Ingolstadt / Changchun, 20/10/2010

Audi sold a million in China

• Audi chairman Stadler: "record is another milestone in the 22-year success story of Audi in China"
• About 7,000 guests at the ceremony in Changchun
  
• Significantly more than 200,000 deliveries to customers by end 2010

Today, in China the millionth Audi to a customer from Changchun been passed: a metallic blue Q5. The record is exemplary of a unique success story that began in 1988 with a license agreement between Audi and FAW to assemble the Audi 100. For millions it was an anniversary ceremony in Changchun with the Board of AUDI AG, the partners by the First Automobile Works (FAW) and more than 7,000 guests, including the employees at the plant.

"This record is another milestone in the history of Audi in China," said Rupert Stadler, Chairman of AUDI AG. ". We 22 years ago, the first premium brand in China and since then the undisputed market leader in this segment were - a success story to which we are very proud" of the 950 000 cars delivered to customers were produced in Changchun, imported 50,000. No other automotive manufacturer in the premium segment have managed to more than one million cars in the Chinese market to sell. In the first nine months of 2010, Audi sold 175,000 vehicles in China and Hong Kong, also a new record.

"For the full year, we will deliver well over 200,000 cars to Chinese customers," said Dr. Dietmar Voggenreiter, managing director of Audi China. "And we already have our next sales target firmly in mind, within the next three years we hope to create the second million."

The story of the four rings in China began in 1988 with a license agreement between Audi and FAW for assembly of the Audi 100 from imported parts kits. This included a transfer of technology in production and planning, building a customer service organization and training of Chinese employees. Signed in 1995, Volkswagen and FAW signed a Letter of Intent, which includes the Audi production facility in the joint venture integrated. A year later, the Audi 200 began rolling off the assembly line, which was produced with 60 percent in China. In 2000, Audi and FAW-VW introduced the first Audi A6 on the market - in a long version, as do the Chinese customers chauffeured limousines, which provide extra space in the rear. Mid-2005 was followed by the next generation of the A6L, the beginning of 2009, the first long-wheelbase in the premium B segment in China, the A4L.

"We now look to a successful and friendly partnership with AUDI AG, and hope this may continue to expand," said An Tiecheng, president of FAW-Volkswagen. The First Automobile Works was founded in 1953 and is in China, the automotive group with the longest tradition.

Today, the Audi A6L produced in Changchun, the A4L and since 2009 the Q5 for the Chinese market. Last year the company increased with a new assembly building its production capacity to 300,000 vehicles. The dealer network of 157 dealers in 106 cities will be expanded by 2013 to more than 400 companies.

The success of the brand among the Chinese customers also confirmed by recent studies by market research firm JD Power: No other premium manufacturer persuaded the Chinese customers, according to "Customer Service Index (CSI) with its range of services like the AUDI AG. Also in the Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI), the Chinese chose Audi new vehicle sales in the first place.

Source [Autoblog via Audi]