It has flown under the radar a bit, but the Audi A2 is making a comeback later in 2026. It just won’t be quite as you expected it to be. Instead of being a super lightweight aluminum-constructed car with a diesel or naturally-aspirated engine under the hood, the A2 is returning as an entry-level EV.
The original Audi A2 was introduced in 1999 and produced up until August 2005 as a five-door hatchback, and it was aimed at being as lightweight as possible while also attempting to be highly fuel-efficient.
Sadly for Audi, the Audi A2 didn’t fare well. Despite being praised for its design and how nice a car it was to drive, the A2 didn’t sell in huge numbers. The pricing of the car is often cited as the main reason for those poor sales. But not wanting that to be the end of the story, Audi has brought the A2 back in e-tron form.
This new version of the A2 is set to be Audi’s entry-level EV and serve as an introduction to its full range. The car has been testing wrapped up, and it recently shed that camouflage for a funky new e-tron livery, revealing everything you’d want to know.
The Audi A2 Prototypes Sport a Funky Paint Scheme
Incredibly, Audi has removed its traditional black and white camouflage from the prototypes. Instead, it’s now in a very fetching E-Tron livery, with neon green accents that give us a closer look at the entirety of the car. These images were taken by Pro-Street.dk, who caught the A2 in between test sessions at the Comfort Hotel in Copenhagen.
The livery allows us to see some of the more intricate details, including the new winglet-style door handles, the rear spoiler and the split rear windows. The spoiler itself is a nice hark back to the past, as it is a feature that was on the original A2 supermini. What is very surprising is how close to the original car the new A2 actually is.
In fact, a glance would make you think you were actually looking at the original A2, so similar is the new EV’s design. Audi must really be commended for ensuring the new A2 stays as close to the original car as possible. It is the funky design that made the original A2 such a standout. The car also has a split-headlight layout, and a slim upper bar housing the daytime running lights as well as the turn signals. The main headlights are below them in tinted glass.
What Else Do We Know About the New Audi A2?
At the time of writing this article, the full technical details behind the new A2 are a mystery. It is, however, likely to use the VW Group’s rear-wheel-drive MEB platform, which comes with an array of battery options. For example, the new ID.3 has 50, 58 and 79kWh battery packs available. The biggest of those offers 391 miles. However, the extra efficiency that should come from the shape of the A2, if it is indeed following the same philosophy as the original, could help to eke out a few more miles.
Price-wise, the new car is expected to retail at around €38,200, and it’s due to be shown off to the public later in 2026. The new spy shots, however, do give us a very good indication as to what the car will look like when the covers finally come off. This could be one of the most exciting EVs of 2026, but it is slightly scary that a car designed in the late 1990s is now seemingly considered retro!