You’re driving down the freeway on a cloudy day when German sheetmetal catches your eye. New Audi, by the looks of it. Well, it could be new. Yeah, that’s a nice A6 up there. Or is it an A4? Hold on a second, it wasn’t as far away as you thought — that’s the new A3, which borrowed its its older siblings’ clothes.
Suffice it to say, and Ingolstadt isn’t alone in this, that design DNA runs very deep in the Audi family. To see an Audi is to recognize an Audi, but not necessarily to discern what particular Audi you’re seeing. Well, the company wants to change that.
As it begins to feel more comfortable in its own skin, Audi is moving on from a strategy crafted to boost brand recognition. Future models will be more distinctive and less easily mistaken for other models in the lineup, the company’s boss says.
Speaking to Britain’s Autocar, CEO Rupert Stadler explained, “This [repetition] design process was used to make Audis more recognisable in newer and emerging markets. Now we are well known in major markets like China, we can begin to change this philosophy and give each car its own look.”
The first departure from the brand’s past philosophy is the 2018 Audi Q2, a subcompact crossover built on Volkswagen’s MQB platform that doesn’t simply take the Q3/Q5 look and shrink it. A little more upright and angular than other models, the Q2 doesn’t exactly break the styling mold, but it does bend it. Alas, the Q2 is not bound for U.S. shores.
Audi design chief Marc Lichte, whose job it is to literally sculpt the brand’s future, agrees with Stadler.
“We recognise that there is a place for more differentiation now,” he said. “Since our cars are in production for a minimum of six years, in today’s world I think each model should have its own design to be attractive for this long time.”
In the coming years, compact, electrified powertrains should help designers go further afield in terms of shape. With that type of vehicle, “proportions can change,” Lichte said.
Meanwhile, Lichte has his eye on BMW’s upcoming 8 Series ultra-lux coupe. Not wanting Audi to be the only member of the Big Luxurious German Three without a car in this class, the design head would like to build a competitor. He admits, thought, that anticipated demand doesn’t make the idea a top concern. Not when there’s new higher-volume vehicles in the pipeline to worry about.
“I love the shape of a two-door coupé, but it is also true that the [sales] volumes [for them] are much lower than for four-doors,” he told Autocar. “In the future, who knows? We have many ideas in this direction.”
[Images: Audi AG]
Kia is getting this way, too. At a distance, I can’t discern an Optima from a Cadenza (except for its rarity) or a Forte.
Honda. I defy you to tell a new Accord from a new Civic.
The Optima, Cadenza and Forte are pretty distinguishable from each other.
Otoh, there’s more family resemblance (esp. up front) with the Elantra, (refreshed) Sonata and Grandeur (not sold here as the Azera line was discontinued for NA).
Anyhow, think Audi’s attempts to differentiate its models more have been a step backwards if the Q2 (and Q7) are any indication, along with the octagonal shaped grille slated for a few models.
Also, with the preponderance of automakers using the hexagonal-shape on grilles, Audi and Hyundai, in particular, are trying to differentiate themselves by adding a “twist” to their shapes which haven’t exactly been aesthetically pleasing.
Sounds like Chris Bangle back around 2000 when the new E65 7 series was being designed. He stated he didn’t want a series of cars being sausages of different lengths. What came out of that was the lamented E65 7 series with the bangle butt, the E60 5 series with the Dame Edna headlights and the flame surfaced Z4……Now we’re back to the sausages.
Oddly enough, the rear-end of the E65 is the only part of the car that has aged well and is still interesting to look at.
I am certain today that Audi makes three different models.
Car
SUV
A7
Are you saying that you can tell the difference between an A7 and an A5 Sportback because that would be like saying that you can tell the difference between an A6 and an A4, and we all know that is impossible.
I want to know how many A5 Sportbacks they’ve sold, because I’ve never ever seen one.
The A5 Sportback is not sold in the US.
https://www.audiusa.com/models/audi-a5-sportback
Actually, that’s pretty easy due to the curvature of the A6’s roofline.
A5/S5/RS5 Coupe
A5/S5 Sportback
R8
A7/S7/RS7
Q5
Q7
Only the A3, A4 and to a lesser extent, the A6 look alike. As for A5/S5 Sportbacks, I see them fairly often here. My neighbor has one. Not sure how many they’ve sold though but they seem pretty popular.
No one remembers the TT
Dear Audi,
You can accomplish your goals in two easy steps:
1) go buy any modern Lexus and park it in your design center;
2) DON’T DO ANYTHING LEXUS DID
I shall quote myself from these very pages from Dec. 28, 2015:
“Audi needs a new design staff. Every car they make looks like every other car they make. And the new stuff, like the Q7, even the second-gen R8, are amazingly boring.”
Audi started the whole “gaping maw” thing, with huge ugly grilled. Everyone copied them, not sure what the can do next.
Audi certainly helped popularize the oversized grille thing, but they weren’t the only one (Chrysler with the 300).
And besides, oversized grilles have long been a staple in the automotive industry with Rolls and Bentley having continued the tradition.
I’m with Stadler here. Their cars all look alike, and they need to fix that. Who wants to drive a $100,000 Audi that most people can’t distinguish from a $40,000 one?
I feel like this is a bad decision since a lot of Audi customers think BMWs and MBs are too extroverted.
The same for motorcycles. No matter what country (save for HD), every naked sportbike has the same Quasimodo look of being hunchbacked and holding your headlight in your hands. You can get overpriced retro air-cooled bikes on the low end or get a retro looking expensive large bike. Everything thing else in between looks the same, yes including you BMW and KTM. Designers are an incestuous breed.
Funny, my next door neighbor finally gave up on his 1998 A4 Avant – and bought an A3 wagon just like it. The changes are minor, mostly in the front and rear ends, and the higher beltline, but it’s basically the same car, with the same dimensions.
He traded in a troublesome 2.8 V6 to get a turbo 2.0 I4, but gets more horsepower and better fuel economy. As far as looks are concerned, he just shrugged, and the guy is in his late 30s. He doesn’t care, and even chose the same shade of blue.
Scott25 is onto something.