There has been a significant forward momentum and push from various car manufacturers with their development of electric cars. This can easily be seen when you compare what it is currently available now, to the similar models released a few years back. We easily see an improvement in performance, increased range and host of features that make them a viable option.

There are a number of electric cars hitting the market in 2019, Jaguar XJ, Mini E, Volvo XC40 Electric. The list is rather long and there are some very exciting cars, that will melt the heart of most avid haters of EV cars, if such category even exists.

I have been desperately waiting for few of these cars, and although I might never be able to drive one and report it like I would prefer to do, just the thought of it being on the road, being driven by some lucky person, would be a great sense of comfort.

Audi E-tron Sportback (2019)

The E-tron Sportback made its initial appearance at the Shanghai motor show back in 2017, as a concept car. It’s about the same size as the Audi A7, however, there are number of changes that will make it stand alone and be counted as an option to those of us whom still dream of saving this wonderful little planet of ours. Audi has decided to give E-tron sport-back coupe styling.

The e-tron will be offered in three versions: Standard Edition, an e-tron Launch Edition, and an e-tron Edition 1, which is limited to 30 for the U.K. market.

The £71,490 Audi e-tron is already well-equipped, with features such as 20-inch alloys, LED headlights and two MMI touchscreens in the centre of the dash.

The £82,240 e-tron Launch Edition upgrades the headlights to Matrix LED units, the wheels grow to platinum-look 21-inch Audi Sport rims.

The Launch Edition also gets camera-based virtual door mirrors as standard. Audi hasn’t revealed prices for the Edition 1, but has said only those who placed an early deposit for the e-tron will be able to order one.

The new e-tron is an all-electric car with a 96 kWh electric battery and two electric motors delivering up to 300 kW (that’s 402 hp). It will do 0-62 mph in 5.7 seconds and the WLTP electric car range is at least 248 miles.

Audi Q6 e-tron quattro SUV (2019)

The Q6 e-tron Quattro SUV made its first appearance to the world as a concept at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show. Tesla had thrown down the gauntlet and Audi was obliged to answer with this new all electric model that clashes head on with the Tesla X.

The E-tron moves on electricity alone thanks to a couple of motors. A large motor spins the rear axle, while a smaller one motivates the front axle. Both are powered by a 95-kWh battery.

Audi has installed an over-boost function, which can operate for up to eight seconds, and increases power to 402 charging horses and 490 lb-ft of torque. Audi has announced that the E-tron needs only 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph from a standing start, which we can only assume to be the figure for the over-boost mode, so the E-tron will be slower in normal mode, probably needing around 5.8 seconds for the benchmark.

While a 5.5-second sprint is and impressive figure and nothing to sneeze at, however, the E-tron is notably slower than the competition. The Tesla Model X needs between 4.9 and 2.9 seconds depending on specifications, while the Mercedes-Benz EQC achieves the sprint in 4.9 seconds. The Jaguar I-Pace gets there in an impressive 4.5 seconds.

Audi created many new systems for the E-tron, starting with an energy recuperation system that enhances the vehicle’s range by about 30 percent. Specifically, the electric SUV can recover energy in two ways: by means of coasting recuperation when the driver releases the accelerator pedal, or by means of braking recuperation by releasing the brake pedal.

The E-tron was engineered for both AC and DC charging. This isn’t exactly innovative, but Audi brags about having the first DC fast charging capability of up to 150 kW. However, you can benefit from this at select high-speed public charging stations, well if you can find one the U.K, that is.

The crossover tops out at 124 mph, a figure that’s in line with most of the competition. EPA ratings aren’t yet available, but the WLTP estimate is set at 248 miles.
The brand has some serious plans to produce between 2 to 3 million of these by 2025.