Audi expands remanufactured exchange parts to electric motors and virtual cockpits across 89 markets
Audi's remanufactured Genuine Exchange Parts cost on average 20 percent less than new parts and are generally available immediately, now covering electric motors and virtual cockpits in some markets.
- 20 percent
- 89
- 24 months
- 3
What Happened
Audi Genuine Exchange Parts are offered as a resource-saving alternative to newly manufactured Audi Genuine Parts for selected components, and the company presents them as an example of how AUDI AG is turning ideas for the circular economy into reality. Audi says it is working to use resources more efficiently throughout the value chain and to embed the principle of the circular economy more firmly into the development, production and use of its vehicles. At the same time, Audi vehicles are subject to defined quality requirements that take into account, among other things, a long service life and the ability to withstand sustained use. Should a part nonetheless need to be exchanged, Audi offers three different options for selected parts.
- Audi Genuine Parts: brand new parts that customers can source.
- Audi Genuine Used Parts: parts that are used but functional and can be resold without remanufacturing.
- Audi Genuine Exchange Parts: Audi Genuine Parts that have failed and been remanufactured; customers receive these only in exchange for a defective part.
Ideally, a defective part is exchanged for a remanufactured part. If in a particular case it is not directly possible to remanufacture old parts as part of the Audi Genuine Exchange Parts program, they are replaced with new Audi Genuine Parts. Industrial remanufacturing is carried out in accordance with internally defined Audi testing and approval criteria: defective components and wearing parts are initially replaced, then the remanufactured part is tested according to defined quality criteria and approved for reuse only if it passes that test. As with new parts, Audi Genuine Exchange Parts come with a 24-month warranty. Audi describes industrial remanufacturing of defective parts as a key element of the circular economy and as an extension of the programs it offers to promote the principle along the entire value chain.
- On average 20 percent less expensive than new Audi Genuine Parts
- Generally available immediately, meaning no wait times for customers
- 24 months, the same as for new parts
89
Availability of individual product groups may vary depending on the market, model and component.
- Selected remanufactured powertrain components and electronic parts.
- For certain models and markets, the range has been expanded to include remanufactured electric motors and Audi virtual cockpits.
- Catalytic converters and diesel particulate filters are not used as remanufactured exchange parts and are replaced where necessary.
- Those units are transferred to recycling companies so recoverable material fractions can be reclaimed in accordance with applicable legal requirements and made available for further industrial recycling processes.
Why this matters
For a beginner, this shows what the circular economy means in practice: rather than only scrapping a failed component, Audi takes it back, rebuilds it to its own test and quality criteria and returns it as an exchange part. Buyers of affected models can pay about 20 percent less than for a new part and generally get it without waiting. The program reaches 89 markets, though the availability of individual product groups may vary by market, model and component.
Terms in This Story
- circular economy
- An approach in which materials and products are kept in use as long as possible, for example by repairing, reusing or remanufacturing them instead of discarding them.
- remanufacturing
- An industrial process in which a used or failed component is stripped down, its defective and wearing parts are replaced, and the unit is tested so it can be used again.
- diesel particulate filter
- An exhaust component that captures soot particles from a diesel engine's exhaust gas.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.