Tesla envy got you down? Looking for the hottest, newest all-electric vehicle that doesn’t require you to refinance your mortgage? Audi’s got you covered – or it will very soon, thanks to its newly overhauled E-Tron A3 Sportback, going into production in 2019.
A 21st Century Fox
Audi already has a solid lead on electric vehicles, thanks to the current 2017 model E-Tron hybrid. However, that model still relies on internal combustion technology to a wide degree – and besides, isn’t winning any beauty contests.
With the 2019 E-Tron, all that changes. Featuring a fully electric design and the kind of dramatic styling elements that make the vehicle look both fast and mean, sliding behind the wheel of a 2019 E-Tron’s going to be a very different experience.
Style Both Inside and Out
The new all-electric E-Tron is slated to have some innovative interior design features as well. The four-seater will come with not one but two touchscreens to access control systems and a stylish floating center console.
Wing mirrors are being replaced with specially-designed cameras to eliminate blind spots, and the daytime running lights are accompanied by “light fields” of 250 LEDs each, which will be used as turn signal indicators and, according to Audi, “create graphics” for other users of the road to enjoy. And just in case that’s not futuristic enough for you, the Audi logo on the front grille actually lights up and glows.
Powered by Bottled Lightning
Any car maker can put fancy bells and whistles in a concept vehicle, but Audi went whole hog with the E-Tron Sportback. This baby boasts a full-electric drivetrain, with one electric motor for the front wheels and two for the rear wheels, providing an estimated 500 horsepower. As a result, this baby can hit 0-60 in something close to 4.5 seconds.
Performance is one thing, but the whole idea behind electric vehicles is to not have to stop to refuel every hundred miles. That’s where Audi is on top of things once again – the car company boasts a truly impressive 310-mile range on one single charge. Now that’s worth trading in your gas guzzler for.
The Future Is Here. Kind Of.
The only bad thing about the Audi A3 E-Tron Sportback is that we’ve got to wait until the 2019 model year to get our hands on it. Audi is also putting a full-electric SUV into production for 2018, but we’re waiting the extra year for sure.
Tags E-Tron E-Tron Sportback
