New Audi A2 Expected in Frankfurt, Could Spawn Sub-brand

There’s a lot of sportscars coming to this year’s edition of the Frankfurt Auto Show - the M5, the 911, maybe even the new SL - but there’s also a bit of sensibleness and eco-mindedness coming our way. BMW might bring the i3 along for the ride, and Audi could revive the A2, which was discontinued in 2005.

We’ve heard a lot of A2-related rumors, so we’re still skeptical, but Auto Express says it’s coming, and it could evolve into a sub-brand all of its own.

The main reason for canceling the previous generation was because of its aluminum spaceframe chassis that was too expensive to make. The fresh model will not drop it in favor of less expensive steel, but will see an increase in the asking price. Audi is set to justify the premium and set the car apart from the more conventional A1 and A3 with impressive technical innovation. “The spaceframe is, was and always will be the car’s core,” a source says, reiterating the fact that the A2 will stick to the lighter metal.

“It will only be an electric car. Most battery models are compromised as they are built on rehashed architecture, but the A2 will be built from the ground up as a pure electric machine. The idea is so popular [at Audi] that it could even spawn a family of A2 electric models and become almost a standalone brand,” a company insider says.

Audi has recently bought a number of offshore wind turbines to offset the energy used in building a pilot fleet of A3s powered by natural gas, and is likely to pursue the same strategy to keep the A2 production program carbon neutral.