. You’re dropping all your passion-driven coupes and Cabriolets, that you risk becoming forgettable in a sea of four-doors. Today’s RS 6 outsells RS 7, so there’s no reason an RS 5 Limousine or whatever you call it should take priority over the RS 5 Avant. Rumor is you’re going limousine. You need to go Avant. You need to have faith. Trust me.
Press Release: Audi Tradition showcases Audi 100 and A6 history
source: Audi AG
- Exhibition on the successful model series at Audi Forum Neckarsulm runs until April 30
- Audi 100 enabled the brand’s rise to the upper mid-range in 1968
Audi Tradition is presenting a special chapter in Audi history with a new exhibition at the Audi Forum Neckarsulm: the company’s rise to the upper mid-size range with the Audi 100. Running until April 30, a total of 17 exhibits from eight generations of the C model series, starting with the Audi 100 from 1968, await visitors on the second floor of the Audi Forum.
Over the course of its four model generations, the Audi 100 won the Golden Steering Wheel five times, the title “Car of the Year” twice, and was named “World Car of the Year” by automotive journalists once. The model series’ success is underscored by the 3.2 million Audi 100s that were sold in total. The premiere of the first Audi 100 in 1968 was preceded by an exciting story, as its development began in secret. Volkswagenwerk AG took over Auto Union GmbH in the mid-1960s and prohibited the Ingolstadt-based company from developing new models. Ludwig Kraus, Technical Director of Auto Union at the time, ignored the order to only work on existing models. He wanted to add a mid-range model to the Audi brand, which had only been reintroduced in 1965 with the first Audi produced after the Second World War. At a time when VW Beetles were rolling off the production line at the Ingolstadt plant, Kraus saw this as the only chance of survival for an independent Auto Union. His courage was rewarded, and he received the green light from Wolfsburg for his Audi 100 study. Production started in 1968, and capacity limits were very quickly reached in Ingolstadt. The Audi 100 production therefore moved to the Neckarsulm plant in 1970. The company sold 800,000 cars with the very first series. Three further generations followed and proved Audi’s claim of Vorsprung durch Technik with numerous innovations such as the fully galvanized body, optimized aerodynamics, and highly efficient engines.
Since 1994, the Audi A6 has continued the success story of the Audi 100. Nine variants of the Audi 100 and eight of the Audi A6 are on display in Neckarsulm, with the exhibition rounded off by an Audi RS 6 Avant GT1) from 2024. According to curator Stefan Felber, each of the 17 vehicles is distinguished by a special characteristic. In addition to the “first one,” which founded the ancestry line, visitors will also get to know a “globetrotter,” “a feat of spaciousness,” a “long one,” a “sloping one,” a “connected one,” and the “supreme one” – the latter is the Audi RS 6 Avant GT, which concludes the almost 60-year model series history on display. But, as we know, the model series’ success story will soon be continued with its ninth generation – the new Audi A6 Avant will be revealed to the world on March 4 at 2 p.m.
Audi Forum Neckarsulm
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., free admission; guided tours of the exhibition available. The Audi Forum Neckarsulm is closed on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays. For further information, please see Guest Services | Audi Forum Neckarsulm.
