Audi has taken the wraps off the flagship Q8 e-tron range of electric SUV. The all-electric version of the Q8 SUV now gets a facelift and along with it few design changes and new feature additions.
The biggest improvements come in the form of a bigger range. Apart from that, the car gets a new look, better interiors and more features. The new Q8 e-tron is also better to drive.
The Q8 e-tron gets the typical e-tron styling, but Audi has not gone overboard with it. It’s more of an evolution than an entirely new design. The front grille gets many sharp cuts and creases. It gets various openings for air intakes and the ends of the bumper get flared recesses. All these changes make the car appear more sporty than before. The headlights are the typical Audi units but now get a LED light bar at the top edge of the front grille. Another change at the front is the new 2D ‘Volkswagen’ logo.
Audi is offering multiple alloy wheel choices with the Q8 e-tron. The sides also get rear view cameras instead of the typical ORVMs. However, it is said that the Indian version will come with regular mirrors instead of the futuristic cameras.
Audi is offering two body styles on the Q8 – SUV and Sportback. While the Sportback gets a steeply raked windscreen and boot spoiler, the SUV gets an integrated spoiler on the tailgate that sits above the rear window. Audi has also claimed a reduction in the drag coefficient from 0.28 to 0.27.
While there have not been any major changes to the insides, stepping into the car one will realise that it is nothing but an Audi. The quality is of high level, is well-built and is good to touch. That said, there are a lot of screens in the car. Right from the infotainment screen to the driver information display and the AC screen. The outside cameras too, get individual dedicated screens.
Gone are the base 50 variants and are instead replaced with the earlier 55 unit’s 95 kWh battery. The bump up is from 71 kWh to 95 kWh. Thus the car now gets a range of 491 km for the SUV and 505 km for the Sportback. The earlier ranges for the Q8 e-tron were 300 – 347 km. The higher-end 55 models get an ever larger 114 kWh battery pack resulting in a whooping 582-600 km of electric driving range.
The larger batteries have also resulted in a higher charging time. The 11 kW AC charger now charges the 55 model in 11.5 hours while a 150 kW DC fast charge now takes 30 mins for a 10-80 percent battery top up.
A new high-performance version dubbed as the SQ8 is also offered. It gets the same larger battery but slightly lower range on account of higher power figures.
While the exact launch date is not yet known, we can expect the car to land on our shores sometime in July-August 2023.
Also Read – Audi Q8 e-tron production begins.