Overview
- Audi began serial production of the A2 e‑tron at its Ingolstadt Stammwerk on Thursday, and the compact EV is already available to order with deliveries scheduled from December.
- The A2 is built on Volkswagen’s updated MEB+ platform and is priced from €38,200 with multiple battery and power variants that claim up to about 646 km range in the top specification.
- Audi says it cut development time by roughly 21 months and reduced variant complexity while reusing equipment, adding about 250 robots, fully automated wheel stations and camera‑guided ‘bin‑picking’ to raise efficiency.
- Bavarian leaders praised the launch and urged changes to EV subsidies to support local makers, but works council leaders stressed the need for concrete plans to secure jobs across sites.
- Industry experts warn the single model and its current price are unlikely to stabilise Audi on their own and note broader challenges from Volkswagen’s plan to cut 50,000 jobs and the unresolved future of the Neckarsulm plant.