When the Audi E-tron SUV arrived in 2018 as Audi’s first proper EV, it made headlines with its impressive 150kW peak charging rate, but even then the range was nothing to write home about. Four years later, its numbers are only about okay, so it’s a good thing that it’s facelift time.
Signalling the profundity of the updates is a new name: to bring the flagship in line with the smaller Audi Q4 E-tron and forthcoming Q6 E-tron, it’s now known as the Audi Q8 E-tron.
There are some visual tweaks, including new alloy wheel designs and redesigned bumpers and grilles, but the big news is to be found under the skin. Four years of advances in battery energy density have enabled Audi to increase the usable capacities of the battery packs from 71kWh to 89kWh (in the entry-level 50 variant) and from 89kWh to 106kWh (in the 55 and the sporty Audi SQ8 E-tron). Meanwhile, more advanced motors and a reduced drag coefficient have improved the energy efficiency.
Even so, 2.6mpkWh is still pretty poor, and on my test drive in very mild conditions the digital gauge cluster indicated just 2.2mpkWh – a figure that would translate to a real-world range of just 230 miles.
When it does need a top-up, the 55 can accept charging rates of up to 170kW – a useful increase but nowhere near the rival Genesis Electrified GV70’s 240kW limit.