Audi A4 Launched in Shanghai for China Market
Date: Tuesday, April 08, 2003 @ 12:57:06 BST
Author: audioc
Topic: A4, A4 Cabriolet, S4 & RS4
Starting signal for the Audi A4 in China


· Launch on 21st April
· Great demand for Audi models
· A6 success at the centre of business activities in China




Audi is continuing to extend its market leadership in the Chinese premium segment: the Audi A4, the first locally produced luxury car in the midsize class, will be launched on the Chinese market on 21st April to coincide with the start of the Shanghai Motor Show. “Up to 30,000 A4 models will be built in a full year in Changchun (Northern China), alongside 40,000 A6 models”, said Erich Schmitt, Member of the Board of Management for Purchasing and responsible for the business activities of AUDI AG in China, today at the Audi A4 press presentation in Shanghai.

With its current models, progressive design and high build quality, Audi is the most desirable and best-selling premium brand in China, explained Schmitt. This is underlined by the success of the Audi A6, which is specially designed for the Chinese market. More than 11,742 locally produced A6 models were sold in the first quarter of 2003 (91.3 % more than in the previous year). Audi is expecting total sales (including the A4) of over 50,000 cars for the whole of the year (compared to 37,034 cars in 2002).
“Private customers in particular are interested in Audi products,” stressed Schmitt. Private customers and companies now account for 70 percent of sales, with the remaining 30 percent of cars being sold to the government and official bodies. Schmitt: “The Audi A4 is targeted above all at lifestyle-oriented, younger people.”
As Schmitt explains, Audi has a clear technological advantage with its A4. “It is the only saloon with permanent four-wheel drive (quattro) and continuously variable automatic transmission (multitronic) on the Chinese market.” The Audi A4 will be available in China with either a 1.8T (120 kW/163 bhp) or 3.0 (162 kW/220 bhp) engine. The brand with the four rings has so far locally produced and sold more than 200,000 vehicles in China, with the Audi A6 accounting for about half this number. The Audi A6 has been built locally in Changchun since September 1999.
AUDI AG has a 10 percent share in the FAW-Volkswagen joint venture. In addition to local production, Audi TT, A4 Cabriolet, allroad quattro and A8 models are imported. Audi has an exclusive network in China of 57 dealers in 41 cities.

This article comes from Audifans.net
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