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THE Audi e-tron Sportback – the second electric vehicle to wear a softly glowing version of the German luxury brand’s four-ring logo – will go into production in 2019, the car maker has confirmed.
The compact Sportback will join the plainly named e-tron, an electric SUV due next year, as Audi’s battery-fuelled push gains momentum – it is the second of three new all-electric vehicles the brand aims to build. The third is expected to be a Q6 e-tron, built off an upcoming fastback-styled version of the Q7 large SUV.
The Audi A7-styled e-tron Sportback’s electric motor should be able to make the sprint from 0-100km/h in about 4.5 seconds, helped by 800Nm of stump-pulling thrust available from almost a standstill and sent to all four wheels. And just like a turbo car, the e-tron Sportback is expected to include an overboost function that will bump power to 380kW for up to 10 seconds.
The Shanghai concept includes some clever thinking, such as luminescent interior panels that provide ambient light without the need to use energy-sapping bulbs. Yes, you still need to power up the panels, but Audi says the drain on the electrical system is a lot less.
The production car will spin off the Volkswagen Group’s MEB “ Modular Electrification Toolkit” platform that will underpin the group’s future battery-powered vehicles.
