Audi very much wants to keep its problems aside and speed past its rivals at maximum acceleration. The luxury brand from Volkswagen’s garage is revving up to lock horns with the best in trade as it targets the eye of automobile action, the United States of America. Audi sees the lull amidst the crisis as a glittering opportunity to grab where it could race past rivals Mercedes and BMW to target the cream of the automotive market.

Rewind to a couple of years earlier and Audi still sported lofty ambitions. It was prime time when the likes of BMW and Mercedes were ruling the luxury roost and Toyota was in the game with its Lexus. Audi was barely visible as it sold around 100,000 vehicles a year, around the same period when its rivals were scoring at thrice the volume in sales. Audi had its share of problems with its distribution too as it was trying to revamp its sales points that were cluttered with cars from Volkswagen and Porsche alike, never managing to get a distinction that could mark Audi apart from the rest to lure the car connoisseurs. Audi’s product quality was also a concern as its scores in Customer Satisfaction surveys were at par or below industry average, an element that threatened to erode brand value. Not anymore.

If Audi’s promotions and advertisements are any indication of the luxury car maker’s health and attitude, they are bold and bubbling with confidence in its revived product line. Audi has been spending rather lavishly this recession on television ads and Super Bowl spots that feature the car announcing its hostile intentions in taking the place of rivals BMW and Mercedes. Audi is also betting big on its Diesel versions in the US, hinting on fuel economy in a market that is more used to gasoline and is gearing up towards the hybrid. And Audi wants to put up a bright face to its luxury customers, prodding its distributors to invest in a make over of showrooms.

Audi is harbouring global ambitions, having already made its mark in Europe, gaining market share. There are rumours of Audi aiming at a production facility in Asia that would be its port of entry into the continent. Audi wants to make it the most preferred luxury car brand a few years down the line and rack up volume in sales as well. That’s quite an ambition from the Volkswagen family that has just put its house in order, sorting itself in its Porsche business. In any case, Audi is shifting gears.