Audi dropping 3.2-liter V6 from 2010 A3, A4 and TT

Since the 2009 Audi A4's introduction last year, the number of sedans rolling off dealer lots equipped with the company's turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four versus the 3.2-liter V6 has been nine-to-one. With almost 90% of all A4s equipped with the peppy, fuel-efficient and thoroughly entertaining four-pot, Audi has decided to cease offering the V6 on the A4 – along with the A3 and TT – for the 2010 model year.

"We're not backing away from the V6 strategy," Audi's U.S. Corporate Communications head, Bradley Stertz told Autoblog, "We're recalibrating our mix."

According to Stertz, Audi's rejiggered engine strategy has less to do with the slow-sales of the V6 and more to do with the brand's expanding lineup. With Audi's new supercharged V6 making its way to the States in the new S4, along with the introduction of the TT S and A3 TDI, the 3.2-liter's standing in the engine hierarchy was lessened. And with the 2.0-liter mill delivering the best bang-for-the-buck – not to mention placing Audi in the enviable position of being the only German luxury marque offering a four-cylinder in the U.S. – the automaker's new tactic should continue to pay-off on the sales front.