If you’re an Audi enthusiast, the brand’s model naming strategy is changing yet again.
After introducing a new system just two years ago, where even-numbered models represented EVs and odd-numbered models were reserved for combustion engines, Audi has now decided to scrap that plan and revert to its long-standing naming convention.
It seems that clarity was not achieved with the previous system, prompting a U-turn that will see familiar suffixes return. EVs will once again carry the ‘e-tron’ badge, petrol models will retain ‘TFSI’, diesels will be labelled ‘TDI’, and plug-in hybrids will be marked as ‘TFSI e’.
This decision, according to Marco Schubert, Audi’s head of sales and marketing, is based on “intensive discussions” and feedback from both customers and international dealers.
In other words, Audi’s core audience wasn’t sold on the last naming update, and the brand is now giving the people what they want.
The first model to adopt the reinstated naming structure will be the 2025 Audi A6 with internal combustion power, which is slated for a March debut.
This follows last year’s unveiling of the A6 e-tron, which was introduced in Sportback and Avant bodystyles, alongside the performance-oriented S6. With this change, an internal combustion version of the A6 will not be badged as the A7, as was previously assumed under the earlier numbering strategy.
Despite the shake-up, Audi has confirmed that there will be no retroactive name changes for models already on sale.
That means the recently launched A5 sedan and A5 Avant will continue unchanged, despite the now-revised system suggesting that they should have different badges. The appearance of the A5 Avant nameplate now seems destined to be short-lived, at least in this format.
Audi’s decision to roll back its previous strategy suggests that the original plan of using even and odd numbers to differentiate EVs and ICEs may have caused more confusion than clarity.
Instead of drawing a clear line between combustion engines and electrification, it may have complicated things further for traditional Audi buyers who were accustomed to the TFSI, TDI, and e-tron distinctions.
A Case of If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It?
While Audi’s intentions with the previous EV vs ICE numbering system may have been well-founded, it’s clear that customers weren’t entirely on board. Instead of pushing forward with an arguably more logical structure, Audi has decided to return to what worked before.
For those who have followed Audi’s naming conventions for years, this may feel like a reassuring return to familiarity. For those who were just getting used to the even-and-odd-numbered approach, it’s time to relearn the rules once more.
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