e-tron

Make
Audi
Segment
SUV

Audi have been extremely busy of late; the wave of new product launches has been relentless throughout 2018 and has taken place alongside major organizational restructuring too. The model expansions have until now filled mostly traditional segments but on the August 30 at the Audi Summit in Brussels the carmaker's very first fully electric volume model in the shape of the e-tron SUV will debut. There is no official word on the size of the battery but earlier concept models such as the 2015 e-tron quattro used a 95-kWh lithium-ion pack.

That may well hint at what we can expect in the production model. If true, this should yield a range of around 248 miles using the more stringent WLTP standard. Audi also plans to have almost 400 high-powered charging stations in place by 2020 on Europe's roads which should alleviate any range anxiety. Electric motors from the R8 e-tron have been used in a number of concept cars including the e-tron quattro and this setup of one front and two rear motors can provide up to 496 hp which would give the e-tron SUV a serious turn of speed. The e-tron Sportback is also penned for introduction at a later date and should feature a similar layout.

This model will be the first of a major line-up of fully electric and hybrid models in every existing model range with plans to sell around 800,000 such vehicles buy 2025. Those are ambitious goals and the existing business infrastructure will also be receiving a big overhaul to achieve them. Early adopters of the e-tron SUV will for the first time be able to book certain functions online, the myAudi digital services system is expected to make a significant contribution to Audi's operating profit over the coming years as it is rolled out to other models.