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Audi Set To Axe The Q8 E-tron Due To Poor Sales In The Luxury EV Market
Audi is considering discontinuing the electric Q8 e-tron and Q8 Sportback e-tron much earlier than planned. The reason: Audi sees global demand for electric models ‘in the luxury segment’ declining, and production costs in Brussels, where the Q8 e-trons are built for the European market, among others, are high.
The electric Audi Q8 e-tron and its Sportback sibling may have a shorter career than Audi initially anticipated. The electric SUV debuted in 2018 as the Audi E-tron and was Audi’s first series-produced electric model. A year after its introduction, the E-tron was joined by a Sportback sibling: the E-tron Sportback. At the end of 2022, the electric duo went under the knife and returned to Audi showrooms not only with a refreshed appearance but also with revised technology and a new model name. The current Audi Q8 e-tron and Q8 Sportback e-tron have been around in that form for over a year and a half, but they don’t seem to be around for much longer.
Audi has indicated that it is considering prematurely ending production of the Q8 e-tron and Q8 Sportback e-tron in Brussels. Audi says it is noticing that international demand for electric cars ‘in the luxury segment’ is declining. Another factor is that Audi says it is seeing demand for the Q8 e-tron decline now that it is rolling out its first models on the PPE platform (the Q6 e-tron and soon the Q6 e-tron Sportback and the A6 e-tron).
The Board of Directors of Audi Brussels says it wants to restructure the factory in Brussels. What does that mean? Possibly not much good for the factory and the people who work there. According to Audi, there have been ‘structural challenges’ that Audi Brussels has been struggling with for a long time. For example, the location of the factory close to the centre of Brussels would make it difficult to change its layout. According to Audi, the logistics costs are also high, resulting in high production costs. According to Audi, the restructuring plans have ‘possible consequences for the employees’, and the brand considers it necessary to come up with ‘an alternative solution’ for the factory. Here we go: “[…] This could also include a cessation of activities in Brussels if no alternative is found.”
The Q8 e-trons also roll off the assembly line in China for the Chinese market and are produced there by a partnership between the Volkswagen Group and FAW. This news does not relate to the production of the Q8 e-trons in China.
