Audi A4 replaced by new Audi A5

• New Audi A5 replaces the Audi A4 compact sedan
• The A5 and S5 coupe and convertible, as well as the RS5, will also be discontinued after 2025
• After 2025, Audi will no longer sell a two-door model in North America

The Audi A4 compact sedan and Allroad wagon will be discontinued after the 2025 model year, and reborn as the new Audi A5, Audi confirmed Tuesday. 

The reshuffling of Audi’s lineup heralds a portfolio reboot that will feature more than 20 new or redesigned models in the next few years, and two new platforms for its combustion engine vehicles and its battery electric vehicles. A new naming convention reflects this two-pronged product onslaught: even-numbered models henceforth will be electric vehicles, such as the all-new Audi Q6 E-Tron; odd-numbered models will represent internal combustion engines, at least until Audi goes all electric, which has been bumped to 2033. 

For the past twenty years or so, Audi has used even numbers for four-door models and odd numbers for two-door models, which morphed over time to include coupe-like Sportback grades. Audi also confirmed that the last of its two-door offerings—the A5 and S5 coupes and convertibles, as well as the RS5 coupe—will be discontinued after the 2025 model year in North America. The Audi TT coupe and roadster, as well as the Audi R8 supercar, were canceled in the past few years.

It might be a confusing transition for Audi shoppers. The last edition 2025 Audi A4 may be sold alongside the new Audi A5, also tagged as a 2025 model year. For now. Not only that, three new models launching in Europe in the next few months will follow in North America by next spring. So there could be two completely different 2025 A5 models on sale simultaneously. We suspect Audi will badge the new A5 as a 2026 when the time comes. 

The 2024 Audi A4 earned a solid TCC Rating of 6.5 out of 10 for its stellar safety record, relatively simple user interface for its infotainment system (at least based on German makes), and its 261-hp turbo-4 or 349-hp V-6 in the S4. It hadn’t been redesigned since 2017, however, and its conservative style and outdated cabin were overshadowed by other entry-level luxury sedans. The A5 promises to improve on all of those aspects, even without electrification. 

The A4 will populate a crowded automotive cemetery of recently discontinued sedans, including the Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class, Kia Stinger, Nissan Maxima, and so many others. Audi will still sell sedans such as the A3, A5, A6, and GT E-Tron, for now.

The brand realignment reflects not only the overwhelming preference for crossover SUVs over sedans in North America (Audi estimated 85% of new car sales in the U.S. are SUVs and trucks), but also the powertrain shift to electrification. The A5’s new platform, dubbed Premium Platform Combustion, is flexible enough to allow for mild-hybrid, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid powertrains. As of now, the new A5 won’t come with the mild-hybrid system being sold in other markets. Plans for a hybrid or plug-in hybrid A5 have not been announced.

Expect the new Audi A5 to go on sale next spring, likely as a 2026 model.