So after seeing the Audi E-Tron at a launch event I have the following knowledge to pass on, to be clear and upfront, I’m a Tesla shareholder/owner for ~4 years but have extensively driven almost every consumer electric vehicle currently available (including Tesla Model S/3/X, Jaguar I-PACE, Nissan Leaf, BMW i3, Hyundai Kona, Renault Zoe, e-Golf, Ioniq, Soul EV and of course the Twizy) and will do my best to be as honest as possible without any prejudice (although I appreciate that’s a difficult task).
It’s a typical Audi, built well with plenty of optional extras that you will want to spec, with a decent dealer network ready to take as much money as they can as soon as they can help with any issues.
The things I loved about the E-Tron:
✅Interior build quality
✅Illuminated seatbelts
✅All the subtle lighting inside
✅3D ‘Reversing’ Camera
✅Camera mirrors are pretty cool, unsure in reality how useful they’re but they certainly look great (optional paid extra)
✅Two charge ports (optional paid extra)
✅Smaller panel gaps (Yes, USA are really bad at this compared to the Germans)
✅Superior route-planning (the Tesla is weak in this regard)
✅Door pockets (The Tesla Model S has none but Model 3 does)
✅9 Paint colour options Vs Tesla’s 5 (removal of the blue pictured above is disappointing)
The things I hated about the E-Tron but probably because I’m a Tesla owner of ~4 years / grumpy git:
- So many buttons and what’s with the excessively large selector
- Front Grill! Why?
- The lack of an all-glass roof
- Two screens = less space to see what you want (e.g. maps)
- Range and efficiency is poor compared to other EVs (a Hyundai Kona will go further)
The things that I dislike about the E-Tron:
❌Supercharger network? Nope, they only work with Tesla. Although Audi are co-launching a rapid charging network (IONITY).
❌Dedicated destination charger network across Europe? Nope
❌Quicker than a Tesla? Nope.
❌200-mile range (A Tesla is closer to 300)
❌Self Driving capable? Nope
❌Smaller battery size than a Tesla (100kWh Vs 95kWh)
❌124mph max speed (up to 155-162mph in a Tesla)
❌No all glass roof option
❌No summon feature or advanced summon coming soon?
So a few things that other car reviews are quick to point out but actually are comparable to a Tesla:
👊Batteries at the bottom of the car (same as most EVs, patent given away by Tesla)
👊Throttle response (same as all EVs, Tesla is superior)
👊8 years warranty but limited to 100,000 miles, Tesla has 125,000 miles. However, on the non-drivetrain/battery warranty the Tesla has an extra year but 10,000 less miles.
Tl;dr:
Tesla needs to up its game with interior features, build quality, panel gaps and exterior paint colours but everything else is superior with a Tesla.