Support CleanTechnica’s work through a Substack subscription, on Patreon, or on Stripe. Help us produce all the original, high-quality content we publish week after week despite the challenges of AI deleting content, anti-social media, inflation and other obstacles.
Audi is the only luxury automaker without its own factory in the United States, and that’s about to change. On Saturday, Audi announced plans for a new $4 billion factory in Peach County, Georgia. The president of the United States, Donald Trump, could not resist taking political advantage of the news, but of course, the joke may be on him. Audi’s plan for the US market reportedly includes plug-in hybrids with a battery range of 70 to 80 miles. So much for the war against electric vehicles…
Plug-in electric vehicles: problem or solution?
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles have received their fair share of criticism for going only half (or less) of the road to decarbonization. However, here in the United States, where long-distance travel is common, plug-in hybrids give drivers a gas-soaked security blanket that’s hard to shake. For those with less onerous driving schedules, the high cost of gasoline provides ample incentive to drive as many miles as possible on battery power.
Regardless of driver habits in the U.S., Audi CEO Gernot Döllner is evidently among those who anticipate that the U.S. market will eventually reach full-battery electric vehicles, following the lead of China and Europe. “In China we see a complete transition to battery electricity, and the same thing happens in Europe in a 10-year perspective,” Döllner told a group of journalists in August, including US News and World Report Editor-in-Chief Alex Kwanten.
“And we see it completely differently in North America, especially in the US; we see that over the next 10 to 15 years there will continue to be a dominance in combustion engines and hybrid drivetrains, and we will have to reflect that in our global portfolio,” Döllner added.
More hybrid electric vehicles for the US
While waiting for the US market to reach full battery electric vehicles, Audi has leaned on plug-in hybrids as an alternative solution. “We will take the first steps to bring plug-in hybrids to the US,” Döllner told US News and World Report in July.
“I can definitely say that the RS model coming to market will be a plug-in hybrid, and we are evaluating what other segments might also make sense to bring it to the US market,” he added.
The new, high-performance, 630-horsepower plug-in Audi RS 5 will reportedly be the first to arrive, later this year or early next year. For the performance class, drivers can expect a battery range of 50 miles. Regular hybrids will have a range of 70 to 80 miles.
Automotive news He also added some details in July. “Audi of America President Vito Paladino confirmed that the German luxury brand will offer hybrids beyond the upcoming RS 5 sedan and Nuvolari supercar, which feature different plug-in hybrid systems,” Automotive New summarized in a Facebook post.
“We will have hybrids in our range,” Paladino said. Automotive newsalthough journalist Jack Walsworth noted that Paladino was rather vague on the details.
Audi will open a new factory in the USA
Another remaining detail is how much, if any, of Audi’s plug-in hybrid lineup for the U.S. will be made at the new U.S. factory. That’s a good question. Maybe, maybe not. Grading of the site is planned for 2027 and construction will begin the following year. With full production not expected until 2031, the timeline gives Audi some wiggle room to adjust its electrification strategy for the U.S. market.
Outgoing Georgia Governor Brian Kemp’s office (his term is limited) issued a celebratory press release on October 24 that also suggests Audi may adjust its plans as the market evolves, noting that the new factory “will be designed around Audi’s future manufacturing requirements, with a focus on efficiency, flexibility and the ability to respond to changing customer needs and market demand.”
“In choosing Georgia, Audi cited speed to market, workforce, access to consumer markets and proximity to an established automotive supply chain,” the Governor’s office explained, while highlighting the 4,500 new jobs Audi is expected to bring to the state.
What is all this about Georgia?
Georgia’s leading position in the field of domestic electric vehicle manufacturing was not mentioned in the October 24 press release. It’s a funny position for a politically conservative state, but Governor Kemp has been among the few Republican officials who have supported the vehicle electrification movement.
If Audi’s factory produces hybrid electric vehicles in Georgia, it will be in good company. “Since 2018, 35 electric vehicle-related projects have brought $23 billion in investments in Georgia,” the Georgia Department of Economic Development reported in 2023.
And then there’s electric vehicle startup Rivian. In November 2024, Rivian obtained a $6.5 billion loan from the Biden administration to build a new factory in Georgia. Somehow, the automaker managed to retain much of the funding after Trump took office and began waging a war on electric vehicles. A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place in September 2025, and if all goes according to plan, Rivian electric cars will roll off the assembly line in 2028.
Making political hay
As for Trump, electric vehicles probably weren’t top of mind when he defended Republican candidates at a rally in Perry, Georgia, on Saturday. He somehow convinced Döllner to come on stage with him to announce the new factory.
Döllner’s appearance with Trump was met with a storm of criticism from both sides of the pond, including Christiane Benner, who heads the main German union IG Metall and also sits on Volkswagen’s supervisory board as its vice president.
“Christiane Benner… called Döllner’s appearance in the United States “extremely embarrassing, politically unacceptable and unworthy of the company, but above all of Audi employees.” the guardian reported on October 26.
“He accused Döllner of having “flagrantly” violated the company’s code of conduct, “which expressly requires political neutrality in the period leading up to the elections.” the guardian aggregate.
the guardian He further noted that Benner threw down the gauntlet and warned that the supervisory board is supposed to be involved in important decisions like the Georgia factory.
Oops! Maybe that new factory won’t be built after all. To make matters worse, the guardian points out that Volkswagen “intends to cut tens of thousands of jobs and close plants in Germany.”
Oh! If you have any thoughts on this, please leave a note in the discussion thread.
Photo: German automaker Audi has scaled back its full electric vehicle plans for the US market, but its strategy still includes plug-in hybrids and also a new factory in Georgia (photo courtesy of Audi).
Sign up for CleanTechnica’s Weekly Substack to get in-depth analysis and high-level recaps from Zach and Scott, subscribe to our daily newsletter, and follow us on Google News.
Do you have any tips for CleanTechnica? Do you want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.
Subscribe to our daily newsletter to receive 10-15 new cleantech stories per day. Or sign up to receive our weekly newsletter on the week’s top stories if the daily grind is too much.
CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy here.
CleanTechnica Comment Policy
