We drove the Audi RS e-tron GT for an hour; here’s what we learned
The Audi RS e-tron GT (right) and the Audi e-tron GT (left). [credit: Jonathan Gitlin ]
In February, Audi took the wraps off its next electric vehicle. It's called the e-tron GT, and unlike the rest of Audi's EV offerings, this one isn't an SUV or crossover. It's a four-door sports car that shares a platform with the very impressive Porsche Taycan. We're expecting a proper drive later this summer once the e-tron GT is on sale, but on Tuesday, Audi let Ars spend an hour behind the wheel of a preproduction version on the roads of northern Virginia.
The car is available in two flavors: the $99,900 e-tron GT or the $139,900 RS e-tron GT, and it's the latter that we got to drive. It's a twin-motor design, combining a 235 hp (175 kW) motor at the front axle and a 450 hp (335 kW) motor at the rear, with a combined output of 590 hp (440 kW) and 612 lb-ft (830Nm). The motors are fed by a 93.4 kWh battery pack (~85 kWh usable capacity). The battery's 800 V electrical architecture allows it to fast charge at up to 270 kW-which means going from 5 to 80 percent in 22.5 minutes-and it can regenerate up to 265 kW of energy under braking.
The Audi might be a little cheaper and a little less powerful than the Taycan, but it's a better-looking car, even in relatively anonymous metallic gray paint. Its cabin is more conventional than the Porsche, with just two screens-one for the main instrument display and one for the infotainment system-and plenty of physical buttons for things like the climate controls. (The audio controls on the center console are like the touch-sensitive dial on the front of an iPod, which is neat.)
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