Smaller saloon cars will make a big comeback over the next few years, according to Audi design chief Wolfgang Egger.
Audi itself is set to launch an A3 saloon, possibly as soon as at the Shanghai motor show next month. BMW is also set to launch a saloon variant of its 1-series, while Mercedes has recently unveiled the compact A-class-based CLA saloon.
Speaking at the Geneva motor show, Egger said “Saloons are coming back, and it’s a trend you’ll see from us soon. I personally love saloons and think they are due a renaissance.”
He believes that saloon cars have become too conservative in recent years, and drifted away from what originally made them so popular.
“The image of saloons has become too conservative,” he said. “Saloons used to be small, fun, compact, dynamic. We’ve lost that in the last 15 years.”
Egger said there is “now an opportunity” to make a “very modern car” in a saloon bodystyle with “compact dimensions”.
“You can take what’s become a conservative design with the saloon and turn it into something very modern,” Egger added.
