Audi has used the Los Angeles motor show to reveal its much-teased electric four-door coupe, the e-Tron GT. Still technically labelled as a concept, it should be all-but identical to the production model planned for 2020.
Underneath the body - which looks like a pretty stunning mash-up of styling cues from the A7 coupe and the R8 supercar - there’s a 90kWh battery stack, an 800-volt ultra-fast-charging system, and a combined 590hp from two electric motors. Given that the torque from those motors can be, effectively, infinitely varied and shared between the two axles, some commentators are already calling this the ‘ultimate Quattro.’
Audi currently claims a one-charge range of 248 miles for the e-Tron GT. That's 400km, which perhaps seems a touch disappointing considering the ranges that a rival Tesla Model S can achieve, but Audi has said that the GT's power delivery is tuned towards performance and sporty responses, not range.
That performance is currently being claimed at 3.5 seconds for the 0-100km/h run (notably slower than a Tesla Model S P90D running in ‘Ludicrous Mode’) and a top speed of 240km/h.
The GT’s interior looks pretty much production-ready, and is basically a variation on the twin-screen, digital instrument layout already seen in the A6, A7, and A8. As with the current A5 Sportback, the e-Tron GT uses a four-seat layout for the cabin, but it looks as if there could be a fifth seat added for a production model if needed.
Underneath, the GT's chassis, electric motors, and batteries are basically lifted directly from Porsche's upcoming Taycan electric sports saloon. Audi and Porsche have been collaborating ever-more closely on technical matters of late, and especially on the development of electric cars.
The GT's (and Taycan's) 800-volt fast-charging system is designed to deliver long-range charging in very short bursts, but it relies on 150kW (at least) ultra-rapid charging points. The ESB has only just begun to lay out plans for a national network of such ultra-rapid chargers in Ireland, but Audi has previously said that it will itself invest in fast charging stations in Ireland, as part of its participation in the pan-European IONITY fast-charging investment programme.
Audi will launch its first all-electric car, the e-Tron SUV, on the Irish market in the new year, and deposits are already being taken.
The e-Tron SUV, though, is based on a modified Q5 chassis, so is arguably a little compromised when it comes to providing the full electric car experience. The e-Tron GT, sharing its chassis with the Porsche Taycan, has been designed only an exclusively for electric power, so is possibly a deeper look into the future of both Audi, and electric motoring in general.
