- 2025 marks 60 years of Audi’s return to the market at the 1965 Frankfurt Motor Show
- Success of first modern day model named ‘The Audi’ kickstarted the brand’s ascendance
- Audi exterior designer, Gary Telaak: “Design has always been a fundamental pillar of the Audi brand”
- Special event showcases Audi design across the six decades and beyond
- For additional information please visit https://press.audi.co.uk/en-gb/
Milton Keynes/Bilbao, June 30, 2025 – Audi is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the rebirth of its brand name, and at a special event in the Rioja region of northern Spain, is turning the spotlight on the extraordinarily innovative and influential design and engineering which have defined it across those six decades.
The celebration features a host of driveable milestone models from the Audi UK heritage fleet to highlight the flair, foresight and precision characterising Audi design through the years. In addition to firm favourites such as the Ur-quattro, TT and R8, there will be appearances by key models from the contemporary Audi fleet, including the RS e-tron GT and the A6 Sportback e-tron.
“Design has always been a fundamental pillar of the Audi brand and core to our Vorsprung durch Technik ethos,” commented Audi exterior designer Gary Telaak. “From the original Ur-quattro, through to the timeless TT coupe and recently launched A6 Sportback e-tron, Audi’s hallmark design cues and attention to detail are visible throughout. The next chapter in Audi design will remain faithful to the past.”
The Audi name was restored to its rightful place in the vanguard of automotive development at the 1965 Frankfurt Motor Show, where a Saloon simply referred to as ‘The Audi’ made its debut. The Audi was a visually similar but technically more advanced update of the F102, an already progressive model produced by DKW, one of four brands that joined forces to create Auto Union GmbH, each of which is represented by an interlocking ring in the now world-renowned insignia.
“Since its re-emergence in the Sixties Audi has firmly established a reputation for design that imaginatively looks to the future but always stands the test of time,” commented Audi UK Director José Miguel Aparicio. “We’re immensely lucky to be the custodians of cherished examples of many of the defining models that forged that enviable reputation on our Audi UK heritage fleet, and to have them with us in the Rioja region. The home of spectacularly innovative structures like the Guggenheim Museum and the Hotel Marques de Riscal, designed by legendary architect Frank O. Gehry, is a perfect setting in which to celebrate them and mark this important anniversary.”
Inspired by a Latin translation
The newcomer’s name wasn’t plucked out of thin air – it was originally coined in 1909 by August Horch, whose Horch Motor Vehicle Works also went on to become one of the four Auto Union manufacturers. Horch had broken away from the company he founded and created a new one, which he cleverly named by simply using the Latin translation of his surname – “Horch” means “Listen!” and, in Latin, “Audi!”.
Audi subsequently became another member of the Auto Union quartet (the fourth constituent being Wanderer), but it faded into obscurity in 1940, when production of the Audi 920 ended. After remaining dormant for a quarter of a century, the name quickly regained a firm foothold in the market when the 1965 ‘Audi’ received an enthusiastic public reception, and went on to spawn a family of cars, including Audi 60, 75, 80 and super 90 models, whose names were determined by their power outputs. These included two-door and four-door saloon body styles, and also a Variant estate, a particularly well preserved example of which is one of the stars of the Audi UK heritage fleet.
Even then, the future of the Audi brand was in doubt – Volkswagen AG had taken ownership of Auto Union GmbH in the mid-Sixties and planned to limit the company’s activities solely to the development of Volkswagen models. Thankfully, Auto Union Technical Director Ludwig Kraus had other ideas – in secret, he developed a new model for the marque and managed to present it to Volkswagen management when they paid a routine visit to the Ingolstadt plant.
The prototype was the seminal 1968 Audi 100, one of the founding fathers of the Audi model portfolio, and, in 1972 GL form, another key member of the Audi UK heritage fleet.
Targeting the premium sector
The Audi 100’s role was pivotal on several levels. It was the first model developed and manufactured completely independently by Audi; it helped to secure a more premium, upmarket positioning for the brand; and its comparatively streamlined body resulted in a lower drag coefficient than rivals, giving an early indication of a commitment to optimal aerodynamics that continues to this day.
The expressiveness, ingenuity and vision that have become synonymous with Audi design were certainly evident in the early years, but they emphatically shine through in the modern-day milestone models that also play starring roles in the Audi UK fleet. These include:
- The Ur-quattro (1981 10-valve example) – Credited not only with revolutionising top-level rallying but also genuinely advancing road car dynamics, the Ur quattro still delivers incredible visual impact. Its tuneful 2.1-litre five-cylinder 10-valve engine, originally adopted from the Audi 200 and uprated with a KKK turbocharger bestowing extraordinary performance, continues to form the technical basis for the unit used by today’s mighty 400PS RS 3 models.
- The TT Coupé (1999 225PS example) – Remaining remarkably faithful to the original, game-changing look of the 1995 concept car penned in California by Freeman Thomas, the stunning geometric lines of the TT have immortalised it as a genuine icon of automotive design. Romulus Rost was responsible for the interior, which with its beautiful, machined aluminium detailing was also a masterpiece that redefined customer expectations in the sports car class and elsewhere.
- The R8 (2007 V8 and 2018 V10 RWS examples) – The R8’s boldly beautiful lines were closely based on the 2003 Le Mans quattro concept. It started its series production life with a naturally aspirated 4.2-litre V8, linked to quattro drive via a pleasingly tactile short-shift gearbox with a beautiful stainless steel open gear lever gate. V10 quattro versions followed, and then in 2018 the R8 V10 RWS (Rear Wheel Series) became the first ever roadgoing R8 to channel its considerable power solely to the rear wheels. Stephan Winkelmann, Audi Sport’s CEO at the time, described the RWS as being specifically ‘made for purists’, and it was delivered to a total of 999 of these discerning drivers worldwide.
The tireless pursuit of innovation in design, engineering and technology that helped to shape Audi’s icons is also of course at the heart of the very latest model lines, and nowhere more so than in the stars of the fast-growing all-electric portfolio. It can be seen and felt everywhere in flagships such as the elegant RS e-tron GT and the A6 Sportback e-tron, which with a drag coefficient of just 0.21 has the distinction of being the most aerodynamic model in Audi history.