An Unexpected EV Became Audi's Top-Selling Model in America Last Quarter | Carscoops

      An unexpected electric vehicle (EV) has ascended to the top of the sales charts, surpassing long-established favorites as incentives diminished and combustion models declined.

      Despite a rise in two models, Audi's overall EV sales have decreased this year. The long-standing leaders, Q5 and Q3, experienced significant double-digit drops.

      Audi offers at least 18 different models in the United States, and among them, an unforeseen competitor emerged as the top seller through the third quarter—the electric Q6 e-tron. This model outperformed the long-time favorites Q5 and Q3.

      The fact that an EV surpassed Audi's traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) models reflects less a newfound excitement for electrification and more the challenging year its combustion lineup has endured, worsened by customers hurrying to take advantage of federal EV incentives before they expired.

      Sales Numbers

      In the last three months, Audi sold 10,059 Q6 e-trons in the US, representing a remarkable 22,761 percent increase over the same period last year, although this figure is somewhat misleading since deliveries had not significantly begun by 2024. To date, a total of 17,021 Q6 e-trons have been sold.

      The surge in demand can be attributed primarily to the $7,500 federal EV tax credit, which is no longer available, prompting a rush among buyers eager to benefit before it ended. Interestingly, the Q6 e-tron did not qualify for the tax credit when purchased outright but customers could receive it if leasing. While the exact number of leased Q6 e-trons sold in the third quarter hasn't been disclosed by Audi, it can be inferred that most likely fell into that category.

      With the electric SUV achieving five-figure sales, the Q6 e-tron surpassed the traditional sales leader Q5, which recorded 9,719 units in the third quarter, bringing its year-to-date total to 32,633. Although it still leads overall, this position is accompanied by a note of caution, as sales have decreased by 17 percent compared to 2024. The third quarter alone saw a more significant decline, dropping 34 percent from the 14,677 units sold during the same time last year.

      The Q3 followed during July through September with 5,597 units sold, marking a substantial 25 percent decrease year-over-year, while the Q7 sold 4,281 units, representing a notable 24 percent drop in comparison to the same period in 2024. Nonetheless, its year-to-date total of 14,256 is 5 percent higher than last year, indicating that while the third quarter performance was poor, the overall picture is somewhat more positive.

      The electric Q4 e-tron also found its place within the lineup, with a 32 percent rise in third-quarter sales to 2,956 units, though its year-to-date sales of 5,194 still trail behind last year's figures.

      Sales for nearly all other Audi models declined in the last quarter, including the A5 (-34 percent), A6 (-41 percent), A7 (-2 percent), and Q8 (-22 percent). Additionally, demand fell for several of Audi’s EVs, such as the e-tron GT (-3 percent), Q8 e-tron (-98 percent), and the Q8 Sportback e-tron (-96 percent).

      The Overview

      In total, Audi sold 46,758 vehicles in the third quarter, nearly matching last year's figure of 46,752. Year-to-date, the brand has sold 128,709 cars and SUVs in the US, which is 8 percent fewer than in 2024.