Audi’s Electric A4 Slips to 2029 as Volkswagen’s SSP Platform Falls Behind Again

Audi’s electric A4 e-tron won’t start production before March 2029, roughly nine months to a year later than the mid 2028 plan, because the Volkswagen Group platform it depends on isn’t ready, according to Handelsblatt, which cites company sources. Some insiders expect an even later start, at the end of April or the beginning of May. Volkswagen and Audi declined to comment on a delay to SSP, while Audi insiders described the change to Handelsblatt as a normal shift during the development process.

The A4 e-tron Is Waiting for a Platform That’s Years Behind Schedule

That platform is SSP, the Scalable Systems Platform Volkswagen announced in 2021 as the eventual successor to its MEB and PPE platforms, with the A4 e-tron planned as one of its first models. The table below shows how the target dates have moved, based on EV’s report on the Handelsblatt story.

Handelsblatt points to a reduction in the number of SSP variants from eight to four, a switch to a 48 volt electrical system during development that is reportedly being applied across SSP vehicles, as well as cost pressure and lengthy coordination within the group. The 48 volt system is the low-voltage network that powers control units and sensors. Volkswagen’s SDV 1.0 software, developed with Rivian, was designed around a 12 volt network and therefore has to be adapted. The electric Golf and T-Roc are also planned on SSP and are slipping with the platform, with company sources quoted by Handelsblatt putting both at 2030 at the earliest.

The A4 e-tron Is Waiting for a Platform That’s Years Behind Schedule

That platform is SSP, the Scalable Systems Platform Volkswagen announced in 2021 as the eventual successor to its MEB and PPE platforms, with the A4 e-tron planned as one of its first models. The table below shows how the target dates have moved, based on EV’s report on the Handelsblatt story.

Handelsblatt points to a reduction in the number of SSP variants from eight to four, a switch to a 48 volt electrical system during development that is reportedly being applied across SSP vehicles, as well as cost pressure and lengthy coordination within the group. The 48 volt system is the low-voltage network that powers control units and sensors. Volkswagen’s SDV 1.0 software, developed with Rivian, was designed around a 12 volt network and therefore has to be adapted. The electric Golf and T-Roc are also planned on SSP and are slipping with the platform, with company sources quoted by Handelsblatt putting both at 2030 at the earliest.

BMW and Mercedes Are Moving Ahead While Audi Waits

Audi retired the A4 nameplate in 2024 when the A5 took its place, so the electric A4 was meant to bring the nameplate back to the compact executive segment. The BMW i3 is already orderable in First Edition form and is rated at up to 906 km WLTP according to my long range EV ranking, while Mercedes’ electric C-Class debuted in April. Both rivals will therefore have their new electric models on the market well before Audi’s A4 e-tron arrives. Audi’s best result in that ranking is the A6 e-tron Sportback Performance at up to 776 km WLTP, but it sits in a higher segment.

The timing is awkward for Audi. Buyers who want an electric A4 will have to look at BMW or Mercedes, or wait, while the platform intended to underpin Volkswagen Group’s next generation of electric cars still hasn’t reached series production. I covered how BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen are responding to Chinese competition in my look at how European carmakers are fighting back in China, and further delays to SSP add another complication for the group.

There’s also an awkward contrast closer to home. A German importer offered the China-only AUDI E5 and AUDI EX7, cars Audi and SAIC developed for the Chinese market, and both models disappeared from its website after Audi started legal proceedings, as I covered in my article on Audi’s legal action against AUDI imports. A car developed for China was therefore briefly available to German buyers through an importer, while Audi’s own electric A4 is still more than two years away from production.

Featured Image: Audi