Audi has no plans to inroduce an MPV or minivan-type vehicle to rival BMW’s 2 Series Active Tourer or 7-seat 2 Series Gran Tourer, Automotive News reports. BMW introduced the models in order to gain market share and attract more consumers with families, however Audi isn’t convinced the models would entirely worth the development costs.
Product development chief at Audi, Ulrich Hackenberg, said an MPV or minivan doesn’t fit the character of the brand, saying the product should best be left for Volkswagen. The gap should be sufficiently filled by the Four Rings’ expanding Q crossover range, which will soon include a compact Q1 and sporty Q8.
“The trend is moving very much toward SUVs, and we see very, very high conquest rates for smaller SUVs,” Hackenberg told AN. “We believe we can achieve our volume targets with our current approach.”
Mercedes-Benz offers an MPV-like vehicle in the B-segment B-Class, however it opted to discontinue the R-Class minivan amid low demand. Mercedes has also made a shift towards SUVs with the recently introduce GLA-Class and GLE-Class, leaving the people mover segment entirely to BMW.
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