Audi e-tron (2019 – present) | Expert Rating [hide]
Summary
The Audi e-tron is a large electric SUV/crossover vehicle, which went on sale in the UK in early 2019. It is Audi’s first production electric car, and will spearhead a new range of electric cars from the brand over the next decade.
The e-tron is available in two similar body styles; a conventional SUV with a fairly vertical tailgate, and a slightly sleeker liftback version called the e-tron Sportback. The front half of the two cars is the same.
The Audi e-tron has received positive reviews from the UK automotive media, with scores ranging from good to outstanding. The lowest scores have tended to be from performance-oriented titles like Top Gear and Evo, while the highest scores have come from consumer titles like Honest John and Auto Express.
The e-tron has received particular praise for its smooth and quiet drivetrain, practicality and overall refinement. The main criticisms levelled at it are basically that it’s not as exciting to drive as a Jaguar I-Pace and the optional rear-view wing cameras are a bit gimmicky.
Audi e-tron highlights
- Comfortable, refined, spacious
- Plenty of advanced technology
- Drives better than expected for a heavy car
- Similarities to regular Audis will appeal to some
Audi e-tron lowlights
- More expensive than Jaguar I-Pace and Mercedes EQC
- Battery range not as good as rivals
- Expensive camera option to replace mirrors not worth it
- Not as dramatic as a Tesla Model X
Key specifications
Body style: Large SUV/crossoverPowertrain: electric motor, battery-powered
Price: From £62,025 on-road
Launched: Winter 2018/19Last updated: Summer 2020
Replacement due: TBA
Image gallery
Audi e-tron (2019)
Audi e-tron (2019)
Audi e-tron Sportback (2020)
Media reviews
Reviews, road test and comparisons from across the UK automotive media. Click any of the boxes to view.
The Car Expert
“The Audi e-tron has completely wowed simply because it is so normal. For years, we’ve been testing electric cars with spaceship-like qualities, but Audi has taken the features of its fantastic SUV range and seamlessly added all-electric power.”
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Auto Express
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 8 / 10“The e-tron is Audi’s first all-electric production car, but it excels with a fantastic blend of performance, comfort and refinement.”
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Model reviewed: e-tron SportbackScore: 7 / 10“Whether you opt for this sleeker Sportback over the already quiet and comfortable e-tron SUV will come down to personal taste. You will need to step up to the more expensive specs, but like-for-like, the premium this car commands isn’t as sizeable as you might imagine.”
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Model reviewed: e-tron S SportbackScore: 8 / 10“This Audi e-tron S feels a cut above its main rivals when it comes to performance. The changes to the chassis, the integration of the triple-motor set-up and the way it handles for such a heavy car are all mighty impressive.”
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Model reviewed: 55 quattroScore: 9 / 10“Audi has already established itself in the SUV market, but the e-tron moves the game on and is a convincing step into the next-generation.”
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Auto Trader
Score: 7 / 10“The e-tron is a well-made, comfortable SUV that offers a more premium experience than its rivals with a great interior and plenty of features available. If you want a really nicely made electric family car, the Audi e-tron is well worth checking out.”
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Autocar
Model reviewed: e-tron SScore: 7 / 10“The Audi e-tron S quattro isn’t likely to win friends or influence keener drivers on behalf of the electric car. Accomplished though it may be in other ways, it simply doesn’t move the needle on the kind of entertainment value that might be expected from a car that charges from the mains.”
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Model reviewed: S Sportback 2021Score: 8 / 10“An interesting sporty drivetrain, fitted to the wrong car. Impressive, but other E-trons are better bets.”
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Model reviewed: e-tron Sportback rangeScore: 9 / 10“Quick, classy and quiet electric SUV builds on the solid foundations of its more upright sibling.”
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Score: 9 / 10“Audi has delivered a car with all the hallmarks of its conventionally-engined models: smart styling, outstanding quality and a level of engineering that sets it apart both from the masses and from its rivals.”
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Business Car
Model reviewed: 55 quattro S LineScore: 8 / 10“Audi’s e-tron gets an injection of style with a morsel of extra range. However, the Mercedes-Benz EQC and Jaguar I-Pace are both cheaper than the Audi, and they and the Tesla Model X all offer greater driving ranges.”
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Car
Model reviewed: Score: 8 / 10“As you’d expect, the Audi e-tron’s engineering is polished, what you might not expect is how well it handles given its vast size and weight.”
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Model reviewed: SportbackScore: 8 / 10“While it’s not the most exciting option the Sportback does turn the heat up a little when compared to the e-tron SUV and at its heart remains a good car – with a class-leading interior and buttoned-down driving experience.”
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Score: 8 / 10“On motorways, you’ll find the Audi e-tron like any other car – except for its effortless ability to overtake.”
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Car Keys
Model reviewed: Sportback EV Review 2021Score: 8 / 10“The Audi e-tron Sportback remains hugely spacious but also impressively luxurious and brimmed with technology.”
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Score: 9 / 10“The amazing thing about the Audi e-tron is that it’s so normal, which is a surprisingly strange thing to be happy about. Audi has ensured that the e-tron feels as like its regular Q SUVs as possible, so the transition for drivers won’t be as difficult.”
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Carbuyer
Model reviewed: e-tron Sportback rangeScore: 8.2 / 10“The striking Audi e-tron Sportback is an upmarket electric SUV with a range of up to 278 miles”
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Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 8.2 / 10“Audi’s first production electric car impresses with its acceleration, comfort and practicality.”
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Carwow
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 8 / 10“The Audi e-tron is a posh, practical, electric large SUV. It has an impressive turn of speed but not the range you’d expect from a traditional petrol or diesel SUV.”
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Company Car Today
Model reviewed: S“Incredibly rapid and more engaging and driveable than might be expected from a high-powered electric SUV.”
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Model reviewed: e-tron Sportback“The looks of the Audi e-tron Sportback may sway it over the regular e-tron, and a good range, pleasant driving experience and high-quality interior are strong draws for what is still an expensive up-front cost that will of course benefit from low BiK payments for the next few years.”
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Model reviewed: 55 quattro 95 kWhScore: 8.5 / 10“Another step for electric vehicle technology, the Audi e-tron takes what Audi is good at and turns it into an electric vehicle with decent range and performance.”
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Daily Mail
Model reviewed: Sportback 55 quattro S line“Despite it’s lower and sleeker roofline, with the rear seats folded down this five-seater five-door hatchback coped exceptionally well when crammed with luggage.”
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“It really is a prime example of the sort of ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ – or leap ahead through technology – for which the German car firm has become rightly renowned over many decades.”
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Daily Mirror
Model reviewed: 55 quattro SUVScore: 6 / 10“Audi has achieved what it has set out to do with the e-tron and that’s to guide its customers into the world of electric motoring with a car that will be familiar to them – just as Mercedes has done with its conventional EQC electric SUV. Just leave those wacky camera ‘mirrors’ off.”
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Driving Electric
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 7 / 10“Audi’s first production electric car is impressive, but also outclassed by rivals like the Jaguar I-Pace and Tesla Model X.”
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Electrifying.com
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 7.5 / 10“Audi has played it safe with its first electric car. It’s simply another of its high quality, signature SUVs that happens to be powered by electricity.”
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Evo
Score: 7 / 10“The Audi e-tron is the most convincing example yet of an electric SUV, undone by the usual range compromise.”
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Score: 6 / 10“It’s smooth and refined, but the Audi e-tron is very heavy and can’t match a Jaguar i-Pace for entertainment.”
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Fleetworld
Model reviewed: Sportback S lineScore: 7 / 10“Lower boot line doesn’t hinder practicality much, but elevates the e-tron into an expensive but smart electric cruiser.”
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Green Car Guide
Score: 9 / 10“The Audi e-tron Sportback 55 quattro is a capable and desirable premium product.”
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Score: 10 / 10“The Audi e-tron does lots of things very well. It delivers a very polished and enjoyable driving experience, with strong performance. The interior is bristling with all the very latest Audi technology. And all this comes in a spacious and practical SUV body style.”
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Heycar
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 7 / 10“The Audi e-tron might not be one of the best electric cars out there, but it is a very good choice for those looking for a big dose of luxury in their electric SUV, and is well worthy of your consideration.”
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Honest John
Model reviewed: (range review)Score: 10 / 10“The new Audi e-tron offers the space and comfort of one of the brand’s typical full-size models.”
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Model reviewed: 55 quattro“Putting concerns about cost and range aside, the e-tron is a no-less-than-brilliant entry into the electric vehicle market for Audi. It’s great to drive, if not quite as impressive as the Jaguar I-Pace, and it’s up to the firm’s usual high standards in every way. As a car to live with every day, there probably isn’t a better electric car on the market.”
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Motoring Research
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 8 / 10“Audi’s first all-electric car is a classy SUV. It’s everything you’d expect from an Audi SUV, but without a traditional engine. It’s also rather heavy and expensive. Early adopters will love it.”
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Parkers
Score: 8 / 10“Audi’s first electric model sets an interesting benchmark”
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The Sun
Model reviewed: Range overview“The Audi e-tron is another fast and planet-friendly family wagon but lack of wing mirrors let it down.”
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The Sunday Times
Model reviewed: (range review)Score: 8 / 10“Very, very good… but not for everyone.”
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The Telegraph
Model reviewed: Sportback 55 quattroScore: 8 / 10“While dynamically the Audi e-tron Sportback is no rival for the Jaguar i-Pace, it is in refinement and luxurious appointment. It’s expensive, but this is a lovely relaxing car in which to do long distances, although you’ll need to drink a lot of coffee while waiting for it to charge.”
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Score: 8 / 10“Effortless cruising ability, quality feel and, yes, even its studied normality will make the Audi e-tron the ideal electric car for some. But it doesn’t come cheap, falls short on range – and you do wonder whether it couldn’t be just a little bit more exciting.”
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Top Gear
Model reviewed: Range overviewScore: 7 / 10“A very conventional Audi, built to persuade regular SUV buyers to make the EV jump.”
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Model reviewed: 55 quattroScore: 8 / 10“A car designed to make precisely no statement about electrification at all.”
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What Car?
Model reviewed: (range review)Score: 8 / 10“The Audi e-tron doesn’t feel as sporty as its closest rival, the Jaguar I-Pace, and it has a shorter range. However, it’s the classier of the two inside and refinement is sensational.”
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Which?
Model reviewed: e-tron Sportback range“If you like the way the Sportback looks compared to the regular Audi e-tron, and you can stomach its premium price, then this is an attractive choice. Its low roofline doesn’t sacrifice much in terms of practicality, while its 241-mile range means it’s perfectly feasible to use as an everyday car.”
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Model reviewed: e-tron SUV range“The Audi e-tron’s reasonable range means it will be considered as a family’s main car by many buyers. Its eerie refinement, decent practicality, excellent performance and luxurious ride will find it many friends, too.
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Safety rating
Overall rating: 5 stars
Date tested: May 2019
91%
ADULT OCCUPANT
85%
CHILD OCCUPANT
71%
VULNERABLE ROAD USERS
76%
SAFETY ASSIST
Read full Euro NCAP review
Eco rating
No eco rating
The Audi e-tron has not yet been lab tested by Green NCAP. This is a new initiative, launched in 2018 as a sister organisation to Euro NCAP. As yet, very few new cars have been tested for environmental impact by Green NCAP, and the testing programme was halted in early 2020 by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Green NCAP programme measures exhaust pollution (which is zero for an electric car) and energy efficiency. Electric cars are much more energy-efficient than combustion cars, so the e-tron is likely to score very highly in Green NCAP testing whenever it ever takes place. Check back again soon.
Security rating
Independent vehicle theft and security ratings from Thatcham Research
Rating: Superior | Good | Basic | Poor | Unacceptable
Relay Attack: Pass
Date: 2019
Awards
Trophies, prizes and awards that the Audi e-tron has received
2021
- What Car? Awards – Best Large Electric Car for Comfort + Best Coupé SUV for Comfort (e-tron Sportback)
- carwow Awards – Best Large Electric Car (e-tron Sportback)
2020
- What Car? Awards – Best Large Electric Car over £70,000
Similar cars
If you’re looking at the Audi e-tron, you might also be interested in these alternatives
BMW iX3 | Ford Mustang Mach-E | Jaguar I-Pace | Mercedes-Benz EQC | Tesla Model X
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Keyword: Audi e-tron