Audi of blazing a path through premium market

Audi

The glowing Q5 compact crossover SUV.

By Dan Carney

Despite the year's weak economy, a trail through the nation premium segment blazes Audi automotive.

The company celebrated Thanksgiving this year with special causes: the automaker had already 2010 U.S. to spare topped a record turnover of 101,000 vehicles with more than a month.

Audi routes nor sales leaders such as Lexus, BMW and Mercedes, each selling over twice as many vehicles in the United States every year. But Audi started with virtually nothing, the presence of the company was so weak U.S. a decade ago.

And like Hyundai in affordable passenger car market, Audi dynamics is frightening to see, for the competitors, even if they currently sometimes see the German brand Outsell.

Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen estimates that the company distributes 117.000 cars in North America at the end of the year, and he, that they could have sold 10,000 more says, if the factories could demand after its most popular models.

A regular supply of new cars in a developer pipeline of 60 days, de Nysschen States. Audi care in the low 20s on average, and the glowing Q5 compact crossover SUV offers a 14-day range. Thinking U.S. is remember that it takes to get Audi 11 days on average, preparation and cars from the port to their merchants ship, so the Q5 flirting with the theoretical minimum supply into the system of the company possible, and the larger Q7 is almost as sought after.

These additional sales, have strengthened the hand of US Audi execs when dealing with the home office in Ingolstadt, Germany. Special sports models in the company of RS line were requirements US in mind previously not developed using, because it's not worth all necessary regulatory approvals to sell some image pumps models.

"Now the brand is strong enough, taken to the required volume of sales", said de Nysschen. While the United States get so far sometimes no RS models, "which is now United States models in the development plans for all future RS," he said.

The high demand for new Audi's has another consequence: higher prices for used audis. When the company sold only a few cars, the residual values were weak, but the situation has reversed.

"Starke residuals have become a positive feature for us", said de Nysschen.

So, is with strong US demand for soft SUVs and exchange rates, that import the cars from Europe unattractive make, certainly Audi where break ground on an assembly plant U.S. plotting such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz have already done.

But no, such decisions take, and Audi has just own U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Passat parent company Volkswagen to create family sedans. In view of the time, who want to study the German plans of the progress of the VW, a decision the about add an Audi work for is a few years ago, de Nysschen said. If they choose, could forward Americans United States of audis buy no earlier than "late this decade", he said.

In the meantime, Audi makes investments in production capacity for some of its suppliers, in the hope of increasing the production. That's small consolation for fans of hot-the company's latest RS-spec rod, the TT RS. All first year allotment of 1,000 cars for the United States is already sold out.