25 years ago, Audi showed their first Audi A4. In 1994, the ‘Typ 8D’ A4 became the successor to the Audi 80.
The company underwent a major nomenclature shift in the early-to-mid 1990s, resulting in the tidily named roster they have today.
The first A4 bore many spiritual similarities to the one you see today. Engines are still mounted longitudinally on front-wheel drive and quattro models, wagon variants are still available as the ‘Avant’ bodystyle. Additionally, Audi still sells the A4 with inline 4 and V6 engines.
If you look around car listing sites, you’ll be able to find the first generation A4 equipped with manual gearboxes. These could be fun little weekend toys, especially if you find one in good condition.
The A4 has since sold more than 7.5 million units. In Malaysia, the A4 2.0 TFSI quattro sedan is available still. Last year, it won Luxury Compact Sedan of the Year at our VOTY awards.
Press Release
Audi is celebrating a major production anniversary in the premium mid size segment: 25 years ago, the first Audi A4 drove off the assembly line in Ingolstadt. Since then, the brand with the Four Rings has produced more than 7.5 million units of the model. A quarter of a century after its birth, demand is unabated for the Audi A4, now in its fifth generation. With 344,586 units sold in 2018, the A4 is the world’s most popular model of the Four Rings. Approximately every fifth Audi delivered worldwide today comes from this series.
The Audi A4 set new standards when it went into production in 1994 as the successor to the Audi 80 series. With its elegance, sportiness and comfort, it quickly impressed customers all over the world. The model became a bestseller in its first full year of production in 1995, when more than 272,052 units drove off the production line. And today, the model continues to launch highlights in its class with numerous driver‑assistance systems.
Demand for the Audi A4 is unabated in what is now (since 2015) the fifth generation. Customers from China, Germany and the United States, most frequently decide on an Audi of the A4 series. In 2018, about one in five cars delivered by Audi in the German market came from this series. The most popular Audi model in China is the long‑wheelbase A4, which is produced especially for the Chinese market.
With a total production to date of more than 7.5 million units the A4 is the most successful Audi model of all time. Since the launch of the fourth A4 generation in 2007, Audi’s two main plants in Germany – Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm – have shared production of the A4 via the so‑called production turntable system. Audi manufactures the model also in Asia for the local markets there: in Changchun, China, and in Aurangabad, India.
