Audi debuts e-tron GT concept in Los Angeles
NEW YORK: This week in a vacant lot next to the Ace Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, Audi got Robert Downey Jr dancing. And it wasn’t for the $175,000 R8.
The Iron Man star was hired to promote the debut of the e-tron GT concept, the all-electric car Audi is building on the same platform as the much-hyped Porsche Taycan — the two cars will share 60% of their components.
Both vehicles represent parent company Volkswagen AG’s multipronged attack on Tesla Inc’s electric-market dominance.
“Sharing i s good, right?” said newly appointed
Audi of America president Mark
Del Rosso.
This was the first big public appearance f or
Del Rosso, the former Bentley Motors Limited chief executive officer, who officially takes over as head of Audi in the US on December 1.
The 590-horsepower four-door “coupe” is the latest all-electric offering from Audi, which unveiled the e-Tron SUV in September and the PB18 e-tron supercar a few weeks before that. An Audi e-tron Sportback will come next in the line-up.
“By 2025, 30% of our volume will be electric,” Del Rosso said.
Despite the casual atmosphere of taco and slider food carts and mixed drinks, Audi executives remained mostly mum about details of the electric coupe.
But they did say that it would have a 100kWh battery pack, a 248-mile range, and a 0-60 mph time of 3.5 seconds. It will be able to charge to 80% battery strength in 20 minutes.
From the exterior, the concept vehicle already looks production ready, with body-style overtones and a roofline like the new Audi A7. The large battery pack sits in the bottom of the car, which will ride lower than an S7.
With its square nose, stubby rear end, and graphic daytime running lights, it looks ready to hunker down and hustle. Inside, the seats were lined with fabric made from recycled fibers.
“A changing world needs beauty and intelligence in order to propel itself forward,” Del Rosso said.
The Audi e-tron GT will go on sale in the second quarter of 2019, with deliveries beginning by 2020.