Kiss These Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo Cars Goodbye
Three luxury automakers are discontinuing or are about to discontinue some of their cars, as we’ve learned in the past few days. The reasons are different in each case, so don't put all the blame on the SUV obsession.
Let's start with Audi, which has confirmed that the A7 and S7 will not return for the 2026 model year, with the four-ring brand retaining only the high-performance, 621-horsepower RS 7. The first two will be indirectly replaced by the new generation of the A6 sedan, which adopts a more aerodynamic and coupe-like silhouette but doesn’t feature a hatchback design like Audi's Sportback models.
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The fate of the RS 7 remains up in the air, mind you. However, as our colleague Gabriel Gélinas wrote last April, the new A6 Avant wagon won’t come to North America despite the relative success of the outgoing RS 6 Avant and the A6 allroad.
Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz will end production of its EQE sedan and EQE SUV in 2026 as it revises its entire electric vehicle strategy, according to British magazine Autocar.
By distancing themselves from the E-Class and GLE in terms of design and driving experience, these models have not achieved the success the company was anticipating. The focus will now be on the upcoming C-Class EQ and GLC EQ, based on Mercedes-Benz's new MB.EA platform. The latter is scheduled to make its world debut this week in Munich.
In the longer term, an E-Class EQ will complete its development and should be introduced sometime in 2027, again according to Autocar.
Finally, after eliminating the S60 and S90 sedans, Volvo will retire the wagon variant of the latter, the V90. As a reminder, only the higher-riding V90 Cross Country model is currently sold in North America.
All signs point to the compact V60 Cross Country joining it soon, with Volvo banking on SUVs despite owing much of its reputation to wagons.
New CEO Jim Rowan has previously hinted that the XC60 crossover could add more upscale models to somewhat offset the V90's departure. We’ll see.
