2021 Audi e-tron 55 quattro India review, test drive

The enclosed hexagonal space up entrance mimics Audi’s conventional grille design.

Audi has adopted a standard styling method (in and out) with the e-tron, so whereas it appears to be like sharp, it doesn’t scream ‘electrical’ in its design language. This has been deliberately executed to make patrons really feel at dwelling as they transition from an inside combustion engine car to an electrical car. Grabbing the limelight upfront is an enormous, enclosed hexagonal space completed in gray that mimics a normal Audi entrance grille. The trendy headlamps and 20-inch wheels add some oomph to its design, and for India, we get a normal exterior mirror setup, reasonably than the futuristic, albeit gimmicky twin exterior digicam setup, which we skilled in its worldwide iteration.

Lurking behind the alloys are huge 18-inch discs which give spectacular stopping energy. 

Uniquely, Audi has given a charging provision on both aspect of the automotive, and what’s cool is the way in which the flap slides down electrically on the press of a button. Making a gift of its all-electric identification are the inexperienced quantity plates (mandated for EVs in India), and orange highlights on the e-tron badge and the brake calipers.

Uniquely, the e-tron will get a charging provision on each side, on the entrance fender. 

Audi e-tron 55 quattro: what’s it like inside?

Persevering with the traditional styling philosophy from the skin, step into the e-tron’s cabin and also you’ll instantly establish design traits and elements shared with different Audis, which isn’t any unhealthy factor. The sheer high quality and fit-finish on the within are top-notch, and there’s not a single low-rent space on this Audi’s cabin. The uncluttered, layered dashboard properly wraps itself across the cabin, flowing seamlessly into the door pads. Probably the most placing element is the dual display setup – one for the infotainment and the opposite for the local weather management, each of that are angled in the direction of the motive force. The screens have clear shows, in addition to an possibility for haptic suggestions (delicate vibration) when ‘pressed’. What lifts the futuristic really feel of the e-tron’s interiors is the very good digital cockpit (full-digital instrument cluster), which is without doubt one of the greatest items round in terms of show high quality and ease of use.

The design and colors are very business-like. High quality and fit-finish are top-notch.

The broad entrance seats have agency cushioning and also you don’t sink into them. The boring gray seat color could be very business-like, and brighter inserts or colored stitching would have livened up the inside. Storage and charging areas within the entrance are aplenty and there’s a intelligent recess space to wirelessly cost your smartphone when positioned perpendicularly.

Broad entrance seats do not feel very plush because of the agency cushioning. 

The rear bench is properly formed, and the backrest is about to a snug angle. The excellent news is that, regardless that the battery pack has been accommodated beneath the ground, the ground isn’t too high-set, so neither are you seated in an uncomfortably knees-up place, nor has the headroom been compromised. The seat itself is broad sufficient to accommodate three passengers abreast and the ground is nearly flat; the protruding air-con console, nevertheless, hampers knee-room for the center occupant.

The rear seats are fairly snug, as is the seating place.

At 660-litres, the e-tron’s boot is very large, and the house saver tyre is neatly tucked beneath the boot ground, the place there’s additionally a further house to retailer the charging cables. What’s extra is that, within the absence of an engine below the bonnet, the entrance has a further trunk or ‘frunk’, the place a small gentle bag or the charging cables might be stowed.

At 660-litres, the boot house on provide is spectacular.

Audi e-tron 55 quattro: what options do you get?

The e-tron’s customary function listing consists of 20-inch wheels, Matrix LED headlamps, a panoramic sunroof, Audi’s digital cockpit (fully-digital instrument cluster), twin screens – one for the infotainment and the opposite for the local weather management – each providing haptic suggestions, a four-zone local weather management, adaptive air-suspension, wi-fi charging, wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and a reverse digicam. Included as part of its in depth choices listing are the its digital Matrix LED headlamps which have a cool trick up their sleeve – along with lighting up the highway very properly, these additionally carry out a theatrical mild present everytime you lock or unlock the car. The choices listing additionally options an on-board air air purifier, fragrance, ambient lighting with 30 color choices, a 16-speaker 705W Bang and Olufsen premium sound system, head-up show, soft-closing doorways after which some extra. Options reminiscent of ventilated seats, wi-fi telephone connectivity and linked automotive tech, to call a couple of, are lacking altogether, the panoramic sunroof doesn’t prolong all the way in which behind, and customers who search deeper and geeky EV-related data on the screens will probably be left a bit short-changed with the oversimplified shows on provide.

Its panoramic sunroof is not fairly as massive as a few of its rivals.

Audi e-tron 55 quattro: what’s it prefer to drive?

The e-tron 55 attracts energy from a 95kWh battery pack, which provides power to 2 motors, one on every axle. In its sportiest setting, the e-tron generates 408hp/664Nm, 184hp on the entrance axle and 224hp on the rear. However in different modes, the e-tron makes 360hp/561Nm (170hp within the entrance and 190hp on the rear).

Proper off the bat, you’ll be impressed by how gently the electrical motors reply to the flex of your proper foot, and also you’ll even forgive Audi for not providing a normal creep operate. Press down a bit extra and also you’ll expertise what instantaneous EV torque means. A mere flex of your proper foot is sufficient to scoot previous slow-moving site visitors with the kind of gusto you’d least count on from a 2.6 tonne SUV. Acceleration is robust and linear, and the convenience with which the e-tron gathers pace quietly and seamlessly is nearly a non-event. Curiously, the e-tron emits a whirring-like sound to alert pedestrians and different highway customers of its presence, when on the transfer, by means of exterior audio system.

Regardless of tipping the scales at 2.6 tonnes, it delivers sturdy efficiency.

Swap from D to S and this Audi unleashes the extra 48hp/103Nm in overboost mode, below laborious acceleration. When pushed flat-out, it gallops from 0-100kph in a blisteringly fast 5.58sec, and along with your foot pinned to the ground, it’ll max out at 207kph.

The e-tron has two settings for power regeneration – guide and auto. What’s spectacular is how intuitive the auto mode is once you lift-off. Not solely does the deceleration really feel as pure as in an ICE car, it cleverly permits the automotive to coast to maximise the space coated, or it recuperates cost and decelerates, all based mostly on the driving type and battery state. What’s extra is that, if you must shed pace, you’ll be able to tug on the left paddle, which will increase the depth of regeneration and mimics engine braking in a means that slows the automotive down.

You may manually flip regeneration off or set it to 2 preset ranges. Curiously, more often than not, even once you do use the brake pedal, the wheel brakes are solely known as to obligation throughout fast deceleration, above 0.3g power.

Air-spring in any respect 4 corners ensures a snug and well-cushioned trip. 

Using on air springs in any respect 4 corners, the e-tron soaks up highway shocks very competently, and even sharper edges aren’t fairly as jarring as you’d have imagined in a automotive with quick sidewalls and sitting on 20-inch wheels The drive modes alter the trip’s softness, and in Consolation and Effectivity mode, it will get considerably softer, leading to some float at speeds. The ‘Auto’ mode, nevertheless, balances the suspension’s behaviour extraordinarily properly, with managed physique actions and no undue pitching or bobbing.

Because the e-tron’s 700kg battery pack is tucked beneath the cabin ground, its weight is concentrated decrease down, leading to a low centre of gravity. That, plus a balanced 50:50 weight distribution at every axle and Audi’s ‘quattro’ system, makes this e-tron really feel very nimble from behind the wheel, providing immense ranges of grip. Its inert steering, nevertheless, takes away from the ‘linked’ really feel, however inside city confines, homeowners will admire its lightness, contributing to an easy-going drive expertise.

The e-tron holds its personal in terms of panic braking efficiency. Outfitted with 18-inch disc brakes (entrance and rear), the e-tron sheds pace from 80-0kph, in merely 24.09m, which is outstanding for this 2.6-tonne behemoth.

Audi e-tron 55 quattro: vary and charging

In our customary assessments, the e-tron 55 achieved 350km on a full cost within the metropolis cycle, and 382km out on the freeway. In case you are operating actually low on cost, there’s a ‘vary mode’ possibility that switches the local weather management off, reduces energy consumption, and limits the max pace to 90kph, which may present a further 40-60km of driving vary.

We examined Audi’s 11kW AC wall field charger too, which replenished 90 p.c of the e-tron’s battery (from 10-100%) in about 8 hours. As well as, we additionally plugged it right into a 25kW Tata Energy DC quick charger, and in a mere quarter-hour, it provided sufficient cost so as to add a further 25-30km of vary, for Rs 106. Common charging payments at dwelling are prone to be round Rs 750 per cost (0-100%), bearing in mind electrical energy price at Rs 8 per unit.

Audi e-tron 55 quattro: must you purchase one?