Audi confident about Chinese sales goals

The locally made Q3 was produced in FAW Volkswagen's new factory in Foshan.[Photo Provided to China Daily]

Hopes to sell 700k units in China annually by 2015

Audi plans an aggressive localization strategy to meet its China sales goals over the next two years, said a top official with FAW Volkswagen.

By 2015, the company aims to increase annual sales of its locally made models to 700,000 units in China, said Dominique Boesch, managing director of the Audi sales division at FAW Volkswagen.

Released earlier this year, the target demonstrates Audi's commitment to its strategy of localization, Boesch said.

"I think it is the right way and right time to raise this target, based on our understanding of the market," Boesch said during the unveiling of the locally made Audi Q3 on April 8 in Shenzhen, which is near the facility in Foshan where the model was produced.

The Q3 is the second SUV Audi has released in China. The first was the Q5, local production of which began in 2010.

According to Audi, the Q3 delivers a great driving experience. [Photo Provided to China Daily]

By localizing its products in China, Audi's growth has outpaced that of competitors in the luxury segment.

However, the Q3 is not the first premium compact SUV to be produced locally. BMW launched its X1 last year.

Boesch repeatedly emphasized the importance of timing with regard to the company's strategy.

"When we approach localization, (the timing) does not depend on competitors, but on our own right time, " he said. "Now is the right moment to localize the product."

The model, with six variants, is priced at between 285,000 yuan ($46,005) and 428,800 yuan.

Equipped with a 2.0 TFSI engine and a seven-speed S tronic transmission, the model can produce peak power of some 147 kW/h, and top torque of 280 Nm.