The History of Audi Grilles
By Zunsport - 3rd May, 2024
The Audi grille is one of the most recognisable in the motoring world. Yet, have you noticed how this iconic grille has changed over the decades? Current Audi design chief, Wolfgang Egger, believes that the Audi front grille is a part of the brand’s symbolic identity. Today, current Audi car grilles take the shape of the Singleframe, a word Audi has trademarked to prevent any competitors using it. However, it took several evolutions before ending up in the form it is now.
The 1970s
The original Audi grille was a simple affair. The four rings badge was framed by a straight silver line that ran almost to each headlight, and the grille itself was anything but ostentatious. The brand began to develop its identity much more in the next decade.
The 1980s
The 1980s saw Audi become a popular culture icon with the launch of the Quattro. The grille here saw Audi do away with the long silver line and make all the edges sharper and squarer. The 80s also saw the development of the horizontally-split grille, which was the forerunner to the later grilles which covered more of the front end of the car.
The 1990s
This is the decade where we finally, in hindsight, started to see the birth of the Audi car grille as we know it today. The square, 90-degree angles of the 80s were replaced with a more sloping frame, wide at the top and moving inward as it travelled down the car. The silver of the four rings badge was echoed in a metallic frame around the grille, making it even more visible and much more an integral part of the brand image.
The 2000s
At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be a huge difference between Audi’s grilles of the 90s and the 2000s. But let your eye travel down, and the secondary grilles at the bottom of the car bumper echo the stylings of the 80s, but give a hint of the next step in the grille’s development.
Today
Audi took those two separated grilles, the sloping angles, and brought it all together in the Singleframe we see today in models like the recent A3. The new grille is an eight-sided, massive affair with a network of hexagons behind the badge which combines eye-catching style with practicality. Despite the huge change since the original straight grilles, this newer design is still unmistakably Audi. Talk to Zunsport about an Audi custom grille and how it can transform and enhance the look of your car.
