Skip advert
Advertisement

New Audi e-tron electric SUV: pricing, specs and full details

New £70,805 Audi e-tron will take the fight to Jaguar and Tesla with a 248-mile range and 150kW fast charging

Audi's first all-electric model, the e-tron SUV, will cost from £70,805 in the UK. Although officially due to go on sale early next year, interested buyers can put down a £1,000 deposit to secure 'priority' access. First customer deliveries are due in the spring. 

The e-tron is a 4.9-metre SUV that’s designed to sit between the Q5 and Q7. You can see influences from the likes of the Q8, but there are unique e-tron touches such as a flush grille and, more radically, cameras that replace the regular side mirrors.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Best electric cars on sale

Its shape is relatively conventional, though – a reflection of customer feedback, according to lead exterior designer Stephan Fahr-Becker. He said: “In the clinics the customers asked us, ‘Can we just have a nice-looking electric vehicle?’ If we’d ended up with something that looked like a stranded whale, nobody would have been ready for it.”

The e-tron will have a pair of electric motors, one on each axle. The front unit has 168bhp and the rear 188bhp, and they can offer a combined ‘boost’ output of 402bhp for up to 10 seconds. Audi isn’t mentioning weight, beyond saying that the e-tron will be over two tonnes – but the motors are strong enough to take the car from 0-62mph in less than six seconds, and on to 124mph.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement - Article continues below

Audi e-tron ride review

As the e-tron is designed to be a long-distance EV, Audi says it should deliver at least 248 miles on the tougher WLTP test cycle. The car features brake-by-wire tech that interprets pedal inputs and then chooses how best to slow the vehicle – using the motors to recuperate energy, or the conventional pads and discs.

The level of recuperation can also be adjusted using paddles behind the steering wheel. Technical programme manager Dr Andreas Klem told us: “In the test cars, I find that I go for the strongest recuperation in town, because it’s very relaxing. Then I back it off a couple of stages for highways and motorways.”

The charging set-up is particularly neat. The driver’s side gets a flap that folds down smoothly, in a piece of pure theatre, to reveal a DC port that’s capable of 150kW charging – enough to get the car back up to 80 per cent of charge in less than half an hour.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Audi will also offer a couple of options for home, and should your parking layout require it, you’ll be able to spec a second AC-only charger on the passenger side, to make access easier.

• Best 4x4s and SUVs on sale

Inside, the e-tron looks set to deliver typical SUV practicality. There’s room for five adults, and the 60-litre waterproof area below the bonnet takes load capacity to a useful 660 litres. Lowering the rear seats increases this to 1,725 litres.

The rest of the cabin has features from the A7 and A8 – including the twin-touchscreen controls – and every e-tron will get Audi’s Virtual Cockpit.

Those mirror cameras will be optional, but they’re estimated to add just 2km to the car’s range. They display their info to OLED touchscreens integrated in the door panels, which can be used to fine-tune the angle, too. Kerb cameras and a wider angle for motorways are also included.

Just one version of the e-tron will be offered in UK showrooms at launch, although we’re soon likely to see sport-themed S line and fully loaded Vorsprung editions.

There will also be styling packs, and you’ll be able to choose between 19, 20 and 21-inch wheels – with 22-inch rims available once Audi Sport launches its take on the car.

Which all-electric SUV would you choose, the Audi e-tron, Jaguar I-Pace or Tesla Model X?

Skip advert
Advertisement
Editor-at-large

John started journalism reporting on motorsport – specifically rallying, which he had followed avidly since he was a boy. After a stint as editor of weekly motorsport bible Autosport, he moved across to testing road cars. He’s now been reviewing cars and writing news stories about them for almost 20 years.

Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

Audi Q8 e-tron review
Audi Q8 e-tron - front tracking
In-depth reviews

Audi Q8 e-tron review

As Audi’s flagship electric SUV, the Q8 e-tron offers superb performance, comfort and refinement
26 Jan 2024
New Audi SQ8 e-tron 2024 review: heavy and expensive, but great to drive
Audi SQ8 Sportback e-tron - front tracking
Road tests

New Audi SQ8 e-tron 2024 review: heavy and expensive, but great to drive

The Audi SQ8 e-tron is a paradox on four wheels. Off the pace in some places yet brilliant in others
3 Jan 2024
New Audi Q8 e-tron Dakar Edition 2024 review: EV SUV with off-road upgrade
Audi Q8 e-tron Dakar Edition - front
Road tests

New Audi Q8 e-tron Dakar Edition 2024 review: EV SUV with off-road upgrade

The Q8 e-tron SUV has diversified for a new off-road-focused Dakar Edition that could be popular in the UK, if Audi decides to sell it
2 Jan 2024
New Audi SQ8 e-tron priced from £97,500 in the UK
Audi SQ8 Sportback - front tracking
News

New Audi SQ8 e-tron priced from £97,500 in the UK

A two-tier lineup is in store for Audi’s high performance electric SUV.
16 May 2023

Most Popular

Huge Audi new car blitz to bring us 9 models in 2 years
Upcoming Audi models - four-way image
News

Huge Audi new car blitz to bring us 9 models in 2 years

After a quiet few years, the German giant is gearing up for its biggest product onslaught to date
25 Mar 2024
Posh new trim level for Dacia Sandero while the Sandero Stepway gets more power
Dacia Sandero - front
News

Posh new trim level for Dacia Sandero while the Sandero Stepway gets more power

Both the Sandero and Sandero Stepway ranges have been tweaked, gaining more safety features to meet the latest regulations
26 Mar 2024
Road tax set to rise in April: here’s how much more you’ll pay
Road tax documentation
News

Road tax set to rise in April: here’s how much more you’ll pay

Drivers with newer cars can expect to be paying roughly £10 more per year, a although the biggest gas guzzlers will fare the worst
26 Mar 2024