The Audi E-Tron GT exists in its own realm. Unlike most of the cars we’ve reviewed, the E-Tron GT isn’t a car made for most people – it’s the longest and widest car we’ve ever driven, it’s the priciest, and in many ways it’s the most prestigious, sporting Audi’s legendary ‘Quattro’ AWD name and a luxury sedan shape.
I struggle with the E-Tron GT because I’m unlikely to be able to afford it in my lifetime – nobody in my close circle is. It’s not a car for my tax bracket, or even the tax bracket above that – not even the cheaper E-Tron S is something I’m ever likely to afford.
But that doesn’t mean we can’t look at what a $180,000 electric car is like, right? After all, EVs aren’t cheap to begin with, so how incredible can one of the most expensive models on the market be (second to the Porsche Taycan right now)?
Asking for trouble
The most obvious thing I can say about the Audi E-Tron GT is that it is f*cking gorgeous. This is one of the most beautiful cars I have ever seen, let alone driven. Its coke bottle styling, its flat face, its mean headlights and its incredible rear lighting are stitched together to represent the height of Audi’s design. It’s a far cry from the original ‘Quattro’ Audi, badged all the same to represent the German automaker’s incredible AWD platform, but where the original Quattro represented performance, the E-Tron GT represents class and might.
There’s not a bad angle to look at the E-Tron GT from. At high speeds, a wing pops up on the back, but you can manually raise the wing at will. The door handles are the design you’re used to on a typical car – not the weird thumb-press handles you’d expect from a Tesla, but instead raised from the doors.
And on the road, the Audi E-Tron GT is mean. Would you believe that a 0-100km/h speed of just 4.1 seconds is the base model’s acceleration? It was an incredible thing to feel when pulling onto motorways, and no matter what type of driving I was doing, the E-Tron GT handled like an absolute dream. You’d be forgiven for not realising this bad boy weighs 2,351kg when it handles so well. Low as it is to the ground, bumps are no match for the E-Tron GT and its gigantic wheels, but parking and tight roads tested the E-Tron for all it was worth.
4,989mm long, 1,964mm wide, and 1,413mm high, the E-Tron GT is much longer and wider than your typical car. The only car we’ve reviewed that comes close to the E-Tron GT in dimensions is the Tesla Model Y, measuring in at 4,750mm x 1,921mm x 1,624mm. Despite the Model Y being an SUV, it’s not an unfair comparison for me to make here – no matter the car, I still have to park it in my considerably small car park, and the E-Tron GT was the first car that I felt not confident in doing so – I ended up borrowing a neighbour’s car spot.
I also made the questionable choice of driving the Audi E-Tron GT around the tight and small roads of Sydney’s Inner West… On Halloween. Thank god the brakes of the E-Tron GT are so strong, because moving this gigantic car through extremely narrow roads with kids running around is a fright of its own. I just took it extremely slow and all was well.
And that all about sums up what you’re getting into with the Audi E-Tron GT. It is an expensive car, with an expensive look, and a body too huge for its own good. When you consider that all of the technology inside the E-Tron GT can also be found in an $80,000 EV, it dawns on you what’s going on here: You’re not paying for the features or the electric motors, you’re paying for the inconvenience – and for someone who can afford a $180,000 car, maybe that’s alright – you’re driving a bloody E-Tron, after all.
It’s nice to pretend
For as fun and flashy as the Audi E-Tron GT is, let’s be realistic for a second: The cost is mostly the badge. A lot of the time, those four rings mean luxury.
But it’s with this reality that we can pry and figure out what actually makes a luxury car worth so much.
For starters, let’s just cross out all the assistance features. Lane assistance, smart cruise control, emergency braking, HUDs, touch screen centre consoles; all of these things can be found on Hyundais, Teslas, Polestars, and Kias, often for less than half the price.
I will make a caveat for the driver assistance, though. It was much stronger in the Audi E-Tron GT than in any other car I’ve ever driven. Even in dark environments it easily identified the lines on each side of the road, and the smart cruise control could easily recognise cars well ahead of me with much greater confidence than any other car I’ve driven.
The leather-free seats are exceptionally comfortable and rank among the most comfortable car seats I’ve ever sat in, though every person I had in the car, be it the front or back seat, complained that it was a difficult car to get out of. No surprises here; each seat is deep-sitting, and you need to really pull yourself up to get out. I say it again; you’re not paying that premium price to make things any easier.
Parking assistance was also very good, with a 360 camera provided, but again this isn’t unique to expensive cars; I’ve driven $45,000 cars with this technology, though Audi’s is flashier and does look better.
Surprisingly, the turning circle of the E-Tron GT wasn’t terrible, which made parking a little easier, but it doesn’t change the fact that you’re driving a really wide and long car.
Now let’s talk range: The Audi E-Tron GT is capable of 487km WLTP range, while the sportier ‘RS’ model is capable of up to 472km WLTP range. Both models charge at a maximum of 270kW on a public DC fast charger, one of the fastest charging speeds of any electric car in Australia, but this obviously tapers off as the battery fills up, so realistically you’re not hanging around at a public charger for much less time than the Ioniq 6, which can charge at 230kW.
Just on the chargers – on the left side, you’ll find the home charger, and on the right, you’ll find the public charger, with Type 2 ports on both, but the public fast charger connections on the public charger. I’m not sure what the point of having two chargers is if you’re only able to use one in public, but both at home, but whatever, it’s a minor problem if you like the rest of the car.
Finally, I get what Audi’s getting at with this wireless phone charger (pictured above), located in the centre compartment with the phone to be placed on its side, but it ended up being more trouble than it’s worth. The car uses Android Auto and CarPlay wirelessly, so that’s no problem, but the wireless charger heats the phone up a lot – to the point of it being extremely uncomfortable to hold when you pull it out of the box. Having the phone out of sight when driving is a good idea, but come on, having the phone trapped in a box to charge wirelessly can’t be the smartest choice.
My verdict on the Audi E-Tron GT
It’d be nice if every car on the road looked as good as this monster, but alas I’m not sure someone who has just bought a Polestar 2 or a Tesla Model 3 will feel like they’re missing out on anything.
If you’re aspirational for a fast, electric sedan with a bit of luxury, believe me when I say you don’t need the Audi E-Tron GT. The Hyundai Ioniq 6 follows similar styling queues and is half the price, and the Polestar 2 feels jubilant enough while, relatively, saving you money.
It’s not like EVs are cheap to begin with, but sheesh. The Audi E-Tron GT is the most luxurious car I’ve ever driven… But if it wasn’t my job to drive cars, I don’t think I’d ever have the opportunity to even sit in one.
The Audi E-Tron GT starts at $180,200 in Australia, and the more powerful ‘RS’ model starts at $248,200.
Image: Zachariah Kelly/Gizmodo Australia