Curvy new Audi A2 e-tron will have VW ID.3 DNA
Audi’s new entry-level EV is due to be revealed this autumn, although the exact date has yet to be announced
With anticipation continuing to build for the reveal of the new Audi A2 e-tron, which is now just a few months away, the brand has released some new footage of its entry-level EV racking up the miles in testing, and having some fun drifting in the snow in Lapland.
Audi’s engineers have been busy fine-tuning the newcomer’s suspension and driver-assistance systems on the windy country roads of Bavaria, while evaluating the powertrain’s performance and thermal management in the bitter cold of northern Sweden.
They’ve also been spending plenty of time in the company’s wind tunnel, optimising the airflow which the car’s distinctive sloping roofline certainly will help with, plus noise and refinement at higher speeds.
The A2 e-tron is set to make its world debut in the autumn, and will revive the name and radical design of Audi’s innovative if rather polarising hatchback from the noughties.
It will, in effect, be the all-electric alternative to the best-selling, combustion-engined Audi A3 hatchback, which is currently available to lease from less than £300 per month through the Auto Express Buy A Car service. It will also act as an indirect replacement for the A1 and Q2 that recently went out of production, and will be the more upmarket sister car to the recently updated Volkswagen ID.3 and Cupra Born hatchbacks.
Rivals in the world of compact but classy electric cars will include the Volvo EX30 and Alfa Romeo Junior. However, the Audi’s biggest competition will come from the next-generation BMW 1 Series and Mercedes A-Class that are arriving later.
When Audi CEO Gernot Döllner announced the A2 e-tron name earlier this year he also explained why the brand was lowering the entry point to its all-electric range, saying: “Our customers want electric mobility that impresses in everyday life.
“The A2 e-tron is our promise to deliver exactly that – efficient, compact, and confident. We’re making entry into the electric Audi world easier and more relevant than ever.”
What will the new Audi A2 e-tron look like?
Audi isn’t bringing back the A2 just to score points with fans of its oddball hatchback from the early 2000s. The design of the original car, which the company says “pioneered efficiency and urban mobility over 25 years ago”, has clearly influenced the new A2 e-tron.
The most obvious reference to the A2 is the car’s cab-forward silhouette, with a steeply angled windscreen and short bonnet helping with aerodynamics. Compared with the Volkswagen ID.3, the Audi’s roofline is lower and sleeker, and arcs more aggressively at the rear to create a tail that looks directly related to the A2’s.
The new EV even looks likely to share the A2’s two-piece glass design for the tailgate, hinged up on the roof to create a much larger opening. There’s other evidence to suggest an A2 connection, too, including round flared wheelarches and a small wing attached to the bootlid.
Where the newcomer will have more in common with current Audis is the front-end styling. This includes the use of thin upper daytime running lights with smaller main beams mounted below. The prototypes we’ve seen so far also feature a Q4-like grille and rear lights – expect these to be substantially different when the real thing is revealed later this year.
Unfortunately, this car is too far through its development process to adopt the new design language previewed by the jaw-dropping Audi Concept-C. That was created by the brand’s latest design chief Massimo Frascella, who took on the role less than two years ago. There might have been time for some small changes, however, as has been rumoured about the forthcoming Audi Q7.
Our exclusive images show how the new Audi A2 e-tron could look under all its camouflage. We based the design on the company’s 2019 AI:ME concept, which was a little shorter overall than the current A3. But those dimensions could easily be stretched to create a unique, bespoke EV shape, while not stealing too much of the Q4 e-tron’s SUV image, being between five and 10 centimetres shorter than that vehicle.
What range and performance will the new Audi A2 e-tron offer?
It remains to be seen what technology the new A2 e-tron will feature and if it will include innovative features such as the original A2’s aluminium body and clever use of space.
But we do know it will be based on the MEB+ platform that underpins the new VW ID.3 Neo. This is an updated version of the architecture that is used by about a dozen EVs, including the Skoda Elroq, Cupra Tavascan and Ford Capri.
The A2 e-tron should benefit from any and all the technical upgrades the new ID.3 Neo and Cupra Born received, and should get the same selection of powertrains, meaning the Audi could boast a range of around 400 miles. However, we don’t expect the brand’s famous quattro all-wheel drive system to be available, because the other hatchbacks on this platform have all been rear-wheel drive so far.
How the Audi A2 e-tron fits into Audi’s wider plans
The A2 e-tron is one of three new models Audi has confirmed it will be unveiling this year. First to make its debut will be the next-generation Q7 luxury SUV, followed shortly by a brand-new, even larger SUV called the Q9 that Auto Express recently got a sneak peek of.
Audi CEO Döllner, who has also taken on the role of technical development chief, admits that his team has gone through a review of its future product plans in recent years, sharpening its focus on key markets such as China (where the company will soon launch a bespoke, locally made version of its new Q6 e-tron) and the United States. Döllner said that some vehicles had been pushed aside by the review, but insisted that the planned entry point has escaped the axe.
When asked directly if Audi had cut vehicles from its plans or simply delayed them, Döllner said: “We did both, really. We stretched the timeframe to give us a little bit more time for these 20 models. I’ve never seen something like this in my career so far. And we discussed some models that we deprioritised, and put emphasis on other ideas.”
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