AUDI, in capital letters and without the iconic four-ring logo, is a new EV brand in China. The automaker unveiled the E SUV Concept today at the Guangzhou Auto Show. The E SUV Concept serves as the foundation for the brand’s second car, the AUDI E8 SUV.
AUDI is currently a China-only brand, launched in November 2024. Its first car, the AUDI E5 Sportback, is a shooting brake sedan launched in September. It received over 10,000 preorders within 30 minutes. The new high-end EV brand is part of Volkswagen’s “In China for China” strategy, which aims to localise products for domestic users and address software and connectivity issues by developing products together with Chinese partners.
The SAIC-Audi joint venture develops and produces all AUDI cars. The AUDI E5 Sportback is based on the SAIC platform and features SAIC-developed technologies, mainly those from IM Motors, SAIC’s premium EV brand.
The new E SUV Concept, which previews the AUDI E8, shares the same design language as the E5 Sportback. We can see it has a lidar unit above the front windshield, muscular wheel arches, and large wheels. It features digital rear-view mirrors. In the rear, a large illuminated AUDI logo in the centre makes the car highly recognisable.
According to CarNewsChina information within the company, the powertrain of the top trim level will feature an 800V architecture, a 109 kWh battery, and around 770 hp. There will be both RWD and AWD versions, and, in addition to the all-electric variant, the EREV (range extender) will be available.
CarNewsChina expects the new model’s price to start around 260,000 yuan (36,600 USD). The E SUV Concept looks nearly production-ready, so the launch is expected in early 2026.
Audi (four-ring logo brand) is doing quite well in China as their sales are not in free fall, unlike others. It sold 49,699 cars in October, up 3.5% more than last year; in September, the year-over-year growth was even 8.3%. For comparison, Volkswagen brand sales fell 17.2% year-over-year in October to 166,500 units and 14.3% in September, according to data monitored by China EV DataTracker.
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