Best-selling car brand AXES plans to turn all EV as it ditches 2033 deadline & vows to keep making petrol motors
A MAJOR car brand has axed its plans to become all electric by 2033, with a deadline no longer in sight to move away from petrol motors.
Previous plans for the company were to end development of internal combustion engines next year, with £23.9 billion worth of investment.
1
There is now no fixed plan for German car manufacturer, Audi, that initially hinted at launching no new ICE cars from 2026.
CEO Gernot Döllner told Autocar he was not involved in communicating the end date, and that decisions were taken by previous management.
Speaking about the decision to revoke the deadline, Döllner suggested his belief in "flexibility" was behind it.
This includes flexibility around Audi's high performance RS models, with potential for them to become gas-powered.
" Audi is launching from 2024-2026 a completely new line-up of internal combustion engine and plug-in hybrid vehicles, and that gives us complete flexibility for at least another seven, eight, maybe 10 years, and then we will see how our markets develop.
"We have already decided to extend the production beyond the communicated end dates of the past."
The manufacturer is expected to see a greater focus on developing hybrid technology, which they see as a bridge to EVs.
New short-term plans therefore include a new lineup of gas-powered vehicles to be rolled out next year.
Döllner also confirmed development of all Volkswagen Group hardware and software architectures would be lead by Audi, hoping for larger models in the future.
On top of that, the next-generation SSP platform in development would see the Group move to "software-defined" vehicles to hit the market for the first time in late 2027 or 2028.
Audi launches NEW superfast charging hybrid with eye-watering price
Audi will still direct R&D money towards it's all-electric vehicle strategy.
There is an all-electric A3-sized model reported to be in development for 2026.
However, complete abandonment of gas-powered Audis is not expected any time soon.
It is also unlikely Audi would create its own version of an entry-level electric car as has been done by Volkswagen, Skoda or Cupra, Döllner revealed.
The Sun have contacted Audi for comment about the change in plans.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
43 minutes ago
- BBC News
What does the new Industial Strategy mean for Scotland?
Nearly a year since winning an election landslide, and struggling to respond to public impatience for change, some of the Labour government's key policies have been published this key one was the Spending Review for the next three years of day-to-day expenditure and four years of capital with that, and dependent on it, are reviews of defence and infrastructure, the latter having not much to do with Industrial Strategy is the latest, and it does affect Scotland, perhaps quite significantly. So what is it all about, and what could that effect be?The idea of an industrial strategy is for government to support industries of strategic importance, which it needs to retain, such as defence, and those that offer the best hopes for growth and jobs. Let's leave aside the history of governments trying to intervene in the market and support British industry. It's not an impressive saga - due to backing the wrong options, supporting declining industries at great cost, or failing to do enough for those showing most promise. And in doing so, there hasn't been much of a consistent future, according to the new industrial strategy, is about championing eight sectors - for support, reducing some costs (primarily energy), boosting trade, optimising the market, getting obstacles out the way, and getting enough recruits in place with the necessary in government jargon as the IS-8, these include clean energy (that means renewables and nuclear), advanced manufacturing, digital and technology, defence, life sciences, the creative sector, financial services and professional and business economy has an interest in energy-intensive industries seeing their bills cut by quarter - around 7,000 firms making, for instance, steel, chemicals, cars, glass, ceramics and cement. But it's not the main outcome for Scotland could be in the sweet spot for other elements of this strategy across all the sectors targeted for support, if all the published strategy's intentions get followed up, and if UK and Scottish governments can collaborate on joined-up policy. There's defence, including naval shipbuilding on the Clyde and Forth and missiles and radar in and around Edinburgh. Clydeside has a world-leading role in making small satellites. There's finance, in which Edinburgh and Glasgow jointly represent an important cluster for remains a lot of petro-chemicals going on at creative industries include Dundee's gaming and Edinburgh's universities around Scotland punch above their weight, notably on life sciences, spinning out digital and technology firms, and playing a big part in attracting international strategy brings a reminder of a Spending Review commitment to reinstate £750m of funds for a super-computer in Edinburgh. Clean energy Clean energy is the one worth watching most closely. It has the potential to transform much of the Scottish economy as well as the view out to sea and across the landscape where more pylons will requires co-operation from the Scottish government on faster planning, on which there's already some agreement, and the new strategy aims at an accelerated route to grid connections for growth the north of Scotland is set to produce much of the wind resource, there is an incentive to locate the most energy-intensive industries close to that resource, thus reducing the need for all those part of that is set to be the Acorn project of carbon capture and storage, centred on centres could be a feature, as well as making hydrogen energy from Scotland's abundant wind power and fresh may be strategic sites chosen, most likely by competition, to get government backing for clearance and pre-emptive grid links. Co-ordinating policy between Holyrood and Westminster is more likely to founder on nuclear energy, at least so long as the SNP runs the show in has opposed new nuclear power for decades, which hasn't been much of an issue while Torness and Hunterston have generated through their changing. The move to smaller, modular nuclear reactors could be part of the energy mix in Scotland, which is why the Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, chose the Industrial Strategy launch day to visit Torness power station in East Lothian and point to the jobs and investment that could come from the Scottish government embracing a new generation of nuclear a point of difference between Labour and the SNP, and enthuses industrial trade unions. But the SNP can point to the relatively high cost of nuclear power and to its very long legacy of radioactive SNP government also has a party policy of urging defence industries to diversify to more peaceful products. Labour has also taken aim at that, in an era of fast-increasing defence spend and opportunity to see that grow the Spending Review promised six munitions factories, always available to back up Britain's defence needs. Scotland could hope to secure one of them, but that might require a change of heart in Holyrood, to embrace the business of making UK industrial strategy calls for Scotland to have a growth fund for defence. You can probably see how all this might play into next year's Holyrood ought to be easier progress to made through collaboration on skills, mostly devolved to Holyrood but with signs that Westminster wants to do more on Holyrood's turf. Oil and gas skills On training, the strategy has been met with warnings from the oil and gas sector, including its training body are pointing to the gap between declining jobs for those with oil and gas skills and the rise in employment for those in renewable energy. That strategy requires joined-up government as well. And with Whitehall's hostility to further oil and gas drilling, the energy lobby argues that it doesn't look very also a big decision yet to come with big implications for investment in offshore wind due "shortly" from the UK government - whether to change the single GB market for power to one with zonal prices. That could cut prices in Scotland, but at the expense of hostile responses have come from those sectors that don't gain from this strategy. If government picks winners and priority sectors, it relegates others or it makes of the strongest criticism is from hospitality, with its trade body saying today that this shows the government once again failing to realise the damage being done to the industry, following rampant price inflation, higher payroll tax and a higher minimum the Scottish government comes the response that parts of this were already in the innovation strategy set out more than three years ago by Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes. She is concerned that energy price cuts for industry won't happen for two less welcome parts will require Holyrood ministers to have a closer look at the detail and the implications - economic and political.
Sky News
an hour ago
- Sky News
Sky News Business Podcast: Markets react to US strikes on Iran
Joining Darren McCaffrey are former secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Greg Clark, and AJ Bell's Russ Mould.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Starmer picks his winners in bid to revive British industry
Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to make Britain 'the best place to do business' with a new industrial strategy focused on eight key areas of the economy. At 160 pages, the lengthy document will form the centrepiece of Labour's economic policy as ministers try to navigate the impact of geopolitical crises and Donald Trump's tariffs. It is designed to provide a clear blueprint for the Government's priorities over the next 10 years, unlocking jobs and investment. But critics have argued it will do little to help businesses battling rising prices and higher taxes. Here we look at some of the most interesting policies in the strategy published on Monday. What are the eight sectors? The Industrial Strategy focuses on eight areas of the economy that it says have 'the highest potential' over the next decade. They are: Advanced manufacturing (including cars) The creative industries Life sciences Clean energy Defence Digital and technologies Professional and business services Financial services Britain's 'foundational' industries – steel, construction, chemicals, ports and so forth – are also included. The eight sectors are those the Government believes will be most important to the country's future economic success. But as with any attempt to choose favourites, those left out are not happy. 'Ignoring 70pc of the economy is at odds with the Government's ambition to create jobs and help people into work,' warned Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality. Energy costs The biggest new policy to come out of the strategy is a scheme to help manufacturers with soaring energy bills. British companies have been paying the highest industrial electricity prices in the developed world, according to official data.
