SHANGHAI-- Audi AG has become the latest foreign auto maker
aiming to help China reach its clean-car ambitions, as it unveiled
plans to build a plug-in hybrid with its local partner.
The German luxury car maker, a unit of Volkswagen AG, said
Wednesday it will start producing a China-made plug-in hybrid sedan
with Chinese partner FAW Group. The new model, known as the Audi A6
e-tron, will be based on the long-wheel version of the Audi A6
sedan.
China has long pushed pure electric vehicles as part of its
long-term vision for the country's auto industry. It views them as
attractive because they can help to address domestic environmental
problems and reduce the country's dependency on imported oil as
well as push its companies to the cutting-edge of the global
industry.
Chinese car companies including BYD Co. and SAIC Motor Co. have
been promoting pure electric cars, while U.S. car maker Tesla
Motors Inc. launched a marketing drive in China in recent
months.
But auto makers and industry observers say China still doesn't
have the necessary charging infrastructure to support large-scale
sales of electric cars.
Many car makers are taking a different tack by emphasizing
plug-in hybrids, or cars that can be plugged into an electric
outlet and can run on either gasoline or electricity. They are
different from full hybrids--such as the most famous version of
Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius--where batteries provide additional
support to conventional engines.
Yale Zhang, managing director of consulting firm Automotive
Foresight, said plug-in hybrids are still rare in China's auto
market. In 2013, about 1,500 plug-in hybrids and 11,410 electric
vehicles were sold in China, he said.
Other companies including Volkswagen have announced plans to
roll out more models. It said in November it would launch at least
15 plug-in hybrid and electric car models in China by 2018. BMW AG,
Daimler AG and their local partners are also planning green-car
models.
China's government wants 500,000 plug-in hybrid and electric
vehicles on its roads by next year and five million by 2020.
Martin Kuehl, Audi's spokesman in China, said plug-in hybrid
technology means drivers are less dependent on the availability of
charging infrastructure because they have the option to switch
between battery and conventional combustion engines. "We think this
technology is better for this period of time," said Mr. Kuehl
When using only battery power, the A6 e-tron will have a
50-kilometer range, he said. Audi presented a concept of the A6
e-tron at the 2012 auto show in Beijing.
Mr. Kuehl said the car will be the first plug-in hybrid produced
in China by Audi. Another plug-in hybrid, the A3 e-tron, would be
imported to China following that model's global launch.
He didn't elaborate on when production and marketing of the A6
e-tron would begin in China. He said pricing is still being
determined but would be competitive.
Audi is the biggest-selling luxury brand China, with 491,989
cars sold last year, up 21% on 2012.
Write to Colum Murphy at colum.murphy@wsj.com
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