Car News from Germany

According to Reuters, Volkswagen is considering closing factories in Hannover, Zwickau, Emden and the Audi site in Neckarsulm, with group-wide job cuts potentially reaching 100,000. The supervisory board meets on July 9. Falling European sales, Chinese competition and US tariffs are cited as the main causes.

Volkswagen has launched a Good-Night package that converts the electric ID. Buzz minivan into a light camper - a bed over the rear seats, a folding mattress, blackout blinds, a table and chairs. An overnight mode runs the climate control from the traction battery for up to 48 hours, and vehicle-to-load supplies 230 volts. It costs €2,600 in Germany.

Bovensiepen Automobile, founded by the Bovensiepen brothers after Alpina passed to BMW control, has revealed its second model. The 05 GT reworks the BMW M5 Touring into an 800 hp / 1100 Nm plug-in hybrid with bodywork by Frank Stephenson, hitting 100 km/h in 3.6 seconds. German prices start at €198,900 ($214,800), with up to 100 cars a year.

BMW opened order books for the electric i3 50 xDrive months ahead of schedule after demand outran plans. The First Edition starts at 75,340 euros (about $86,400) in Germany, with up to 912 km WLTP range. Days earlier, BMW was reported to be discontinuing three China-built EVs in July to clear capacity for the Neue Klasse.

BMW Group revised its 2026 guidance, cutting automotive margin from 4-6% to 1-3% after January-May deliveries in China fell 14.9% and the Middle East conflict pushed up costs. Shares dropped 7% to a five-year low.

The 2027 Taycan adds E-Shift - eight simulated gear changes through paddle shifters with physical jerk and a virtual rev limiter. The passenger-side DC port switches to native NACS. Performance Battery Plus 105 kWh is now standard across Taycan, Taycan 4, and Taycan 4S. Range up to 700 km WLTP. Prices from €102,600 ($111,900 in the US).

Audi has unveiled the fifth-generation A6 allroad, the raised, all-road version of the new A6 Avant (C9). Adaptive air suspension is standard, raising ground clearance by 34 mm, and the launch line pairs a 367 hp e-hybrid plug-in with a 299 hp V6 TDI mild hybrid. German orders open on 18 June from 77,250 euros.

Xpeng has put its flagship X9 electric MPV on sale across seven European countries simultaneously, from Germany to Iceland. The seven-seat MPV uses an 800V platform with up to 615 km of WLTP range and 5C charging, with German prices from 77,600 euros (about $89,200).

Volkswagen has opened European orders for the facelifted Caddy. The fourth-generation van keeps its MQB platform and petrol, diesel and 150 PS eHybrid engines; the work went into a redesigned cabin with physical steering-wheel buttons and a 12.9-inch screen. German prices start at 31,511 euros ($33,900).

BMW has issued two recalls for the iX3, the first car on its Neue Klasse platform. A faulty onboard charger on 145 cars risks electric shock during charging; a separate action covers 4,843 cars over incorrectly fitted side airbags. No injuries reported.

Audi has unveiled the new Q7 on the MLB Evo platform, built in Bratislava. Europe gets a 3.0 V6 turbodiesel with 48V mild hybrid (245 or 299 hp) and quattro; the US gets a 435 hp 2.9 twin-turbo petrol, plus a 600 hp V8 SQ7. Five to seven seats, three displays. Pre-orders from June, from €87,900.

Audi has revealed the Nuvolari, its R8 successor, named after racing driver Tazio Nuvolari and limited to 499 cars. It shares the Lamborghini Temerario platform but uses Audi's own body and tuning, with a twin-turbo V8 and three electric motors for 1001 hp.

BMW now offers the M2 with M xDrive, a first for the smallest M coupe. The S58 engine is updated for Euro 7 and makes 480 hp, the 0-100 km/h time drops to 3.7 seconds, and the front axle can be switched off for rear-drive drifts. From €81,300.

The last BMW Z4 rolled off the line at Magna's plant in Graz, Austria. BMW has no Z-series roadster in its product plan. The Z lineage ran from 1991 to 2026.

Mercedes-Benz has revealed the updated GLE and GLE Coupé. The headline change is a new MBUX Superscreen spanning three 12.3-inch panels. Several four-cylinder engines have been dropped in favour of inline-sixes and hybrids.

Taycan sales dropped 22% in 2025 to 16,339 units, then a further 19% in Q1 2026. The Zuffenhausen factory has been running with intermittent shutdowns since early May.

The electric successor to the V8 GT 4-door uses a dedicated AMG platform, 106 kWh battery, and tri-motor setup producing up to 1169 hp. Sales begin before end of 2026.

BMW created a version of the M3 CS that shouldn't exist on paper - manual gearbox, rear-wheel drive only, no AWD option. Power is down 70 hp from the standard CS to make the combination work. 26 kg lighter than a standard manual M3, full CSL suspension, deliveries autumn 2026. Price: $107,100.

The mid-cycle update keeps the exterior almost unchanged but rewrites the interior around a curved dual-screen unit. Highlights include the 45 e-tron Sportback's 592 km WLTP range, 185 kW DC charging, and a new V2L/V2H function that turns the car into a mobile power source.

Audi updated the Q4 E-Tron for MY2027. Three variants, two body styles. New: V2L charging (first for an Audi EV), 185 kW DC on 82 kWh variants, merged instrument/multimedia display. Physical climate controls removed. Orders open in Europe from June 2026, from €47,500.

The petrol Macan outsells the electric version - 10,130 of 18,209 Macans sold in Q1 2026 were combustion-engined. Porsche is discontinuing it anyway. Leipzig production ends summer 2026; a combustion replacement on Audi Q5 III underpinnings arrives in 2028 under a different name.

The production version of the 2023 ID.2all concept. BEV, FWD, three variants from 116 to 211 hp, starting from €24,995 in Germany. Base sales from summer 2026.