Audi developing all-new sub-A1 city car

Audi has started work on an all-new city car to sit below the current A1 hatchback in its international line-up. The new small car is expected to be the successor to the A2 that was discontinued in 2005 in international markets.

Currently undergoing early development at the company’s headquarters in Ingolstadt, Germany, the new city car will be underpinned by a modified version of VW’s front-wheel-drive NSF platform that underpins the VW Up. The platform will allow Audi to develop the upcoming city car to be powered by a petrol or an all-electric powertrain as Volkswagen has done with the Up and its all-electric sibling, the e-Up.

The new entry-level Audi is expected to be developed in two- and four-door body styles along with a possible rugged-looking Allroad model with raised ride height and body cladding.

Powering the new city car will be a 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine for the standard model an an-electric drivetrain similar to the one on the e-Up for the zero emissions model. Diesel and hybrid version have been ruled out citing high costs of components.

The possibility of an all-wheel drive model has also been eliminated as the NSF platform is not engineered to support the drivetrain, sources at Audi have said.

The new city car will be Audi’s third attempt at a compact hatchback following the A2 all-electric concept in 2011 and two electric micro-car concepts that made its debut at the Frankfurt motor show in 2013.

The concept of the upcoming A2 replacement is expected to be revealed at the 2017 Paris motor show  with production to start sometime in 2019.