Audi is Worldwide AWD Leader in Premium Segment

HERNDON, VA - No premium manufacturer builds and sells more all-wheel-drive cars worldwide than Audi, according to the manufacturer, proven by figures from the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA). As the registration statistics show, Audi also sells more all-wheel-drive models in Germany than any other premium brand. From January through August, Audi produced some 190,500 vehicles with quattro drive, which means that around one third of all Audi cars are equipped with this technology. The Audi Q5, the most prominent new addition to the all-wheel model lineup, is the most successful SUV in its class worldwide - with some 63,100 units sold in the first eight months of 2009.

"We fully intend to strengthen our position in the all-wheel-drive market even further in the future," says Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member of the Board of Management for Marketing and Sales at AUDI AG. Starting from early October, the Audi Q5 will be built not only in Ingolstadt but also in Changchun (China) for the Chinese market. With this step, Audi intends to extend its leading role in a market which is forecast to become the world's largest car market this year.

Starting in 2011, there will be a new member of the Audi SUV family: the Audi Q3, for which the company expects high unit sales. And with the Audi e-tron, which was presented a few weeks ago at the Frankfurt Motor Show (IAA), Audi is also making use of its quattro drive system - one of the brand's core technologies - in an electrically powered sports car.

"With Vorsprung durch Technik we have already spelled out our leadership claim in our logo as a reflection of our status as a progressive premium brand. And, unlike other brands, we didn't have to reinvent ourselves to do so," says Schwarzenbauer.

The quattro drive system is an integral part of the company's model initiative, in the context of which Audi is expanding successfully into new segments. The Audi Q5, first introduced in the fall of 2008, is now the most successful SUV in its class worldwide; from January through August, Audi sold 63,119 units of this model, including 47,930 in Europe.