Controversial Audi grille to define future models

Audi has confirmed its much-debated new vertical grille design is here to stay, with the bold front-end treatment set to roll out across the brand’s entire future model line-up despite an online backlash and comparisons to a ‘toothbrush moustache’.

The controversial grille first appeared on last year’s Audi Concept C – a new Audi TT by any other name – will be rolled out across all models.

In an interview with Auto Motor und Sport, Audi’s design boss Massimo Frascella said the polarising narrow grille design will grace all models, with some tweaks here and there.

“We have developed the individual elements in such a way that they can be used flexibly, so that models in the A segment differ significantly from sports cars or SUVs but are connected by a common thread,” he said.

Feedback around the new grille design on social media has at times been harsh, but Frascella said the brand is pressing ahead with the look.

Frascella, who took over from Marc Lichte in mid-2024 after shaping the Land Rover Defender and Range Rover Velar, said brand recognition was a key driver behind the move.

“We want our cars to be identified as Audi first. But of course, every car needs its own character,” he told the German publication.

While the grille’s proportions and detailing will vary depending on the vehicle type, the tall, rectangular shape will remain a constant, signalling a clean break from the trapezoidal ‘single frame’ grille that has defined Audi design for more than a decade.

The design overhaul does not stop at the exterior.

The Concept C also previews a more restrained interior approach, with Audi promising fewer oversized screens and a return to physical switches and dials for core functions, addressing growing criticism of touchscreen-heavy cabins.

The first production Audi to wear the new design language will be an all-new electric successor to the TT, although its exact launch date is unknown. It’s unlikely to reprise the TT name.

BMW weathered similar criticism to Audi’s new grille design when it introduced its oversized kidney grilles, but sales ultimately proved resilient.

Audi will be hoping that online outrage and countless cruel memes will not derail its bold new design direction either.

Join the conversation at our Facebook page
Or email us at editor@carsales.com.au