5 threats to Audi's new A4

AUDI HAS RELEASED details of its all-new A4, a larger and lighter follow up to its compact executive car. It enters a market crowded with strong offerings.

Design-wise, the new model seems to play it safe with an overall look that is more evolutionary than revolutionary.

But under the skin are major changes, including new engines, a new transmission, redesigned suspension, and a bigger cabin with a posher dashboard.

Some versions are as much as 120kg lighter than the existing A4, and as a result the new model offers better performance with reduced fuel consumption.

But even as the new A4 gears up to meet the motoring public at September’s Frankfurt auto show (expect a local debut at next year’s Singapore Motor Show, buy our reckoning), it faces stiffer competition than ever.

Below are five upcoming threats to the new Audi A4. It’s a short list that doesn’t even include the strong-selling Mercedes C-Class. But whether this key new model from the four-ring brand triumphs over its rivals, it’s clear that the real winners are its target customers. Executive car buyers have never been this spoilt for choice.

Alfa Romeo Giulia

Although a minor player now in danger of vanishing, Alfa Romeo is pinning its future on this make-or-break new model. The Giulia was created by a hand-picked team of engineers who were led by two ex-Ferrari men, and is part of a 5 billion Euro comeback plan for the storied Italian brand.

Alfa says the Giulia will offer Italian styling flair with cutting edge tech and a superior power-to-weight ratio to its competitors, to ensure that it delivers plenty of driving pleasure. It arrives in Singapore next year.

BMW 3 Series LCI

In BMW-speak, “LCI” stands for “Life Cycle Impulse”. In English, that means a mid-life revamp that brings a minor facelift and new engines to BMW’s best-selling model around the world.

The new 3 Series also gets a mildly refreshed cabin and 4G connectivity for its ConnectedDrive suite of online services (including a human concierge service from a call centre in the Philippines).

That might not sound like much, but the 3 Series has the best handling in its class and a formidable track record — in its 40-year history, on a global level it has never been outsold by any rival, ever. It should go on sale in Singapore around October.

Jaguar XE

The British are determined to woo buyers in this segment, too, and the new XE is a serious effort from Jaguar. Instead of steel, the XE is largely made of aluminium. It’s an expensive but lightweight way to build cars, and is meant to give the XE the sort of athleticism that comes from a lack of flab.

In that way, Jaguar is taking an innovation that Audi itself is renowned for and taking it a step further — the German brand builds its flagship A8 out of aluminium.

Lexus IS 200t

This is a car that hasn’t yet been announced by its maker, but Lexus spent 10 years developing its new 2.0-litre turbo engine. After all that effort, you should expect to find the new powerplant, well, everywhere. Currently it powers the NX 200t crossover, but the all-new RX has already been confirmed as the next recipient of turbo power.

Beyond that, the IS would be a prime candidate for the new engine; a fine handling car, it currently has a smooth but lazy V6 engine. We would put money on Lexus replacing the sluggish IS 250 with a sportier IS 200t in 2016. That car would fare much better in the segment.

Volkswagen Passat

Ironically, some of the stiffest competition for Audi could come from within (or above, given that Volkswagen is Audi’s parent). VW’s new Passat should offer a similar level of technology for less money, with key features that will be found in the new A4. It has an all-digital, virtual instrument cluster, for example, and its 1.4-litre turbo engine and seven-speed transmission are shared with the Audi.

We’ve driven the new Passat, as well, and found it to be a refined car that handles sharply and feels expensive inside. We hear it will be launched in Singapore within a month from now, too, so potential buyers won’t have to wait long to find out for themselves.

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