Put Up or Shut Up Time for Audi

Audi is the best selling luxury brand outside of the United States but like everyone the brand is not without its faults. Known for creating elegant designs that very rarely have anything really wrong with them the biggest downside for Audi is that many find them cold, clinical and conservative. The flagship A8 is perhaps the biggest offender lacking the flair and in your face panache that many expect in its segment. Over the past few years Audi executives have promised a new Audi design direction throughout numerous interviews but so far there have been more changes of the aforementioned executives than actual change. Given the expectations, Audi's rumored upcoming A9 concept carries a heavy burden of expectations and responsibility to give people more of what they want. The promises have been made and it's now time for Audi to deliver, at least in concept form.

Is the rumored A9 concept in the running for the most anticipated Paris concept debut for you?
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TheSteve - 9/22/2014 2:33:02 PM

+2 Boost

Cold, clinical and conservative?

Add...
- The all look very, very similar
- That gaping-hole grill is off the mark
- Why the focus on weird-looking headlights?
...to the list.

Aside from the styling, my possibly incorrect understanding is that an Audi will spend more time in the shop than a BMW or Mercedes, and cost most to fix, which isn't a plus, for sure.

BTW, don't mistake me for an Audi-basher. I've been looking at the A5 for a while now, but I'm just not hot enough for it to step over the line and buy one.

TheSteve - 9/22/2014 2:35:10 PM

+3 Boost

Based on what I've seen in the past from Audi, my prediction is that the flagship A9 will bear a striking resemblance to a stretched A8, it'll have a W12 engine jammed into it, and it'll cost a lot more. I sincerely hope I'm wrong!

gkearns56 - 9/22/2014 4:07:22 PM

-1 Boost

Sounds like the old broken record theory as they say. ALL auto companies designs look ALIKE. Cadillac, MB, BMW, Infiniti, Toyota, KIA all have the SAME cues and fascia on their cars. They slightly tweak something. Many of them even use the same plateforms across model lines. MOVE ON..... it's like the bird beak theory. Tired of hearing about something that ALL of the automotive companies continually do. BMW, MB all have the similar tail-lights, front look etc. If you can't see it in every car's lineup, every brand - then maybe your eye glasses need cleaning.

610looper - 9/22/2014 2:37:35 PM

+2 Boost

Put up or shut up with a concept vehicle? Ok....how often do concept vehicles make it to the showroom floor? How often do Audi concept vehicles make it to the showroom floor?? Put up or shut up for a concept is a bit much.

chewy - 9/22/2014 3:45:10 PM

+1 Boost

Audi's done pretty well with concepts that eventually spawn a new model. The R8 was essentially identical to the concept, the A7 was quite close, same with the Q7 and the Q3, the concept that previewed the A5 was a bit different but there were a couple of years in between. The Q5 had a "convertible" preview so you only see half of it. The only ones that haven't materialized were the R4/R6 and the quattro concept but those models were always more wishful thinking than guarantees in the lineup. If there is an A9 concept it should give a good idea of the actual product.

610looper - 9/22/2014 10:49:41 PM

+2 Boost

Audi concepts mia....steppenwolf, avantissimo, nuvolari, quattro... now an A8 coupe... where is the A6 coupe?

chewy - 9/22/2014 11:59:20 PM

0 Boost

The Steppenwolf was way ahead of its time before small CUVs were a thing but it was pretty cool. The Avantissimo was even cooler but Audi isn't pulling of an A8 Avant and neither is Mercedes an S estate nor BMW a 7 series. The CLS shooting brake is the closest anyone will ever. The Nuvolari turned into the A5, not that close but a true Nuvolari would be your A6 coupe but the A7 is that. The quattro is the only one that looked production ready twice but isn't happening.

GermanNut - 9/22/2014 3:43:38 PM

0 Boost

I don't know why people here are speculating that Audi's new design theme that will debut with the A9 Concept at Paris won't be new. As the article mentions, Audi executives and company press releases have indicated for a very long time now that Audi will be changing its design direction to be more aggressive, bold and differentiated between models.

When all company media statements universally indicate that a new design theme is on the way, to think otherwise is being ignorant.

The A9 is certainly going to be a huge concept for Audi, but I have no doubt that it will (finally) show that Audi can be creative, aggressive and differentiated in the exterior design department.

chewy - 9/22/2014 3:57:33 PM

0 Boost

Mostly it's because the talk was that the Q7 would be the first but it has been in a long development period and no one knows what's going on there.

GermanNut - 9/22/2014 4:48:26 PM

-1 Boost

The Q7 launch was delayed because the designers initially took the aggressive theme a bit too far and the result was a design fit for "Russian and Middle Eastern oligarchs" that like the tacky and gaudy designs. While Audi wanted "bold" it didn't want something vulgar - hence the re-design. Make no mistake though the new design will still be "bold" just not bold to the point where it puts most buyers off.

MDarringer - 9/22/2014 9:16:09 PM

0 Boost

"Audi is the best selling luxury brand OUTSIDE the United States" says it all. If Audi were as good as the Audi fanboys on this site think they are, Mercedes would be weeping in fear that its S Class is not good enough.

Audi = German Lincoln nee Mercury

chewy - 9/23/2014 12:02:59 AM

+2 Boost

The rest of the world isn't as poor nor as dumb as you are trying to make it look.

gkearns56 - 9/23/2014 9:58:09 AM

+1 Boost

@ FourtyFour: And Mini Cooper, I mean Toyota (for their joint venture now), ahhh I mean: BMW "Ultimate Driving Machine" is the high performance German car. Or did I mean Nissan, or is it Infiniti; maybe Toyota, or no I meant Lexus.

News Flash again: ALL companies share parts, plateforms, design cues. One of the differences is factory location in which they're built. The Cadillac plant in Lake Orion, Mich (where sister works), for a specific model they build, has gotten good reviews for their quality. Anything built in MEXICO, usually is pretty crappy. Heck even Buick's quality over the years has gotten some positive reviews. Because one factor, say in Mexico, does a poor job, doesn't mean ALL their cars in the line-up are bad.

I owned a couple of 3 series that part of the transmission (or something was assembled in some plant in Africa). Once can't just generalize every factory has the same quality issues - hardly.