Audi
The arrival of the Q6 e-tron marks a big milestone on the electrical journey that Audi and its company siblings started within the wake of dieselgate, practically a decade in the past. Now, after creating electrical automobiles primarily based by itself gas-powered fashions, a less expensive VW platform, and a tweaked Taycan, the model has led the event of a brand new platform only for electrical automobiles, one that comes with classes realized from these earlier EVs.
We have adopted the event of that Premium Platform Electrical structure and the Q6 e-tron for a while. Now, we have lastly been behind the wheel.
Audi made its identify with “quattro” all-wheel drive powertrains, and each variations of Q6 e-tron to be provided initially will use twin-motor, all-wheel drive powertrains—an asynchronous motor driving the entrance wheels and a everlasting magnet synchronous motor on the rear. Each variations will use the identical capability 100 kWh (94.4 kWh web) battery pack, which operates at 800 V and DC fast-charges from 10–80 % in 21 minutes.
The usual Q6 e-tron quattro has a nominal output of 422 hp (315 kW) and is able to as much as 456 hp (340 kW) when utilizing launch management, which boosts this midsize electrical SUV down the drag strip with sufficient vigor to hit 60 mph in 4.9 seconds (0–100 km/h in 5.1 seconds). Do not drive like that, and about 307 miles (495 km) of vary needs to be attainable on a single cost, Audi says.
Audi
The SQ6 e-tron is the marginally spicy model, with an output of 483 hp (360 kW), peaking at 509 hp (380 kW) for temporary bursts. This drops the launch management 0–60 time to 4.1 seconds (4.3 seconds to 100 km/h) and raises the highest velocity from 130 mph (210 km/h) to 143 mph (230 km/h), a incontrovertible fact that shall be purely tutorial to anybody outdoors of Germany, and most of the people there, too. With bigger wheels and extra fast acceleration, the SQ6 e-tron’s vary drops to 276 miles (444 km) on a single cost.
Audi succeeded to find a principally alpine set of roads for us to check its latest EV. It in all probability hadn’t counted on such heavy rain, which, it seems, doesn’t simply keep on the plain. The moderately depressing circumstances proved extra intimidating to people than the Q6 or SQ6.
Through the years, Audi has earned a fame for organising the dealing with of its vehicles in a selected method, even when utilizing a shared platform. Except for its vehicles that put on the RS badge, which means a bias towards secure and predictable moderately than something too thrilling. The excellent news is that an RS model of the Q6 is within the pipeline, and Sportback variants are coming, too, in addition to a attainable single-motor powertrain.
Driving impressions
Certainly, neither the Q6 nor SQ6 e-trons feels very like the new Porsche Macan from behind the wheel. As an alternative, they each really feel like Audis from the motive force’s seat, though the steering really feel was sufficiently constructive for me to make an observation of it.
There is a good one-pedal driving mode, engaged by transferring the drive selector from D to B, which can regenerate as much as 220 kW beneath deceleration. Whether or not you are on this mode otherwise you press the brake pedal, the primary 0.25 G of deceleration will use the electrical motors to regen, with the automobile mixing within the friction brakes when stability or better deceleration is required.
Whereas our check SQ6 was consultant of the vehicles that may arrive within the US on the finish of this yr, the Q6 e-tron we drove was an EU-spec mannequin, down about 40 hp (30 kW) on the usual mannequin we’ll be provided. Regardless of that, the less-powerful automobile by no means felt notably underpowered, even with a curb weight in extra of 5,200 lbs (2,360 kg). In effectivity mode, the Q6 e-tron will virtually solely ever use the rear motor, and even on this mode there was greater than sufficient quick torque to make sure this electrical Audi can preserve tempo.
-
To any extent further, odd-numbered Audis can have inside combustion engines and even-numbered Audis can have electrical powertrains.
Audi -
The Q6 e-tron is 187.8 inches (4,770 mm) lengthy, 66.6 inches (1,692 mm) tall, and 76.3 inches (1,938 mm) huge.
Audi -
The Q6 e-tron has a 113.7-inch (2,889 mm) wheelbase.
Audi -
It is not precisely boring to drive, nevertheless it’s not as enjoyable as a Polestar 4.
Audi
Even with its extra prodigious output, the SQ6 e-tron was a straightforward quick automobile to drive slowly. Whoever calibrated the one-pedal throttle map did a very good job right here, making it simple so as to add or subtract a mile an hour right here or there with a flex of your ankle.
For freeway driving, it is usually extra environment friendly to coast between bursts of energy—you do not have to regenerate that which you do not deploy, say the engineers—and the SQ6 (and Q6) glides practically effortlessly with the drive selector in D if there’s any kind of downhill gradient. No matter whether or not you are cruising on a freeway or negotiating visitors on the town, the driving expertise is a extra polished one than the Q8 e-tron, tailored as it’s from an inside combustion mannequin, or the This fall e-tron, which makes use of the cheaper VW-led MEB platform as an alternative.
Along with extra energy and bigger wheels, the SQ6 e-tron options new tuning for the adaptive air springs, which oddly appeared extra comfy for passengers when set to Dynamic moderately than Consolation, maybe as a result of the previous setting was suppressing physique roll. A few of that habits shall be because of the area controllers which have changed dozens of black bins, consolidating their features in a handful of {powerful} automotive computer systems.
Tied collectively by Ethernet and overseen by a spine pc, one area controller handles automobile dynamics, one other the motive force help techniques, a 3rd the local weather management, lighting, and comfort features, with a fourth pc answerable for infotainment.
