The company that gave us the R8 V12 TDI concept and the torquetastic Q7 V12 TDI has announced it will terminate sales of new cars with diesel engines in The Netherlands. Citing declining demand for the VW Group's heavily criticized oil-burner, the Four Rings will effectively wipe out all diesel offerings from its local lineup on April 1, 2022.
Going forward, combustion-engined Dutch Audis will be sold only with gasoline engines, some of which will work together with an electric motor for the plug-in hybrids. The TFSI and TFSIe cars will be sold alongside a growing list of electric vehicles, including the upcoming Q6 E-Tron. In the coming years, an A6 E-Tron will join the lineup, complete with a recently previewed wagon.
2008 Audi R8 V12 TDI concept
Although diesel Audis will be no more in Holland and the engineers have abandoned the development of fossil-fueled powertrains, a new and final family of ICE is coming. The A4 (B10) due in 2023 could have them first in both gasoline and diesel flavors. With the risk of stating the obvious, these will be more electrified than ever, through mild-hybrid and PHEV setups.
Euro 7 regulations are looming and the Ingolstadt-based marque has taken precautionary measures to make its ICEs more efficient to avoid paying hefty fees for exceeding fleet emissions. 2025 will go down in history as the year Audi launched its last combustion-engined new car. Come 2033, the German luxury brand will end sales of conventionally powered vehicles. A possible exception is China where the gasoline mill could continue depending on local demand.
Some of the gasoline engines are also on their way out as it's highly unlikely the R8's naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V10 will live to see another generation. It could soldier on in the Lamborghini Huracan's replacement, but Audi has already confirmed its next supercar will be entirely electric.
The glorious 2.5-liter inline-five engine found in the RS3, RS Q3, and the TT RS is living on borrowed time as well. That said, the 400-hp hot hatch was unveiled less than a year ago, so it should stick around for a while.
