Audi E-Tron S Sportback
Sporting version of SUV is the first electric car to employ a tri-motor drivetrain, writes Greg Kable
For a car maker looking to gain added performance cachet in the electric car ranks, it’s no longer sufficient to endow your top model with just one electric motor. To really stand out, you need two or, as is the case with the new S version of the Audi E-tron Sportback, three. That’s right, three electric motors: a larger one sitting up front and two smaller ones nestled in a subframe within the axle at the rear.
Together, they develop a combined 429bhp and 596lb ft of torque, or some 27bhp and 107lb ft more than the twin-motor E-tron Sportback 55.
That’s not all, though. A so -called overboost function triggered on the kickdown in Sport driving mode adds 67bhp and 22lb ft for brief periods of full-throttle thrust, taking the E-tron S Sportback’s overall reserves to a rather potent 496bhp and 718lb ft.
And what thrust! It may tip the scales well beyond two tonnes, but all that torque makes for memorable off-the-line qualities. Acceleration is instant and none too subtle as the driveline loads up. The official 0-62mph sprint timeof 4.5sec really doesn’t do it justice.
It always feels faster on a loaded throttle. The deployment of the combined reserves is controlled by a newly developed fourwheel drive system.
As well as offering three levels of energy recuperation, this incorporates a newly developed electronic torque-vectoring system, giving the E-tron S Sportback the ability to individually control the amount of drive fed to each individual rear wheel with greater accuracy than any previous Audi’s systems. It’s also described as being significantly faster than any of the firm’s existing mechanical systems.
Agility is outstanding, aided by a low centre of gravity, as is traction, which clearly benefits from the speed at which the drive can switch from front to rear and between the rear wheels. Both qualities are improved over the E-tron Sportback 55, itself a veryimpressive car in its own right.
The variable-ratio steering lacks for feel, but the chassis is well up to the job. You can hook up the E-tron S Sportback with lurid oversteer on a circuit.
On public roads, the handling proves entertainingly fluid, if perhaps not quite as whip-crack sharp as Audi wants you to believe. The E-tron S Sportback isn’t as calm-riding as the 55 model, either.
Firmer springs and uprated dampers do a greatjob of reining in its body movement but, in combination with the standard 285/45-profile, 21in tyres of our test car, they also take the edge off theride refinement. There’sgreater vertical movement over pockmarked roads and the E-tron S Sportback is also more sensitive to coarse surfaces than its softer-sprung and more
liberally damped sibling.
With a 95kWh lithium ion battery pack, the car’s official range is quite respectable, at 227 miles on the WLTP test cycle (only 10 miles down on the 55). Judicious use of the throttle quickly depletes energy reserves, though.
Along with standard mains power, this EV can be charged at 11kW via a wallbox or at up to 150kW by a rapid charger.
Visually, the E-tron S Sportback is differentiated by its unique front fenders, which are 23mm wider than those of the 55 model so as to house wheels of up to 22in across.
It also gains a new frontbumper design.
Hot electric Audi SUV buyers can choose between the coupe-influenced E-tron Sportback tested here or the more upright E-tron, whichbrings added versatility and a larger boot. The E-tron S Sportback lives up to its billing as Audi’s most athletic electric model so far, being certainly more sporting in character than the 55. A definitive verdict will come oncewe’re able to drive it back in Britain but, based on its strengths on smooth Germanasphalt, itgets a clear thumbs up for now.