Audi’s Legendary 5-Cylinder Isn’t Dead Yet, Here’s Why

[Source: Motor1]

The iconic Audi 5-cylinder engine turned 50 this year. Unfortunately thanks to upcoming Euro 7 emissions standards, the endearing 5-pot is on the way out. Except it isn’t. According to a report by Motor1, an Audi spokesperson confirmed that the 2.5-liter engine will remain in production for non-European markets.

A statement to Motor1 submitted by Audi A3 model series spokesperson Julia Winkler says that the RS 3 and its 5-cylinder engine will exit Europe by the middle of 2027. However, Audi will keep the car and the engine in production beyond that outside of the European market. After decades of Americans being forced to look on from the sidelines as the Europeans got exclusive access to many hot Audi models, it seems as though the Europeans may be jealous of us for once.

Emissions and Low-Volume Spell Trouble for 5-Cylinder

Audi has said in the past that updating the 2.5 TFSI to be compliant with Euro 7 regulations would not be that difficult. However, since the relatively low-volume RS 3 is the only model to use that engine, the return on investment was not worth it. This is where we would like to daydream a bit.

Could Audi justify a Euro 7-compliant 5-cylinder engine if they expand it to other models? Perhaps another sports car like the Concept C? We would love to see an ICE version of that, and the 5-cylinder would be perfect in that sports car. Except of course for the fact that the Concept C was designed as an EV and converting it to ICE would be a massive undertaking. But stranger things have happened.

In the meantime, we get to enjoy the current Audi RS 3 and the upcoming RS 3 competition limited. Their days with the 5-cylinder engine may be numbered but the number is higher than we originally thought. At least outside of Europe.