Audi A8 Officially Ends Production; Successor Planned Before 2030

Audi has stopped producing the A8 at its Neckarsulm plant in Germany. The last A8 rolled off the production line in mid-October 2026, marking 32 years of production of the model at the plant. Since the first-generation D2 model was launched in 1994, the Neckarsulm plant has been the production base for the A8. The fourth-generation D5 model was introduced in 2017 and received a mid-cycle refresh in 2021. In February 2026, Audi stopped accepting personalized orders for the A8 in Germany. Following the discontinuation of the A8, the capacity freed up at the Neckarsulm plant will be used to produce the A5 sedan, A5 Avant wagon and their corresponding S and RS performance versions. Marcel Bestle, a spokesperson for Audi's model line, said earlier in 2026 that the A8's successor will be launched before 2030, with the new car planned to be unveiled in the late 2020s. Before the arrival of the A8 successor, the Q9 will become Audi's flagship model. Positioned above the Q7, the Q9 will be produced in Bratislava, Slovakia. The Volkswagen Group Supervisory Board approved the "Future Plan 2030." The strategy notes that Volkswagen Group's vehicle production capacity in Europe exceeds market demand, with overcapacity exceeding 500,000 units, and that it is currently unable to secure competitive production task allocations for the period from 2031 to 2034 for plants including Neckarsulm, Emden, Zwickau and Hanover. Volkswagen Group said it will formulate a sustainable production strategy for its European plants by June 2027 and evaluate alternative uses for the relevant plants.