Local deliveries of Audi Q7 locked in

AUDI Australia remains confident that local supplies of the the new Q7 four-wheel drive wagon will not be restricted by unexpected high demand overseas.

The Q7 is scheduled for local launch in September with 600 cars destined for Australia by the end of the year.

Last month, overseas orders for the luxury seven-seat all-terrain wagon – which is on sale now in some European markets – exceeded 16,000, forcing Audi to lift its production forecasts to 70,000 units annually. Previously, less than 50,000 units were envisaged.

According to Audi Australia, which has described the Q7 as "the most important product we have ever had for Australia", overseas demand should not affect Australia in the short-term.

"It certainly shouldn’t be an issue," said spokesperson Anna Burgdorf. "We have our production allocation confirmed for this year – we should have 600 cars allocated to us by Christmas." One third of the 2006 volume allocated for Australia has already been sold.

With the Q7’s European rollout still under way, and the main American and growing Chinese markets not set to see the big Audi until June, the company has said that it would attempt to meet the extra demand by cranking-up daily production by 50 per cent.

Currently the Bratislava factory in Slovakia – the sole source of Q7s – is producing 200 units a day. Audi says its plans are to ramp this up to 300 by the end of June.

Late last month, Audi AG board member Dr Jochem Heizmann tried to scotch rumours of extensive delays. "In the future, the annual production figure in a full year will be between 50,000 and 70,000 vehicles," he said, adding that Audi would "pull out all the stops" to meet demand.

"Organisational measures already introduced – such as production throughout the holiday period or in three shifts – will enable us to reach this goal," he said.

Audi assembles all the Q7’s body parts at its German Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm plants, while the engines are built at the same Hungarian town in Gyor where the TT sportscar comes from.

It will launch the Q7 in base 3.0-litre V6 TDI and luxury 4.2-litre FSI V8 guises in September. This will be followed in November with the introduction of an all-new 3.6-litre FSI V6 petrol unit. All Q7s will drive all four wheels via a six-speed automatic gearbox.

The 4WD wagon is only one of a number of new products Audi is introducing into Australia during 2006.

Before the Q7’s September release, expect to see the A8 4.2 TDI turbo-diesel V8 and the ultra-high performance RS4 quattro sedan. Both are due next month.

Also beating the SUV will be the A4 fitted with the A6’s 150kW/450Nm 3.0 TDI quattro.

June’s A4 Cabriolet facelift will bring the current drop-top in line with the regular B7-series A4 range.

After the Q7 comes an A3 Sportback featuring its VW Golf cousin’s 77kW/250Nm 1.9 TDI with the DSG automatic gearbox, along with the storming RS4 Avant quattro, as well as the A8 4.2 FSI V8 (using the Q7’s 4.2-litre V8 powerplant).

There will also be a high-performance version of the A6 and A8 sedans, called S6 and S8 respectively.

The new-generation TT Coupe is also now expected by year’s end, although this is dependent on overseas demand.

All are designed to sustain consumer interest in a range that is either ageing (A4 – despite last year’s substantial facelift) or maturing (A3, A6, A8). In particular the ‘S’ and ‘RS’ range, sited in ascending order above the sporty ‘S-Line’ series available on the A4 and TT, are charged with boosting the desirability of all Audis.

They should contribute to another double-digit sales increase in Australia this year, after a record 4808 Audis were sold in 2005. About 5500 is the goal. The 2004 tally was 3701, which was a sudden fall from 2003’s 4450 sales. Longer-term, Audi is working towards 8000 annual sales by 2009.

WHAT’S COMING:
A4 3.0 TDI	May
RS4 sedan	May
A8 4.2 TDI	June
B7 A4 Cabriolet	June
Q7	Sept
A3 Sportback 1.9 TDI	Oct
RS4 Avant	Oct
A8 4.2 FSI V8	Oct
S8	Oct
TT	Nov/Dec