Audi E-Tron Review: This Electric Luxury SUV is Solid, But Has One Key Flaw

Although electric vehicles have twice won our coveted Car of the Year award, electric SUVs continue to come tantalizingly close while falling just short. And whereas the Audi E-Tron is beautifully rendered and impressively engineered, our SUVOTY judges debated whether its technology was sufficient to award it the top prize.

To the last, every judge struggled to reconcile their fondness for the E-Tron’s style, technology, and driving experience with its one fatal flaw. Several judges fawned over its restrained yet upscale appearance, with Detroit editor Alisa Priddle describing it as “Tony Stark, but mellowed out and subdued to fit in instead of stand out.” Editor-in-chief Ed Loh fretted it might fit in a little too well, but senior production editor Zach Gale found it “one of the most attractive electric cars available for sale today,” in part because it isn’t as ubiquitous as a Tesla.

The interior received equally high praise, especially the shifter. “Applause for a new take on an age-old problem: design of the gearshift,” Priddle said. “Rest your hand on the pad and toggle forward for reverse, back for drive.” Judges were also roundly impressed by the car-of-the-future interior design and its widescreen displays for the instruments, infotainment system, and climate controls.

The way it drove is even better than the design. “The powertrain is responsive and impossibly smooth, and the E-Tron has some of the nicest steering I’ve experienced in an Audi,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said. Guest judge Johan de Nysschen concurred: “It’s evident that the Audi has been well set up to take into account the mass of the batteries. It carries a lot of momentum in the corners, but the low center of gravity assists, and ultimate grip is high.” (De Nysschen was announced as Chief Operating Officer for Volkswagen America, the parent company of Audi, shortly after SUV of the Year testing concluded.) Priddle agreed. “Acceleration is not neck-snapping,” she said, “but the weight distribution of the batteries keeps the car so planted, and it beautifully holds the line on curves.”

More than that, we were collectively won over to Audi’s approach to regenerative braking, which allows the vehicle to coast as much as possible to preserve momentum, using regenerative braking for the vast majority of stopping power and situations. The system also commandeers the forward-facing camera to apply regenerative braking as needed to maintain following distance while coasting yet minimize loss of momentum.

The weight, though, creates more work for the suspension. “The suspension reaction is a bit busy,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “It’s a little bit brittle, a bit jittery, transmitting a lot of road rash into the cabin. You definitely feel the weight of the battery pack, the tires protesting for all they’re being asked to do.”

This didn’t hurt it in the dirt. Fuel economy-optimized tires and heavy batteries were no match for direct control of each wheel with sophisticated computers. “Off-road, the E-Tron didn’t give a rat’s ass about deep sand, hill climbs, or rough terrain,” de Nysschen said. “It just did it.”

The E-Tron’s major point of contention—and the subject of great debate among the judges—is its range and efficiency.

“We went several rounds in the discussion,” Loh said. “Two key arguments: First, how can we reward this vehicle, as good as it is, if it comes to market seven years after the Model S, with 55 miles less range? Second, with the full weight and resources of one of the largest automakers in the world, how is this all we get range-wise?”

A rousing discussion ensued over consumer driving habits versus purchasing priorities, but there was no getting around the E-Tron’s relatively poor efficiency. Whether you measure it by range or energy consumption, the E-Tron carries the least energy efficiency of any electric vehicle currently on sale, and that’s difficult to reward.

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