Audi’s history is divided into two distinct eras, and can be described as “a tale of two Audis”. The original Audi was founded in 1909 by German engineer August Horch. This was Horch’s second go at founding a car company – the first one was named Horch, and unable to use his own name again for his new venture, he chose audi, which is the Latin translation of the German word horch, which means ‘listen’ or ‘hear’.
As part of a series of mergers and acquisitions in the early 1930s, Audi became part of a conglomerate called the Auto Union. This consisted of four brands: Audi, DKW, Wanderer and – ironically – Horch. Each brand’s cars carried the new logo of Auto Union – four interlocking rings to symbolise the four brands. Audi sales declined in this period, even before production was turned over to manufacturing military vehicles as the second world war loomed.
After almost being completely wiped out in the war, Auto Union struggled to re-establish itself. It was acquired by Mercedes-Benz in 1959, then subsequently sold to Volkswagen in the 1960s. Volkswagen, initially only interested in acquiring Auto Union for its factory, eventually revived the abandoned Audi brand while retaining the Auto Union logo, marking the birth of “Audi 2.0”.
Seen as a respected, yet conservative, brand in the 1970s, Audi dramatically reinvented itself as a technological powerhouse in the 1980s, inspired by the success of the famous Audi Quattro in world rallying. It adopted the famous slogan, ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ (progress through technology).
Audi moved upmarket into the 1990s, establishing itself as a premium manufacturer known for pioneering advanced new technologies, like aluminium car bodies, all-wheel drive and advanced electronics. For a period in the 2000s, Audi generated more profit than all other brands in the Volkswagen Group combined.
Today, Audi is a major global executive car brand. It is actively moving towards electrification through plug-in hybrids and fully electric ‘e-tron’ models alongside its petrol and diesel offerings. The current lineup includes A-series cars, Q-series SUVs and dedicated e-tron electric vehicles.
In the UK, Audi is one of the best-selling new car brands, selling more than 100,000 new cars every year. It also has about 130 dealers spread all over the country, so servicing and parts are easily accessible wherever you may live.