Audi Reveals Q4 Sportback e-Tron Concept With Slicker Roofline

[Nairrk]

• Audi has unveiled this electric Q4 Sportback e-tron concept, saying it is close to what the 2021 production model will look like.
• The Q4 Sportback e-tron shares the same powertrain and battery as the Q4 e-tron that's also expected to be available in 2021.
• U.S. pricing hasn't been announced, but it'll likely start around $45,000.

Audi is expanding its EV lineup to seven models with another variant of a vehicle it's already announced. The all-electric Q4 e-tron compact SUV will now have a Sportback version that trades storage space for a slicker design. Both vehicles will be based on the Volkswagen Group's electric MEB platform and have identical powertrains. They'll also have nearly identical dimensions. The just-unveiled Sportback is a half-inch longer.

From the front, the vehicle's look nearly identical, but the profile reveals a downward slope that begins right before the A-pillar similar to what we've seen on the original e-tron Sportback. The Q4 Sportback does sport a larger wing. During a presentation for the upcoming Q4 Sportback, the automaker said that the vehicle has improved efficiency thanks to the dynamic roofline and that it accomplished this feat without losing too much rear headroom. Audi didn't share headroom numbers, so we'll know more once we stick a tall person in the back sometime in 2021.

As for efficiency, the drag coefficient for the Q4 Sportback e-tron is 0.26. That's a whole 0.01 below that of the regular Q4 e-tron. On the road, though, the all-wheel-drive Sportback is targeting the same 280 miles of range based on the European WLTP standard that Audi has announced for the regular Q4 e-tron. A rear-wheel-drive version of the electric vehicle is targeting a range of 310 miles on the European WLTP cycle. All will be outfitted with the same 82.0-kWh battery. Once the EPA gets hold of both vehicles, we might see if those drag differences equate to better range.

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