Design Is The Major Reason Why People Buy Our Cars

The Concept C hits the reset button on Audi’s design at a time when the company’s sales are falling. Demand dropped by 2.9 percent last year compared to 2024, which wasn’t a great year either, as shipments plummeted by 11.8 percent versus 2023. Changing how cars look could significantly impact demand, as the company claims design remains the brand’s biggest sales driver.

Audi board member Marco Schubert told Australian magazine CarExpert that a vehicle’s appearance continues to be a significant sales driver: “For us, design is still the major reason why customers are buying our cars.” The new approach portrayed by the Concept C carries the “Radical Next” slogan, which seems appropriate given the shift to a completely new philosophy.

Schubert is confident that Audi’s new design identity will help set it apart from rivals by embracing a “simplification in terms of exterior design, really clear design, which really is outstanding, which is different against the competition.” Ideally, the Four Rings want to recapture the magic of the original TT, a car it has since killed, but one that had a lasting impact on sales and the brand’s image.

BMW’s Neue Klasse revival is also about toning things down on the outside, though the similarities with Audi don’t continue inside. While Munich is all about screens nowadays, Ingolstadt is bringing back (some) physical controls. Additionally, Audi has pledged a return to higher-quality materials after admitting its interiors haven’t been as nice as they once were.

The Concept C is still a couple of years away from production. It’s going to lead the way for the new era of Audi models, meaning the next-gen Q7 and Q9 coming later this year will be from the old guard. Moreover, the entry-level electric car, said to revive the spirit of the quirky A2, also belongs to the old way of designing vehicles.

Pictured here, the concept offers an accurate preview of what lies ahead for the production model. Massimo Frascella has already revealed that the road-going version will retain about 87 percent of the Concept C’s design. Separately, company officials have gone on record to say the final product won’t revive the TT or R8 name. Expect to see it either by the end of 2027 or early 2028.

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Source: Audi

Motor1’s Take: Audi continues to hype the Concept C and what it brings to design and quality for the whole lineup, so it had better deliver on its promise. In the meantime, the company continues to lag behind BMW and Mercedes, so the timing seems right to shake things up to try and recoup the ground it has lost.

At the end of the day, an electric sports car won’t have much impact on volume. But, like the TT, it could spark interest and drive more people into showrooms. Think of the Concept C as a rolling advertisment. We’re particularly curious to see how the design pioneered by the targa-topped EV will be adapted to other body styles, especially the volume-focused SUVs.