Audi pauses multiple mode production until April, blame it on Russia-Ukraine war

Volkswagen owned German luxury car brand Audi has paused production of a host of models until April 2022 due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, reports Automobilwoche. The most affected Audi models due to this production halt include Q4 e-Tron, A4, A5, A6, A7, TT, Q7 and Q8. Apart from that, other Audi models like A1, A3, Q2 e-Tron, Q5 and A8 too have been impacted by the conflict, but to a small extent only. The luxury car brand reportedly warned its dealerships to be prepared for significantly longer delivery times of the affected models.

The report claims that Audi will resume production of the A4, A5, A6, and A7 in the first and second weeks of April. Production of the Audi TT, Q8, and Q4 e-Tron models would resume in mid-April but initially only at low volumes, claims the report.

The decision to pause production of the abovementioned cars has been taken as the carmaker has been facing a severe supply chain crisis. Ukraine is one of the key suppliers for wiring harnesses for Audi. With the war going on, the supply chain for the crucial component has collapsed completely. While some suppliers have completely stopped production, some have severely restricted production volume. This disruption has resulted in Audi announcing a production halt for the specific models. This would result in a delivery impact for the car brand across the world.

Audi is not the only carmaker that is facing a similar crisis. several other automakers too have announced a temporary production halt. Some have already revised their 2022 production output target due to the crisis.

The global automobile industry is facing a multipronged crisis due to the Ukraine war. While the fuel prices have been increasing rapidly, the supply chain too has been disrupted massively. Apart from that, the shipping routes too have been impacted.