e-Tron GT revealed, RS e-Tron GT most powerful Audi ever
After all the tempting teasers and accidental leaks, Audi has at last officially unveiled the e-Tron GT. And the sportier RS version of the EV will be, as expected, the most powerful car ever from Audi’s high-performance division.
The Audi e-Tron GT is twin-under-the-skin to the awesome Porsche Taycan. Both the Porsche and Audi brands are part of the Volkswagen Group, and both cars are built on the same technical foundation.
Named MSB, this platform is purpose designed to be the basis of big, heavy and very fast EVs.
With 475kW available in Boost mode, max power of the RS e-Tron GT is higher than any other model to ever wear the red and rhomboid-shaped RS badge that represents the pinnacle of Audi performance.
Even so, the power, acceleration and speed of the Audi will not match the top model in Porsche’s Taycan line-up, the Turbo S.
The 475kW/830Nm (or 440kW/830Nm when not using Boost mode) blasts the RS e-Tron GT to 100km/h in 3.3 seconds on the way to a top speed of 250km/h.
The regular e-Tron GT Quattro – as it’s officially referred to – makes 350kW and 640Nm in regular mode or 440kW/640Nm in Boost mode. It reaches 100km/h in 4.1 seconds and has a top speed of 245km/h.
Each has brakes with tungsten-carbide coatings that better resist punishment in hard driving. Optional carbon-ceramic brakes are available.
Various wheels are available in 19, 20 and 21-inch designs.
The e-Tron Quattro rides on standard steel sprung suspension but can be optioned with the three-chamber air suspension system that is standard on the RS e-Tron GT. That air suspension system also brings a rear differential lock for better grip out of corners.
All-wheel steering is optional.
The closest match for the RS e-Tron GT is the Taycan Turbo, one rung below the Turbo S – allowing the famed Porsche badge to hold the EV high ground, at least for now – although the Audi has fractionally less power and torque.
But Audi aims to undercut Porsche’s prices. When it goes on sale in European markets later this month, The RS e-Tron GT will cost the equivalent of $30,000 less than the Taycan Turbo.
Also in February, Audi will launch the e-Tron GT quattro. In terms of power and performance this model is an exact match for the Taycan 4S. And again the Audi undercuts its Porsche equivalent, this time by almost $20,000.
The e-Tron GT is expected to go on sale in Australia early in the second half of 2021, and the signs from Europe are that the Audi EV will be significantly less costly than the Taycan, which is priced between $190,400 and $338,500 before on-road costs.
Later, Audi will add a third model to its e-tron GT range. Expect it to have a single electric motor, like the forthcoming base-grade Porsche Taycan, not the twin-motor set-up of the RS and e-Tron GT quattro models.
In a bunch of key respects, the Audi does match key tech specs of the Porsche. The e-Tron GT Quattro and RS e-Tron GT each get a 93kWh battery pack (with a usable capacity of 85kWh). The batteries are also 800-volt, and able to accept super-fast DC charging at 270kW.
As with the regular Audi e-Tron SUV there is some sophisticated pre-conditioning technology that Audi says allows for faster charging over the whole time of the charge. A five-minute charge can add about 100km of range.
The total WLTP range of the e-Tron GT is up to 487km.
The big difference between the e-Tron GT and Taycan is – no surprise – design. The Audi’s exterior is more melodramatic, with extravagant bulges above its wheel arches. The interior, too, features more zing and bling than seen in the plain and restrained cabin of the Porsche.
