2023 Audi Q4 E-Tron SUV and Sportback go for practicality more than punch

The 2023 Audi This autumn E-Tron provides the German luxurious model an all-electric entry within the standard compact crossover phase, making EV Audis accessible at costs of $50,000 and up. The model’s massive E-Tron SUVs and E-Tron GT sedan began at greater than $70,000 and $105,000 respectively, and have bought in comparatively modest numbers, so that is Audi’s likelihood to interrupt out of the EV area of interest.

As with the bigger E-Tron SUV, the This autumn E-Tron line presents two physique kinds: a standard SUV form, and a Sportback mannequin with a extra steeply raked tailgate. Evaluating all-wheel drive variations of the 2, the sleeker This autumn Sportback 50 E-Tron has a barely larger EPA-rated vary of 242 miles, versus 236 miles for the extra upright This autumn 50 E-Tron quattro. The best vary comes from the This autumn 40 E-Tron mannequin with rear-wheel drive solely, at 265 miles.

The This autumn line went on sale in late July for a really truncated 2022 mannequin 12 months—fewer than 2,000 are prone to be bought—however a bigger number of 2023 fashions provided with a number of powertrains will attain sellers beginning in October.

We examined an Audi This autumn Sportback 50 E-Tron, the all-wheel-drive fastback model, over 90 miles of suburban corridors and hilly mountain roads outdoors San Diego. We expect it’ll serve Audi effectively as a lower-priced EV that’s in any other case proper in step with the remainder of the Audi vary. However we’ve got to notice that different compact EV crossovers provide extra vary from smaller batteries.

Acquainted Audi look, inside and outside

The usual This autumn E-Tron is immediately identifiable as a utility car, with an extended third aspect window and a extra upright tailgate. The This autumn Sportback E-Tron, then again, has a triangular aspect window and a way more raked tailgate, giving it a tall fastback form—and, as a result of peculiarities of EPA guidelines round measuring inside volumes, barely extra rear cargo area. Relying on trim and powertrain, wheels are 19 or 20 inches—and even nonetheless they don’t look all that massive on this tall utility car.

Tastes will fluctuate, however we discovered the usual E-Tron a extra harmonious design within the traditional Audi SUV vein. The This autumn Sportback, then again, appeared too tall and thick by the center for its fastback form. It’s no modern Audi A7 hatchback, that’s for certain. And the window in its tailgate is break up into two items, just like that of a Prius hatchback, seen by the rear-view mirror with a bar operating between them—and thru the center of your rearward imaginative and prescient.

Inside, the This autumn is wall-to-wall commonplace Audi. The digital instrument cluster, 11.6-inch heart touchscreen show, and ‘MMI3’ graphics and interface ought to all be acquainted to drivers of different present Audis. Interiors are available black, brown, and beige, with an non-compulsory wooden sprint overlay and the same old array of brushed silver switchgear set in shiny piano-black surfaces.

From inside, besides maybe for the small sliding drive selector, you may by no means know the This autumn is powered by a battery and electrical motors. Total, the design is…effectively, very Audi. 

Rear- or all-wheel drive

All variations of the This autumn are fitted with an 82-kwh battery below the cabin flooring, powering a single rear 148-kw (201-horsepower) motor within the 40 mannequin and entrance and rear motors of 69 and 148 kw (94 and 201 hp) respectively. 

Constructed on the VW Group’s MEB structure for battery-electric autos, first seen in North America below the Volkswagen ID.4, the This autumn makes use of MacPherson struts on the entrance and a multi-link suspension for the pushed rear wheels. It’s additionally the primary Audi bought in North America for what’s probably not less than twenty years to make use of drum brakes, although solely on the rear. With regeneration offering a considerable portion of the braking, Audi notes they’re higher suited to rare use—in addition to cheaper. 

Drivers can select amongst 5 “Drive Choose” modes: Effectivity, Consolation, Auto, Dynamic, and Particular person. We didn’t discover the Dynamic mode as punchy and swift as we’d hoped, although the Effectivity mode clearly affected acceleration and made the This autumn slower and fewer responsive. In the long run, we opted to do most of our check driving in Auto. 

Audi executives uniformly stated that whereas the This autumn could also be a battery-electric automotive, its clients count on an analogous driving expertise and controls that mimic these of a gasoline or diesel automotive. Drivers who depart the This autumn in the usual “D” drive setting can use left and proper paddles to extend or lower regeneration by three settings, with 0 being the default and three the strongest. The “B” mode successfully locks the automotive within the highest 3 setting, considerably boosting regeneration right down to about 3 mph. 

One-pedal: ‘not our philosophy’

However there’s no one-pedal driving mode and—like its VW Group sibling Porsche—Audi has no intention of offering one. 

“That’s not our philosophy,” stated Anthony Garbis, Audi’s senior supervisor of product planning, who pushed again in opposition to the concept one-pedal driving was a profit, suggesting it ran the chance of creating passengers nauseous when utilized by an inexperienced driver. (There’s additionally no entrance trunk.)

On the street, we discovered the steering predictable, with ratios that diverse from the middle to probably the most excessive turns, and energy help that diverse with velocity (extra at low speeds for parking, much less at freeway speeds to maintain the automotive secure). Dealing with and roadholding had been enough however appeared barely numb, maybe reflecting that with curb weights of 4,650 to 4,900 kilos, no This autumn is especially gentle. The turning circle of 37.7 toes (AWD) is about common for a compact crossover. 

Even given its hefty 82-kwh battery, the efficiency of our This autumn Sportback 50 E-Tron check automotive was enough however hardly blazing. Requested about the opportunity of a punchier This autumn, Garbis smiled and stated, “There’s at all times room for extra energy.” We look ahead to future higher-performance fashions, maybe a This autumn E-Tron RS?

Roomy cabin

Visually and dimensionally, the This autumn E-Trons are compact crossovers. However benefiting from the EV skateboard structure, with the wheels pushed out to the corners of the automotive and really brief overhangs, the cabin presents a stunning quantity of room. Audi stated the gap from the pedals to the rear seat again is sort of as massive as that of the a lot bigger Q7 SUV.

Certainly, two 6-foot reporters had been in a position to sit behind one another, and drivers who pull their seats ahead create a remarkably massive opening for rear passengers. Whereas it’s a five-passenger car, we’d notice that the majority passengers who experience within the heart of the 40-20-40 break up rear seat will probably be rubbing shoulders with their seatmates. 

For drivers and entrance passengers, the haptic switches and total structure takes a little bit of studying. All of it works wonderful when you perceive the completely different features, however greater than as soon as we modified one thing we didn’t intend to by unintentionally brushing a floor.

The experience is easy and Audi has carried out a outstanding job of quieting the cabin, even for an EV. Tire noise from the 19- or 20-inch wheels is fortunately low, and whine from the motors or energy electronics is basically suppressed. At velocity, the loudest noise was wind whistling over the door mirrors.

Cargo volumes with the rear seat up are 24.8 cubic toes for the This autumn E-Tron and 26.1 cu ft for the This autumn Sportback. With the rear seat folded, the SUV is available in at 53.1 cu ft vs 54.4 for the Sportback. Whereas it’s counterintuitive that the Sportback, with its steeply raked tailgate, would provide extra cargo area, Garbis defined that the tailgate of the Sportback is bowed out barely on the rear, and its interior molding is hollowed out. Underneath EPA check requirements, cargo isn’t stacked to the roof, in order that sloping roofline doesn’t matter. However, he added, if it is advisable carry a big, sq. equipment field, get the usual This autumn E-Tron fairly than the Sportback.

It’s additionally price noting the load bay flooring can sit at two completely different ranges, or be folded in half and slotted at an angle to supply a barrier that divides the load bay—and probably retains your groceries or different items from sliding all around the full cargo compartment.

Array of fashions and choices

Whereas the This autumn E-Tron commonplace SUV may be ordered with the 40 (rear-wheel drive) or 50 (AWD) powertrains, the This autumn Sportback E-Tron is just provided in Quattro kind. Together with the necessary supply charge of $1,195, these three fashions begin at roughly $50,000, $55,000, and $58,000 respectively. The usual trim degree known as Premium,

The Premium Plus degree provides adaptive cruise management with lane steerage, plus different digital driver security programs; a Sonos premium audio system with 10 audio system; traffic-sign recognition; and varied different options. On AWD fashions, a high degree of Status ($8,100) provides matrix-design LED headlights; programmable entrance and rear gentle patterns; augmented actuality on a head-up show; and a headlamp-washing system. 

Neither the Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration (NHTSA) nor the Insurance coverage Institute for Freeway Security (IIHS) has rated the This autumn E-Trons for security as but. However Audi stated it expects the This autumn to earn a 5-star score from NHTSA and be designated a High Security Choose by IIHS. 

120- and 240-volt charging twine

With EPA effectivity scores of 97 to 112 MPGe, the This autumn E-Tron lineup is just common in utilizing its power parsimoniously. Testing the drive modes by a mixture of climbing and descending, plus suburban visitors amongst malls and gated communities, we logged 2.9 miles per kwh over our 90 miles of driving.

A conveyable charging twine with swappable pigtails for 120-volt and 240-volt plugs is supplied with each automotive, and may cost at as much as 9.6 kilowatts on the upper energy. Audi presents a storage wallbox charging station able to charging at as much as 11.5 kw. Underneath optimum circumstances, the 150-kw CCS fast-charging system can recharge the battery from 5 to 80 p.c capability in as little as 36 minutes.

Each This autumn E-Tron purchaser receives 250 kilowatt-hours of free charging at Electrify America DC fast-charging websites throughout the USA. Audi can also be working with QMerit to supply clients with assessments of what it might take to put in a charging station at their explicit residence.

NOTE: Whereas our check automotive was a 2022 mannequin, the specs, scores, and costs on this assessment apply to 2023 fashions of the Audi This autumn E-Tron lineup. There are not any mechanical variations between the 2 years, and solely a small variety of gear modifications—which have been mirrored within the descriptions above.

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Audi supplied lodging and meals to allow Inexperienced Automotive Studies to deliver you this first-person drive report.