After nearly a week of rumors, Audi has officially announced plans to phase out internal combustion engines.
In a press release, the automaker confirmed “production of Audi’s final completely newly developed combustion engine model will start in just four years.” It will mark the end of an era, because starting in 2026, Audi will only launch electric vehicles.
Since that isn’t far away, the company is accelerating their transition to e-mobility. As part of this effort, the automaker will “significantly expand its range” of EVs and aims to have more than 20 of them in their lineup by 2025. The company went on to note “With the new e-tron GT, RS e-tron GT, Q4 e-tron, and Q4 Sportback e-tron models, Audi is already launching more electric cars than models with combustion engines this year.”
While Audi is going EV-only, the company isn’t pushing internal combustion engines to the back-burner. Instead, the automaker said development will continue “right up to its final discontinuation.” Given this, CEO Markus Duesmann claimed “Audi’s last internal combustion engine will be the best we’ve ever built.”
Audi plans to completely phase out internal combustion engines by 2033, but that date is in flux. As Duesmann explained, “The exact timing of the combustion engine’s discontinuation at Audi will ultimately be decided by customers and legislation. The company expects to see continued demand in China beyond 2033, which is why there could be a supply of vehicles there with combustion engines manufactured locally.”
