greatwhiteshark

According to the documentation here at work in our order guides, it's based on firewall and volumetric cargo differences - the sedan fits the bill and the wagon doesn't. Perhaps it's related to the shelf in back of the passenger seats that's missing from the Avant, effectively 'sequestering' it from the passenger compartment.

If you were to get rear ended in the Avant, the battery has a better chance of detaching from its location and ending up as acid all over the occupants of the car, not to mention a 50-pound flying projectile. In the sedan at least there's some form of framework below the rear windscreen that, at least somewhat, acts as a better seal from the cargo area.

Eric - The Red S4

As long as we're shooting holes in Audi's excuses, I believe the Dodge Magnum Wagon had the battery in the back under the load floor by the spare tire.

Eric.

AofC_RR

Apparently you haven't looked in the wheel well of anything on the B8 chasis. The battery is in the trunk on everything including the current A4 Avant. If they can sell the A4 like that why not an RS Avant.

greatwhiteshark

I don't work for Audi. I've simply restated what has been told to us ad infinitum in the past regarding the reasons the vehicle was not sold in the US. Other factors such as, oh, I dunno, the massive difference in exchange rate at the time, could have factored into their consideration. Not to mention the fact that Americans hate station wagons almost as much as they do diesels. It's a shame, and hopefully that stigma will change, but I doubt Audi wants to take a(nother) chance on a $75,000 car sitting unsold on lots (kind of like what's happening with many of the even more expensive RS4'verts out there...)

You apparently work for a dealership, and I'm media, and we're oftentimes told two wildly different things, which is frustrating because it can lead to customer confusion. I called my contact at AoA and was told the reason it wasn't sold here is because there wasn't a sufficient business case for it. When I asked specifically about the battery location I was told "it was one of the many factors." That could be a PR spin, or it could be the truth. It's probably somewhere in between. It does bring a much more obvious part of the equation to light: the business case for it.