Double wins for Audi

Audi is no stranger to taking top honours in the coveted Golden Steering Wheel Awards, but each new victory is just as sweet as the first.

In 2019, two new models from the brand were awarded the top honour in their respective categories, with the Audi A1 Sportback – recently launched Down Under – sweeping the pool in the ‘Small Cars’ class, and the brand’s first all-electric vehicle, the Audi e-tron taking out the ‘Large SUV’ category.

Each year the prestigious awards are put on by German automotive trade magazine Auto Bild, its European sister publications and the German newspaper Bild am Sonntag, with votes submitted by the readership of each publication to determine the finalists. In 2019, a total of 58 cars spread across the seven categories were whittled down to the three best performers – three in each category – before an international panel of expert judges put them through their paces to arrive at the winners.

This year final judging was carried out at the DEKRA Lausitzring racetrack in Germany’s Brandenburg region, where the expert judges, made up of engineers, racing drivers, automotive designers, journalists and technology experts, put them to the test to determine the final winners.

After their exhaustive evaluation process, Audi emerged victorious in two categories, with the A1 Sportback and e-tron winners in their respective classes.

While both awards were very pleasing, the fact that the Audi e-tron triumphed in the large SUV class against vehicles with conventional combustion drive systems was particularly pleasing.

“We are very proud to be a double winner,” said Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler, Member of the Board of Management of AUDI AG Technical Development at the award ceremony. 

“The ‘Golden Steering Wheel’ is a coveted award in our industry. We are particularly pleased that the fully electric Audi e-tron won its class competing against vehicles with conventional drive systems. We see that as confirmation that we are on the right track with our electrification strategy. The award for the A1 also tells us that we brought a new-generation car on the road which is completely convincing” added Rothenpieler.