Audi's building a new small hatchback, and it'll reprise a beloved name – Autocar
Audi is set to revive the A2 name for its new distinctively styled entry-level model, senior sources at the company have revealed.
Due to be unveiled before the end of the year, the new model is seen as an indirect modern-day successor to the early-noughties original.
It will feature – as test mules have shown – a one-box exterior design with a short bonnet and split-window tailgate highly reminiscent of that car, albeit in a package that is more overtly a crossover.
The new electric model, which is likely to take the same E-tron suffix as Audi’s other EVs, is already in the final stages of development ahead of a planned start to sales early next year. It will indirectly replace the A1 and Q2 in Audi’s line-up. Production of those two models is due to end in late 2026.
With prices set to start at around £30k, it will also become the company’s most affordable electric offering yet, slotting into the line-up below the Q4 E-tron, which is priced from £47k. By comparison, the A1 starts at £24k and the Q2 at £28k.
The incoming A2 was originally planned to sit on the Volkswagen Group’s 800V SSP platform, but due to long-running delays with that architecture it will instead be based on the same variant of the group’s ubiquitous MEB platform as the Volkswagen ID 3.
This uses a 400V system and rear-wheel drive. In the ID 3, it is offered with battery sizes ranging from 58kWh to 79kWh and power spanning 168bhp to 282bhp.
Given the more slippery-looking shape of the A2 – as seen on test mules – the top-end range could surpass the ID 3 hatch’s 370 miles.
Within Audi, the new A2 is not simply regarded as a premium mini-MPV to rival the likes of the BMW 2 Series Active Tourer. Instead, engineers talk about it filling a void in the market left by the BMW i3, which was produced between 2013 and 2022.
They also point to the first- and second-generation Mercedes-Benz A-Class, with their space-efficient flat floor ‘sandwich’ platform, as an example of where and how the new A2 will be positioned.
View all car reviews
Join our WhatsApp community and be the first to read about the latest news and reviews wowing the car world. Our community is the best, easiest and most direct place to tap into the minds of Autocar, and if you join you’ll also be treated to unique WhatsApp content. You can leave at any time after joining – check our full privacy policy here.
Surely this A2 would be almost identical in exterior size (interior passenger space would be larger) to the current A3 if it’s based on the MEB platform? It would need to be based on the soon to be released MEB Entry platform in order for it to be scaled down in size so it can sit below the A3, no?
Audi is deffinately losing it’s way when it comes to it’s naming strategy…
So it’s a VW i3 with an Audi badge?, it’s not a clean sheet design.
I bought my wife an new Mercedes LWB A170 in 2003 as a surprise for a big birthday and she still has it.70,000 faultless miles and it has a huge versatile interior from which we can remove the two individual back seats and carry a huge amount of gear. She refused to replace it and I really can’t argue, can I ?
I’ve always liked the original A2, but if I wanted a small town car I would buy one of the originals, not pay three times the price for a new electric one.
BTW, an original A Klasse can be picked up for next to nothing and will last indefinitely if you buy a manual, as the semi automatic is often troublesome.
I bought my wife an new Mercedes LWB A170 in 2003 as a surprise for a big birthday and she still has it.70,000 faultless miles….
BTW, an original A Klasse can be picked up for next to nothing and will last indefinitely if you buy a manual, as the semi automatic is often troublesome.
Does an A class really ‘last indefinitely’, they obviously don’t because there’s only 13 working cars for sale on Autotrader built from 2006 to 2009. After speaking to an owner there’s no point in repairing any fault because it’ll cost more than the cars worth such is the price of repairs.
View all car reviews
