Audi’s EV: Design and substance
For sportiness and looks in an electric vehicle, look no further than the Audi e-tron GT
Had you told me a few years ago that Audi would place its revered high-performance RS badge on an electric vehicle (EV), I probably would have written you off as ridiculously illinformed and out of touch with the automotive industry.
High-performance Audis are known to have burly engines brandishing huge reserves of power and come replete with oval exhaust tips that emit rather fruity notes, much to the delight of enthusiasts. But silence is something one wouldn’t associate with the fabled RS badge. Until now, that is.
Of course, much like its other German counterparts, Audi is also transitioning to offer alternative and more sustainable mobility options, and the e-tron is the umbrella brand shielding the firm’s electric vehicle portfolio.
This comprises the e-tron SUV range and the GT four-door sports car. On test here is the flagship of the latter model, the RS e-tron GT, which shares a platform with the brilliant Porsche Taycan, only cloaked in an Ingolstadt suit instead of a Stuttgart item.
And right off the bat, I reckon this is one of the most beautiful moderndesigned cars. Just look at those contours. Fellow motorists were also enamoured of it, with many either slowing down or speeding up to take a closer look and pointing their smartphones to take a snap.
It squats low to the ground and is shod with 265/35/21 and 305/35/21 tyres front and rear, respectively. There are two electric motors — one on each axle and a two-speed gearbox driving all wheels. Combined power output is 440kw and 830Nm, enough to accelerate from rest to 100km/h in 3.3 seconds. Top speed, meanwhile, is pegged at 250km/h.
At an overall length of 4 989 millimetres, and a wheel base of 2.898m, the model has a long a footprint — as long as some double-cab bakkies. The trade-off is ample leg room for even the rear occupants.
Boot space is a little scant at 350 litres, while the front 85-litre space is just enough to house the charging cords and ancillaries. Speaking of which, the home AC charger should really be used to top up overnight as it works more as a trickle charger and will take close to 24 hours to fully charge from empty.
As part of the package, Audi will install a three-phase plug at your residence (a R5 000 value proposition) to slash that charging time in half. That said, if you can help it, rather use the DC charger between trips and resort to the home charger overnight or while the vehicle is parked at home during the day.
Earlier this year, Audi announced that it would roll out its 150kw DC (fast chargers) into the EV charging infrastructure, which will be the most powerful currently. Thankfully,
these have now been rolled out and are part of the 33 Audi EV chargers that have been added to the network, which also include 80kw DC and 22kw AC options.
While we are quite au fait with electric cars here at the Mail & Guardian, it was interesting to see how differently each manufacturer goes about their EV strategy. BMW seems to have mustered the range anxiety issue with the ix xdrive 50, which consistently returned above the 500km range when we tested it over an extended period. This is an area where Audi is left wanting and a bigger battery pack is likely to be introduced come facelift time.
Back to the RS e-tron GT, though. Charging the model’s 93kwh battery
via a 60kw DC charger will take you from 20% to 80% within an hour, enough to grab a cup of coffee or attend to some email admin. A fully charged battery will give you around 370km of real-world driving, which isn’t bad, but not class leading either.
Technicalities aside, how does the model drive? Well, this is where the RS e-tron GT truly sparkles. There’s power on tap from the get-go, typical of an EV, and it makes for a relaxed driving experience, particularly around town and on the open road. You can control the amount of regenerative braking by using the paddles behind the steering wheel: the left one for more aggressive regen braking, while the right pares it back for a more neutral feel.
Being an RS, it is the performance envelope that this one manages to push even further. In Sport+ mode and with launch control activated, there is as much as 475kw available for brief spurts.
Thanks to the quattro all-wheel drive system, flattening the throttle brings with it an adrenaline rush akin to free falling. The way EVS distil speed remains an impressive thing to experience and this thing will carry on piling on speed right up to its terminal 250km/h ceiling.
Even at a portly weight of over 2.4 tonnes, handling is surprisingly sharp, and since there is no engine upfront, there’s none of the quattro understeer. The consequence, however, is that the front does tend to feel ever so light when you thread the nose through a series of corners.
Being a silent assassin, it can get eerily quiet in the cabin with some passengers even feeling a little carsick. Thankfully, there are several faux sounds embedded in the MMI infotainment system that can be piped through the speakers to bring context to the rushing scenery.
At R3 300 000 the RS e-tron GT is for the well-heeled individual looking for an exciting and beautifully styled Audi that happens to be an EV. It is a great package and the fact that it was awarded the Performance Car of the Year at the 2022 World Car of the Year Awards speaks huge volumes about its competencies. Well done, yet again, Audi.