Karmann loses Audi A4 Cabrio contract but gets A3

Germany’s largest independent carmaker and supplier, Karmann, has reportedly lost its contract to supply Audi with A4 Cabriolets but will soon start building the smaller A3 drop-top. According to German publication Automobil Industrie, an Audi exec has revealed that Magna’s CTS division will supply convertible systems for the new A4.

Karmann has built the A4 Cabriolet since 2002 and has constructed more than 135,000 units in that time, with 28,000 convertibles rolling off the production line last year alone. Karmann has already laid off 633 employees in the past 12 months and will be forced to cut another 140 jobs from its admin departments in coming months.

Audi’s top brass have confirmed that production for the new A3 Convertible is scheduled to start by late 2008. Positioned against its arch rival, BMW’s new 3-series drop-top, the new A3 variant is expected to eschew a folding metal roof in favor of a less complex and lighter canvas top to give it a performance edge over the BMW.

This is an accurate representation of the final styling of the new model and reveals that the new car will seat up to four passengers and will have a slightly different front end from the current A3.