REPORT: Audi e-tron is a go, should be available in 2-3 years
Audi e-tron concept -- Click above for high-res image gallery
Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen – the very guy who got into so much trouble last month when he criticized the Chevy Volt and other electric cars – has said that Audi will be bringing the fairly insane (3,319.03 lb-ft of torque!) e-tron concept to market. The e-tron, based on the Audi R8, should be available in the U.S. in two to three years, de Nysschen told Automotive News. Running examples should be on the roads sometime in the next two years.
The e-tron seats two and gets up to 62 mph in 4.8 seconds from its 313 hp and four electric motors. The 53kWh li-ion battery pack (42.4 kWh of which is usable) gives the e-tron a range of just over 150 miles using the EU combined driving cycle.
Gallery: Audi e-tron concept
[Source: AutoWeek]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ghen 1:16PM (10/05/2009)
availalbe
I lol'd
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Sebastian 4:07PM (10/05/2009)
grrr. we need a spell-checker in the headline field, apparently :)
Laurens 1:27PM (10/05/2009)
For rich green poster boys...
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Serge 1:50PM (10/05/2009)
I'm very confused about this whole idiot thing ...
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nrb 2:03PM (10/05/2009)
I think he meant there weren't enough idiots to buy both the Volt AND the E-tron. :)
matte 2:15PM (10/05/2009)
... or that there is enough people to buy a few sport cars and not enough to buy a standard car prized like a sportscar but ment to be sold in the hundreds of thousands?
Boyprodigy1 1:50PM (10/05/2009)
Great... Now i just need to make a couple billion dollars and rename myself tony stark...
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Woodenbee 2:33PM (10/05/2009)
Yet another example of a clueless, good ol' boy, conservative, meat puppet trashing change in complete opposition to reality and the best interests of his own company and the planet, as usual, when will they stop hiring these clueless old farts!!! you know if I ever start a company, the less management experience somebody has the more likely I will be to hire them, management experience is just a pseudonym for out of touch, lazy, overpaid dumbass. How more idiotic could this guy be?
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Carney 2:35PM (10/05/2009)
"The e-tron seats two and gets up to 62 mph in 4.8 seconds from its 313 hp and four electric motors. The 53kWh li-ion battery pack (42.4 kWh of which is usable) gives the e-tron a range of just over 150 miles using the EU combined driving cycle."
Doesn't the Tesla Roadster do 0-60 in less than 4 seconds and have an over 200 mile range?
I can understand the e-tron selling if it were significantly cheaper, but if it's supposed to be a wildly overpowered expensive "supercar" why would anyone buy it instead of a Roadster?
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Tohe 2:46PM (10/05/2009)
This is a concept, a production vehicle will be likely revised. The Tesla Roadster is impressive in its own right, but the E-Tron will expand on Audi's technologies like "quatro", superior cabin design, good looks, good driving dynamics (a possible mid engine/battery configuration like the r8). In short it is too early to judge the E-Tron. I look forward to a review of the production model 2 years down the road.
Boyprodigy1 2:57PM (10/05/2009)
Yeah but it couldn't tow a yacht down the highway with its 3000lbft of torque...
jake 3:02PM (10/05/2009)
Well, the Roadster is more cramped (and lighter, which explains why it is quicker) and this looks like it should have the comfort of the R8. It might still have a market.
It think the in-wheel motors might have to do with the performance too. So far even with more horse power and torque, most of the cars with in-wheel motors don't have very good performance (it might have to do with the lower max rpms, which probably forces them to use higher gearing in the motor, decreasing low end acceleration).
Chris M 10:06PM (10/05/2009)
Yep, its a case of the Audi being roomier, bigger, and heavier, compared to the Roadster. More weight means slower acceleration, and more aerodynamic drag means a shorter driving range.
Still, there will be a market for a roomier EV sportscar, especially if it is less expensive.
Tohe 2:36PM (10/05/2009)
Ich will es in blau, bitte.
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