Audi of America is pushing hard for a product expansion that will bring models such as the A1 compact car and the A5 sportback sedan to U.S. shores.
Audi has already announced that the next-generation of the recently released A1 model will make it to the U.S. market. But, according to Automotive News, more products are in the pipeline including an electric A2, a sedan variant of the A3 hatchback, a Q3 compact SUV, a scaled-down version of the R8 supercar and an A9 sports car to rival the Rapide by Aston Martin. That's certainly a lot of product.
How much of that will come to be reality is a question. But undoubtedly Audi of America will need small cars to meet both stricter emissions rules and consumer demand. Given the current economic situation and growing environmental concerns, Americans have warmed to compact models lately, such as the successful Ford Fiesta.
But Audi is also pushing products on the top end too. The long-wheelbase version of the A8 sedan will go on sale this month - which accounts for 80 percent of all A8 sales in the United States. Next year the A7 coupe/sedan arrives in America an a new A6 is also coming in 2011.
Audi is also making a push to grow its sales by 2015 to 1.5 million units a year, which means it is going to have to sell more cars in the United States. The German premium brand aims to sell 200,000 units a year by 2015 in the U.S. - up from around the 100,000 units it is on track to sell this year. But that 200,000 yearly sales number is still below what Mercedes-Benz and BMW, its chief competitors, sell in the U.S. right now.
Audi of America will be boosting its marketing budget by up to 20 percent next year after it already is spending on advertising in record numbers.
"We are in year five of a 10-year plan for development in this market. We reached the point where the next phase is needed to roll out and add firepower to the brand," said Johan de Nysschen, president of Audi of America, in an interview with Automotive News.
