Credit: Audi

MUNICH—One of the defining car industry trends of the early 21st century was the global, or world, car. Spread the development costs out across multiple markets, the thinking went, and efficiency takes care of the rest. At least that was the idea; post-COVID, post-Evergreen, and in a world now erupting into trade wars and actual shooting wars, plans need to change.

“With Audi we have to be flexible on a global perspective,” said Audi AG CEO Gernot Döllner, and the new Q9 is an example of that. “It’s really the car where US requirements were at the center of the product development process. It’s dedicated to the US for the first time. Global launch, not Europe and then US. And for the Q9, it’s the US first and then it’s also dominated the volume we expect by the US American market. And then after the US, we will have the global launch of that car,” he said.

Yes, that means bigger and better cup holders that can handle the insulated mugs that everyone had to have, as we saw from the Q9’s interior. But it also means paying more attention to things like the JD Power surveys and so on. For example, for the Q9, “we rearranged the smart door panels we have in our A5, A6, and Q5 cars and came back to dedicated switches, optimized the interior cooling, and of course seating, the roof concept, all that with a key customer focus,” Döllner said.

“We definitely will be able to keep Europe and the US together when it comes to products. And we will do that by listening more carefully to US customers, because I learned that earlier in my career, that’s no problem in Europe to have a product that’s perfect for the US, but sometimes it’s the other way around a little bit difficult, which is absolutely alright,” he said.

China gets its own cars

The AUDI E7X is a new model developed for China in partnership with SAIC.
Credit: Audi

Euro and American tastes intersect enough that most models will be shared. China is a different story. “We definitely see that we need more local for local in China, and I believe that we need regional-specific solutions and definitely a local production system. And that would be great if I would be able to implement that setup for Audi to have a future-resistant setup for the brand, especially in the US,” he said.

“Having been to China two weeks ago on Beijing motor show, it’s crystal clear that the global car for the era of the global product is over. We will need also China-specific solutions from the ecosystem, from the supply chain, from the production system, much more than we have in the past to be successful in China. And that’s also an opportunity to have the European and North Americans even more specific to the climates in these regions,” he explained.

What about a new R8?

I do love the Audi R8, and a new one would be great.
Credit: Audi

In response to a question asked by another journalist, Döllner noted that he’s “a big fan of V8. It’s a perfect fit to the full-size SUVs and whenever package-wise possible.” But since he brought up V8s, I decided to ask a cheeky question—since there’s a V8 in the new Lamborghini Temerario, and since Lamborghini and Audi share technology within the Volkswagen Group, how about a third-generation Audi R8 supercar?

“It’s a great V8 engine on the Temerario. Really outstanding engine. And as I said, we have these opportunities to come up from the different technical solutions and combine them. And I mean, the C Sport is an example that we build a car with character based on a Porsche platform, and the result is a clear Audi, and that’s our approach to have our customers in mind and come up with the right solution. Good idea,” he told me.

That’s not quite a yes, but it’s a lot more than a no…

Forbidden fruit

I wasn’t the only person wishcasting with my questions. Another of my peers pressed Döllner on the subject of station wagons. Audi has been one of the last purveyors of wagons in the US market, but with the retirement of the RS6 Avant, it currently only has sedans, fastbacks, and SUVs here. Well, never say never. In addition to the RS5 Sportback that you’ll be able to read about on Thursday, Audi make an Avant version for Europe. While it’s not officially destined for the US yet, it appears to be on the cards now.

“I would see the more sporty versions like RS or of course an allroad version would be a perfect fit,” he said, even if more basic wagons won’t cross the ocean. “I’m really positively surprised to say that our dealers… they really asked for the RS models to be brought to the US as wagons as well. And we didn’t have that in our base plans, but I think we are doing that. And from the reaction, we could think about doing stuff, but right now there are no plans.”

The RS5 Avant isn’t coming to America… yet.
Credit: Audi

Again, not quite a yes, but better than a no.