Audi Is Done With Fake Exhaust Tips

If there’s one deeply irritating trend in modern car design, it’s fake exhaust tips. It’s always disappointing to see a sporty car with what looks like a set of chunky pipes, only to discover on closer inspection that they are, in fact, fake plastic units surrounding a much smaller pipe inside or, worse, they’re completely blank, and the real thing exits underneath. Now, in a rather surprising move, Audi has sworn off fake pipes in its next generation of combustion cars.

The news was confirmed to Auto Express at the reveal of the new A5 and S5, which are also the new A4 and S4. Confusing, we know. These are the first cars to sit on the firm’s new Premium Platform Combustion (PPC) underpinnings, which will form the basis of its next generation of petrol- and diesel-powered cars.

Notably, the new models feature ‘hot’ – i.e. real – exhaust pipes, which are especially prominent in the form of the quartet of oval units seen on the medium-spice S5. A company spokesperson confirmed that “All PPC cars will have ‘hot’ tailpipes, functional tailpipes.”

It comes as something of a surprise given how prevalent a design feature the fake pipe has become. Audi’s been a long-time offender, with the current RS6 and outgoing RS4 both featuring a pair of huge oval units that shroud much smaller real pipes. It’s not even a new thing – the big chrome tips that exited the rear of the Lamborghini Miura were totally decorative.

There are various reasons for this. Safety is one of them, as anyone who’s ever accidentally touched bare skin to a recently running car’s exhaust can attest. It’s also an easy shortcut to making a car look more purposeful.

However, it turns out the vast majority of people, including Audi buyers, hate it, with the company citing ‘customer feedback’ as the reason for its U-turn on fake pipes. The A5 and S5 are the first cars to benefit from this policy, with future PPC cars including the A6-replacing A7 and likely A8-succeeding A9 also set to get real, visible exits.