Written By: Jeremy Burnich

Audi’s e-Tron is the perfect vehicle for Uber/Lyft Lux drivers to shuttle around elite clientele to posh events. It’s also great for monied people who wish to drive themselves but don't want to flaunt their wealth. The e-Tron doesn’t say “look at me” like the scrappy i3 or the utter ridiculousness of the Model X — though I have to give Tesla credit for the originality of turning transport into a Japanese Pachinko Parlor.

The Audi is a confident and understated entry into the luxury SUV world. It has a lot to prove because it’s a competitive space. The main trick up its sleeve is, however its electric powertrain.

The e-Tron stands Gatsby-like, observing from a balcony at the chaos below created to prove his worth to Daisy Buchanan.  I hope this vehicle fares better than that old sport Jay. And I hope we the the driving public are better than Daisy.

That’ll be the extent of my use of flowery language and literary references to describe this car. Now on to the actual review. 

Initial Impressions of the e-Tron

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I drove the e-Tron SUV for about 30 minutes on mixed suburban/backcountry roads with a quick hop on a typical stretch of the interstate. Because of the limited time I spent with the vehicle I cannot give you a deep or detailed overview but I can give you my initial impressions.

It’s an $85k electric SUV with exquisite build quality - to be expected at this price range. I believe it is a solid first entry into the nascent US EV market.  I am a member of several EV enthusiast groups and I have noticed two things bandied about by numerous members: the massive weight of the vehicle - almost 6,000 pounds - and the relative inefficiency of the electric drivetrain in terms of miles per/kWh. I am not going to argue the merits of those complaints because I think they are immaterial.

This is not a vehicle for EV enthusiasts nor is it meant to win over converts to the EV cause. Die hard Teslarati won’t be buying this SUV but people who happen to be in the market for $70k to $90k SUV’s should take a look at the e-Tron.

This particular luxury SUV just happens to be electric.

The Segment

There’s obviously a market for this type of vehicle; well heeled buyers with a yen for an SUV and Jason Statham types who transport people while being attacked - i.e. Uber/Lyft drivers and chauffeurs. Look around and you’ll see Mercedes G Wagons, Porsche Cayenne Turbos, Range Rovers, a BMW X5 M, or a Maserati Levante out on the road.  There are several domestic brands that fly under the radar in the “c'est très cher” department as well. Cadillac has a six figure Escalade - the ESV Platinum - and Lincoln has a Black Label Navigator nipping at it’s heels for $98k. Not to mention the Jeep Cherokee Trackhawk ($87k), Toyota Land Cruiser ($85k), and the Ford Expedition Platinum Max ($78k). And let’s not forget to mention Tesla’s Model X starting at $82k and topping out at $140k. So the sticker price of the e-Tron isn't out of the ordinary.

I’d say the e-Tron is competitive in this segment and it just happens to be electric. In fact, it being an EV is one of the things that sort of sets it apart from the competition. I am firmly in the EV camp and overall think they make for a superior driving experience. Not having to go to a filling station is nice. Gas stations are dirty, smelly, and pretty gross.  Trust me, after a long hiatus of not having to visit one you’ll feel the same way. 

Would you rather have a phone that stayed powered longer but you'd have bring it to a filling station whenever it was running low or do you think charging it at home with a shorter talk time is a good compromise? I think you’ll find the convenience of plugging your car in at home and have it fully “fueled” every day when you start it in the morning outweighs having slightly shorter long-range use - unless you go on a an extended road trip every single day.

Besides convenience and cleanliness the e-Tron won’t have the same fuel costs - not insubstantial for these yacht-like vehicles -  though potential customers in this segment might not actually feel pain at the pump; self-employed drivers might appreciate the cost savings.

It also has a longer interval between scheduled service, and electric vehicles are typically very reliable.  Tires will probably be expensive since it’s so heavy and so addictively fun to leap off the line (more on that later) but I doubt people unaffected by the sticker price would be affected by the cost of new rubber.  SUV’s go through tires quicker than normal passenger vehicles anyway. It is eligible for the federal EV tax credit so that will defray the cost of a set of tires and the installation of a home charger.

None of the other vehicles in this segment except the Tesla and Jaguar’s I-Pace can make those claims.  And the Tesla is more expensive, doesn’t have Audi’s build quality, and dealer support network - through it does have access to the best charging network hands down.  The Jaguar is nice - more than nice actually - but smaller than the e-Tron with less trunk space and no real charging network. 

Note: not having access to a charging network is NOT a deal breaker. Most of your charging will be done at home.  The only reason for you needing a good charging network is if you want are going on a road trip and that can be done in an EV using the current charging infrastructure.  Tesla’s network is the best but Audi did announce a partnership with Electrify America for e-Tron access to their fast-charging stations and supposedly they will support 150 kW DC fast charging which is currently the fastest standard out there - my understanding is that it is even quicker than Tesla’s supercharger.

In short anyone buying this vehicle - or any electric vehicle for that matter - who has a home charger will not have to worry about “range anxiety” the same way they don’t worry about “thirst anxiety” if they run out of bottled water; they have a tap at home.

But what about the vehicle itself?  

I’m familiar with Audi vehicles. I’ve owned an A3 hatchback - great little car - and my parents have gone through A4’s and Q5’s and currently drive a Q7 and an A8L. Whenever I visit them in Florida I drive their cars as much as I can. A. Because I love driving new cars and B. Their cars are typically better than mine - though I still prefer my little i3.  As to how the e-Tron compared to their current  vehicles, they were both curious.

Behind the wheel and during operation, the e-Tron drives like an Audi. It’s solid, refined, and powerful without being over the top. Of all the EV’s I’ve driven, the e-Tron drives the most like a normal vehicle.  There no 1-pedal driving this EV, at least not with how it was set up while I was using it. 

I looked through the system with Marc Lariviere from Audi of Washington PA to see if we could change the brake settings but we couldn’t find anything. That means the vehicle coasts more like an ICE car than an EV.  That’s probably a selling point for most people.  I happen to prefer very strong brake regen. I find it very motorcycle-like to be able to feather the pedal to achieve greater control over the speed of the vehicle.  

UPDATE: A user on reddit brought it to my attention that you can increase the brake regeneration by setting the e-Tron to manual mode so the paddles on the the steering wheel can be used sort of like hand brakes. The Chevy Bolt has similar functionality. Not one pedal driving but at least it's something.

The acceleration - especially in sport or dynamic mode - is instantaneous and addictive. Getting the e-Tron up to highway speed on an entrance ramp was a great test. I announced the top speed we had reached when we merged onto the interstate -  I’m not going to say what that number was but it raised eyebrows in a good way - and surprised everyone because the smoothness of the ride and almost zero road & engine noise masked the forward motion.

In short, the ride quality is phenomenal.

Same for driving on normal roads at normal speeds.  The suspension on the e-Tron does not let Western Pennsylvania pothole ridden roads intrude into the passenger compartment. I did not have a chance to fully test the e-Tron’s stopping performance under extended or under emergency braking. I suspect the brakes in such situations to be excellent because in an EV the electric motor acts as negative torque to further slow down the vehicle.

All Wheel Drive

The AWD is great.  At no time did I feel like I was going to lose grip even under hard acceleration into a tight turn.  It was also sure footed in gravel.  I don’t think any passengers noticed when we went over some loose dirt under acceleration. The e-Tron also has one of the most under appreciated features that an SUV can have when there’s snow and slush on the ground — hill descent.

Push the hill descent button and you can go down a steep grade with very poor surface conditions confidently knowing you will not lose traction or control of your vehicle. Basically the vehicle travels at walking speed down a snow covered hill while other cars spin and slip all over the place. It’s little used but a lifesaver when you need to get someplace in poor winter conditions.

It has five driving modes - eco, comfort, sport, dynamic and off road. Dynamic is the most fun, but not as ludicrous as the eponymously named mode Tesla has in their vehicles. It has more than enough power for every day driving and perhaps even light track day jaunts (e-Tron day at Pitt Race anyone?).

The off-road mode also has ride height adjustment so if you want to go rock crawling before brunch feel free to give it a go. I asked if Marc if Washington Audi had a preferred off road driving course but he demurred. I’d be happy to take the e-Tron for some mudding in West Virginia - it should be a hit over there since it runs on coal.

The exterior and interior:

I haven’t talked about the exterior of the e-Tron.  You spend most of your time inside a car so the interior is probably more important, but the outside is what you see first and is what people get hung up on most.  People say they want to be individuals but then they want everything to look the same. Well, the conformists won out and the e-Tron looks like your typical Audi SUV.  If you like how the Q5 or the Q7 looks the e-Tron won’t offend your sensibilities.  The Galaxy Blue paint on the one I drove was a particular nice shade of deep ocean blue.   I would like to see one in the slightly more electric Antigua Blue but I suspect most people will get it in gray/black/or white since that’s the color palate most people seem to gravitate towards in the SUV world.

Inside you’ll be presented with a well appointed and tasteful interior with matte walnut accents, brushed metal,  and quality plastics.  The okapi brown leather clad seats in the prestige model I drove felt familiar, like a favorite baseball glove, somehow new but supple and broken in; just right. The seats were heated, ventilated, and (note to Robert Kraft) have the great built in massagers from the flagship A8. 

The binnacle and all controls have gone full glass cockpit; all instrument displays are electronic screens, rather than a mix of screens and traditional analog dials and gauges. I found it a visually noisy environment but one of the benefits of this system is that it can be configured to your personal preference to display information most pertinent to you. The e-Tron I tested had a heads up display which operated very nicely in different daylight conditions. I expect it to look flawless at night.  I do find it ridiculous that the HUD isn’t standard in both trim packages.

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From past Audi MMI experience I assume controlling the various infotainment functions is relatively straightforward but I didn’t have enough time to drill through the functionality to determine the UI’s ease of use.  Everything is controlled via the high resolution screens - radio, climate, etc. - so it had better be pretty straightforward. Tesla gets away with using a screen as a sole interface because of their superior self driving technology. It allows the driver to hand control over to the car when they need to fumble with the radio and climate controls.  I did not test Audi’s self driving technology and only operated the screen when at a full stop either when parked or at a red light.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are available, as is onboard voice control. But again I didn’t have time to test those systems.  I asked if the voice command went over the internet which would mean it would improve over time via machine learning but was told that commands did not leave the car.

I suppose that is good for safety and privacy reasons.  You wouldn’t want someone to remotely take command of your car without your knowledge.   Though the Audi website does say Amazon Alexa is integrated into the vehicle so while certain car functions may be limited, the integration of the e-Tron with the internet of things is there - for good and bad. I guess it would be neat to tell your car to turn the lights on in your house as you approached the garage. It wouldn’t be good if your e-Tron turned into HAL9000 and decided it didn’t like the bargain bin Siemens charging station you got at Costco and decided to order a fancy Alexa enabled Charge Point with your Amazon account. 

The Trunk

The trunk of the e-Tron is large and includes room under the floor for storage.  What caught my attention was the neat collapsable spare tire. It is compact when not in use but inflates like an accordion to its full size should you need it. Here’s a explanatory video:

A neat way to save space but it is a compromise since it's not great for an extended period. Still, probably better than being forever shod in run-flats like a BMW.

Charging the e-Tron

The charging door is on the drivers side - though there’s a dummy door on the passenger side.  It would have been nice if either side had a charging port like the old Jaguar XJ’s with filler caps on both sides. The door is pretty neat and is actuated with a  button. 

I don’t know how that design will work in the winter if you have your car plugged outside in snowy weather. If ice and slush get in the mechanism it might be a pain to clear out and/or close properly. I have experienced these issues with my i3’s charging port in the winter and ended up making a cover.

Speaking of winter, I would like to know what the actual cold weather range of the e-Tron is. People need to be made aware that cold weather has an effect on battery range.  On a nice spring day with non-spirited driving your e-Tron will probably have that 204 mile range quoted by Audi. But on a very cold winter day and with some very spirited driving I’m thinking that maximum range would be nearer to 140 - 160. That is just a guess, it would take an extended test to confirm my suspicions. 

Again, it probably won’t matter 99% of the time because you’ll be charging at home or be close to a public charger should you need a quick boost. But, customers would probably like to know that information.

In Closing

If you are in the Pittsburgh area and are in the market for a high end luxury SUV, I encourage you to contact Washington Audi to arrange a test drive of the e-Tron.  Sherri McKillop is their internet coordinator and she was extremely diligent in making sure I got to be one of the first people to see an e-Tron in the area.  It was fun to get a phone call from her letting me know the vehicle’s location and estimated time of arrival while it was being transported. 

If you are not in the Pittsburgh area I would still encourage you to reach out to your local Audi retailer and take one for a test drive.

The e-Tron is Audi’s vision of the future and EV’s will make up a large part of that future. Even if you don’t end up driving an e-Tron home, they have plenty of other engaging vehicles that might pique your interest - the TT is a masterpiece and won’t be available for much longer so you might want to drive away with one of those while you can.

The 2019 Audi e-Tron as tested

Audi of Washington, Pennsylvania

https://www.audiwashington.com/

453 Racetrack Rd, Washington, PA 15301

Sales: 866-703-1602