Audi has announced the appointment of Peter Mertens as its new technical development chief, luring the German from his position as senior vice president of research & development at Volvo Car.
Mertens will join former Volvo executive Thomas Mueller at the Ingolstadt-based automaker, with the latter set to assume the role of head of electrics and electronics at Audi.
The Volkswagen Group subsidiary lost its two previous technical bosses – Ulrich Hackenberg and Stefan Knirsch – in the fallout of the diesel emissions scandal.
Mertens has held positions at Mercedes-Benz, General Motors and Jaguar Land Rover, and joined Volvo Car in 2011.
Rupert Stadler, chairman of the board of management of Audi, praised Mertens as a specialist with an impressive breadth of experience.
“Mertens has exceptionally broad technical expertise and an international background in the automotive industry. These are ideal qualifications for him to make further progress with the technical development division at Audi,” said Stadler.
