In another death knell for internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, Audi CEO Marcus Duesmann has confirmed the automaker has ended their development.
Duesmann made the comments during an interview with the German publication Automobilwoche, citing the European Union’s strict emission guidelines as the main driver for the decision.
“The EU plans for an even stricter Euro 7 emissions standard are a huge technical challenge and at the same time have little benefit for the environment. That extremely restricts the combustion engine,” said Duesmann. “We will no longer develop a new internal combustion engine, but will adapt our existing internal combustion engines to new emission guidelines.”
Audi already has one all-electric model, the E-Tron SUV, and recently announced their next EV, the E-Tron GT. It is scheduled to arrive in North America this summer, and will start at $99,900 USD ($126,800 CAD).
The German automaker plans to introduce as many as 20 EV models in the next five years as part of parent company Volkswagen’s push to electrification.
