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Audi will discontinue the A1 entry mannequin as concern rises that more durable emissions requirements will make small automobiles economically unviable to provide.
“We cannot have a successor to the A1,” Audi CEO Markus Duesmann advised Automotive Information Europe. “We all know that providing combustion engines within the smaller segments sooner or later will likely be fairly tough as a result of the prices will go up. Due to this fact, we are going to depart the section.”
Duesmann’s acknowledgement comes as automakers begin to query their small-car methods in response to extra stringent European Union rules on tailpipe emissions, particularly the output of CO2.
This yr the trade should scale back its fleet CO2 common to 95 grams per kilometer, down from 106.7 g/km final yr, in accordance with JATO Dynamics.
The issue is that automakers wrestle to get CO2 ranges of their minicars and small automobiles to under the 95 g/km common with out together with some type of electrification, which provides value in segments when margins are skinny.
In consequence, Opel dropped its Karl and Adam minicars. As well as, Stellantis sister manufacturers Peugeot and Citroen plan to cease making the 108 and C1 minicars, respectively, in accordance with a report.
Daimler, in the meantime, has begun the method of shifting manufacturing and improvement of its Good model to China, the place the small automobiles will likely be constructed solely beginning in 2022 as a part of a three way partnership with Zhejiang Geely Holding.
In an interview with Automotive Information Europe in June, Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius denied studies that the automaker would exit the compact section utterly, noting there are lots of positions within the firm’s compact portfolio that generate wholesome earnings.
“We’ll proceed to compete within the higher finish of the compact segments that we’re in. We’re not exiting these segments,” he mentioned. “What we won’t do is go down and begin competing with the amount automakers.”
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