Five years ago we went to Bilbao to discover the Audi e-tron. Since then, six 100% Audi vehicles have come out, such as the e-tron GT or the Q4 e-tron. And now we return to the Biscayan capital to see the Audi Q8 e-tron, the update of the original e-tron that comes with two bodies, one conventional and one with a more dynamic line, the Audi Q8 e-tron Sportback.
For this first test we have chosen the latter, the Audi Q8 Sportback e-tron, since it represents no less than two thirds of the sales of this electric SUV. And be careful, it comes with many improvements to the one we originally met, especially of a technical nature.
This gives a lot of hope about everything that can come in the face of 2024 within the electric Audi. That will not be little. A large part of the profits achieved in these years will be directed towards launching new models, such as the Q6 e-tron or the A4 e-tron, both also with two bodies,
But first, let’s meet the Audi Q8 Sportback e-tron, a car with a starting price of €94,610 (2,500 more than the conventional body). You can find offers for the Q8 e-tron Sportback in our new cars section, published by official dealers of the brand. You can also finance the car to lower that amount.
Abroad
The car not only changes its trade name (something logical considering the growth of the e-tron range), but the brand has wanted the arsenal of technical innovations to have a reflection on the exterior.
There are news on the front. Perhaps the most novel thing is the new logo of the four rings, now in two dimensions. The grille also varies and the bumpers have a new design of the side entrances, in addition to the fact that the lower one is active, like the main grille. All for the sake of gaining greater aerodynamics and scratch km of autonomy. The new Cx of the model is 0.24 (two tenths better than before), thanks to elements such as larger front spoilers or spoilers on the underbody to redirect the airflow around the wheels.
On the side we are more aware of the length of the car. He goes to the 4915mm length, with a height not exaggerated, of 1,619. The width is 1,937 mm. And with mirrors, 2,189 mm. Our unit had virtual mirrors, which make it gain about 10 km of autonomy by improving aerodynamics.
As standard it offers 19-inch light-alloy wheels, although the unit we were able to drive had 21-inch wheels from the s-Line package.
There is little new behind it, beyond the new diffuser, some change in the area immediately above it or a new insertion in the lower area. By the way, the e-tron spelling also changes, which we see at the rear or on the B-pillar.
Inside
The space we find inside is remarkable. Obviously, in such a big car, but the wheelbase is 2,928 mm. The front seats are really wide and behind it does not penalize too much height or access. An adult will not have to turn their neck too much when entering and if they are not taller than 1.85 it fits perfectly high up.
As usual in the brand, and more in these cars of this price, the quality of the materials and adjustments is very good. The brand insists on this updating with the use of recycled materials, especially on the dashboard, made in part with plastic bottles and which the brand calls Tech Layer. Also the seats of the S-line finish that we tested can be chosen with synthetic leather and Dinamica microfiber.
And then technology. The Audi Q8 e-tron Sportback replicates the appearance of other models of the brand, with a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster behind the wheel, to which we must add the 10.1-inch MMI Touch infotainment screens and a lower than 8.6 for air conditioning. Both have haptic feedback, they respond with a movement when you touch them to avoid distractions somewhat, but they are still not as ergonomic as a conventional physical controller.
To all these screens we must add the two on the sides for the digital mirrors. They are in a lower position than the conventional ones and it takes getting used to, but at night they look good, better than a mirror, and maybe in rainy circumstances they also improve visibility. Don’t they come with five screens? Equip the Head-Up Display that our unit had. It helps a lot, especially with the navigation instructions.
By the way, important arsenal in terms of driving assistance. The Audi Q8 e-tron offers up to 40 driver assistance systems, which work thanks to five radar sensors and twelve ultrasonic sensors.
Trunk
Recycled materials have also been used in the boot compartment. It is a space of 528 liter capacity, 40 less than the SUV version. It loses something compared to the previous e-tron Sportback, which had 555.
The loading edge is quite high, at 804 mm. It gives access to a space with very regular shapes. If you need more space, you can fold down the backs of the rear seats. Divided into three parts, completing the operation you get 1,567 liters of capacity.
To this we must add a 62-liter capacity front trunk, slightly larger than before (it had 60).
Engine
In the mechanical range, the access version, the Audi Q8 50 e-tron Sportback, has an engine on the front axle and another on the rear that generate power from the 250 kW (340 hp) in boost mode, and a maximum torque of 664 Nm. That same combination of engines is the one used by the Audi Q8 55 e-tron Sportback that we tested reaches 300 kW (408 hp)with 664 Nm of maximum torque.
In the first case, the battery goes from 64 kWh of useful capacity to 89, with which the autonomy approved according to the WLTP cycle reaches 501 km in the Sportback version (155 km more than before and 14 km more than the e-tron SUV ). In the case of the unit tested, the battery has a capacity of 106 kWh (previously 86), with which it certifies 595 km of autonomy, 33% more than before.
The “magic” that Audi has achieved to achieve this greater capacity and battery has been to have better batteries, so that they occupy and weigh the same as before (which is not little). Prismatic cells are now packaged differently to take up less space, plus there’s a new chemistry with higher energy density.
The charging process has also been improved. In the basic model it goes from 120 kW to 170 kW of maximum power and in the Audi Q8 Sportback 55 e-tron from 150 to 170 kW. With the 690 volt onboard system, we could reach on a charger of that DC power in 31 minutes on the unit tested. Interesting that when we reach 80%, 100 kW remains on the power curve (it tends to drop as more is loaded).
The car has an on-board charger that admits 11 kW of alternating current (optional to equip one of 22 kW). This is interesting if you have a plug of that capacity at home, which is not usual. The brand has agreements with Iberdrola for the installation of charging points, in addition to the high-power network that it is installing in the surroundings of its dealers (there are already 48, 7% of those in Spain with more than 150 kW), in addition to the 26 charging stations of the Ionity network.
In May, a more capable version will be added to the range, the S Q8 e-tron Sportback, with three electric motors – one front and two rear – offering a total power of 370 kW (503 hp) and 973 Nm of torque. It is associated with the larger battery pack and thus achieves 483 km of autonomy. While it arrives, let’s see how the Audi Q8 Sportback 55 e-tron fares.
Behavior
Electric cars (and therefore the new Audi Q8 e-tron) are pleasant cars to drive due to their great sound insulation and how well the accelerator pedal responds. But is it possible to achieve such a high autonomy that its technical sheet indicates?
It seems to me that it is complicated. It homologates 23.9 kWh in a unit as equipped as ours and consumption did not deviate too much, since we stayed in 24.3 kWh. On the route, of about 200 km, which we carried out at a normal pace (the surroundings of Bilbao are riddled with radars) and sometimes slowly (when driving through rural areas with loose cattle that almost gave us a fright) it was propitious to achieve a smaller number. We will wait to drive it further to see if it is possible to exceed the 400 km between charges indicated by the figures achieved.
The great culprit of this consumption is undoubtedly the weight. We have an empty weight of 2,510 kg. Yes, it is a big car, but the figure is high and, obviously, it conditions its behavior on tacked roads with slow curves.
And here is the surprise. Normally, brands present their new vehicles in optimal environments so that they stand out. And Audi dared to propose a very complete route, combining highway, fast secondary roads and mountain sections with curves more suitable for a rally car than for a large and heavy SUV.
The reasons, that we could see some of the improvements. Perhaps the one that is most noticeable is the speed of the steering, much more direct (it goes from 15.8 to 14.6 gear ratio), so you go into curves with less movement of the steering wheel. The brand also talks about a 10% improvement in precision, a figure in my opinion that is quite difficult to measure or verify. But yes, we can consider that it is quite direct for the car in question.
More new stuff? Well, I was also surprised that it controlled the swaying so well for a relatively tall car. I have repeated over and over again that electric cars, having hundreds of kilos (plus 600 kg in this case) in such a low position, have great poise in fast lanes. And yes, in a mountain section that works too, helped by the air suspension with electronically controlled dampers, which in addition to being quite firm offers a lot of comfort.
Be careful, that does not mean that the Audi Q8 Sportback 55 e-tron is sporty. Because one thing is rocking and another is the inertia of carrying more than two tons in motion. And it is that, even in the sportiest and most reactive driving mode to the accelerator, I continued to perceive some inertia when braking or accelerating again at the exit of the curve. The feel of the brake, yes, I liked a lot for being an electric.
Opinion cars.com
It is undeniable that the Audi Q8 Sportback 55 e-tron improves on the previous one. It may not have released many aesthetic changes, but the changes introduced by the brand in terms of batteries are clearly perceived. In this sense, if in four years they have been able to improve their capacity so much, it gives rise to being optimistic for the future, with a new PPE platform, for example.
The power figure is adequate to move the car well and all the dynamic enhancements work. But it still has a weight that greatly conditions its capabilities on twisty roads which, we repeat, are not the environments where this car will move most often.
It is extraordinary on the highway or on a secondary road. And with the quattro all-wheel drive you will have traction on dirt or slippery tracks with suitable tires (we could not verify this).
The interior space and the quality of finishes is very good, as the brand’s models tend to have. With all these wickers you can more clearly stand up to models like the BMW iX or the Mercedes EQE SUV, in a similar price range.
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