Audi Mulls Axing Q8 E-Tron, Q8 E-Tron Sportback As Global Demand Falls

Audi could soon axe the Q8 e-tron and Q8 e-tron Sportback electric SUVs, well before the end of the official product lifecycle. The carmaker has revealed it is considering axing its flagship electric SUVs citing waning demand in the segment across global markets as well as buyer preference shifting towards Audi’s new, smaller EVs. The company also said that the entire Brussels plant itself, where the Q8 e-tron siblings are built, is under consideration for restructuring.

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Audi says falling demand and issues with the Brussels plant could mean the end for the current Q8 e-tron.

Audi said the Brussels plant has ‘long-standing structural challenges.' The company cited issues such as difficulties in changing the plant’s layout given its location close to Brussels’ city centre as well as high logistical costs involved at the site that drove up production costs at the location compared to other facilities. This could put the future of the plant in doubt with Audi saying it was ‘in dialog with social partners to discuss solutions for employees and the site.’

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With the future of the Brussels facility in doubt, Audi would require to make investments in one of its other facilities to shift the production base of the Q8 e-tron siblings. However, with declining demand for the models itself and cooling demand in the segment as a whole, it remains to be seen if the company deems the required investment to continue production is worthwhile.

Q8 e-tron family includes the standard SUV and the Sportback SUV-Coupe

Additionally, the declining demand in the flagship luxury EV space could also cast a shadow of uncertainty over any planned Q8 e-tron successor. Audi’s new Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture, now entering production with the Q6 e-tron, is scalable to underpin models in the flagship segment – it can be stretched to accommodate a wheelbase in excess of 3,000 mm. The successor to the Q8 e-tron will undoubtedly sit on the PPE platform, though it remains to be seen if Audi will proceed with the development of the model in the face of slowing demand.

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The Q8 e-tron is currently solely manufactured at Audi's Brussels facility.

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Audi has however said that a final decision on the future of the plant and the Q8 e-tron siblings still remains to be taken.

The Q8 e-tron was Audi’s first all-electric model to hit global markets initially as the e-tron in 2018 before being rebranded Q8 e-tron following a facelift. The Q8 e-tron first arrived in India in mid-2021 in both SUV and Sportback body styles and went up against the Jaguar I-Pace and the BMW iX. The rebadged facelift arrived in 2023, again in SUV and Sportback body styles and continues to remain on sale currently with prices starting at Rs 1.15 crore (ex-showroom). The SUV now faces competition from the likes of the Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV and the BMW iX.