Drove and then leased an Audi e-Tron

[frontrangeM3]

This conversation doesn’t make much sense to me... Does Lexus sell the same number of each of their models? I don’t think so.

Agree. Just because sales of a top-end, image carrying vehicle are not high volume does not mean it's a sales failure. When compared against other cars in its price class, it still does well. How many 7-series cars does BMW sell? Not many. You cannot compare unit sales figures across market segments.

Is the S/X refresh arguably overdue? Sure. That doesn't make them failures either. The S and X both compete very favorably against other EVs in their price class too. The technology gap to the later lower-priced models was beginning to open up, and they needed to address that.

The better question would be if they're still contributing to the bottom line in a positive way, i.e. if at their level of sales, are they still net profitable on a per unit basis? I have no idea. But I'm guessing that the refresh was delayed in order to focus investment elsewhere, and wring out whatever profit dollars they could from the existing design.

I don't see either model going away any time soon.

 

[rxlawdude]

@Doc Brown , congrats on your e-tron.

But please, pretty please, do not be like the Audi douchebag that intentionally parked in a 6 stall Tesla Supercharger at Ehrenberg, AZ.

 

[Doc Brown]

@Doc Brown , congrats on your e-tron.

But please, pretty please, do not be like the Audi douchebag that intentionally parked in a 6 stall Tesla Supercharger at Ehrenberg, AZ.

yeah thanks. I won’t be that douchebag - and please don’t you be the Tesla douchebag driving in NoA in the left lane on the 405 doing 63mph. Deal?

 

[rxlawdude]

yeah thanks. I won’t be that douchebag - and please don’t you be the Tesla douchebag driving in NoA in the left lane on the 405 doing 63mph. Deal?

Deal!

 

[CF2020]

Congrats, we need more EVs on the road...our ICE car is an Audi, never had an issue with service or loaners.

 

[DMC-Orangeville]

It's our first Audi (actually first German car). Charging curve does look good - we shall see. For us (really for the boss) - the biggest deal was the drive (comfort) and feel of the interior. She just couldn't convince herself to like the interior or ride of the MX or MY. But we tried.

Exactly the same with me - and my wife.

However, I've had a Model S85D for 6 years. It's been a great car, well built, only a couple of hiccups. My son, who I have been bugging for 6 years to get into an EV, surprised me and offered to buy my car ( at a value below market ). I agreed......so I had to get hunting.

This is the first vehicle that I've had spousal input, since our kids were young. She buys her car, I buy mine. Happy campers. I retired, and we have 2 cars and a truck (for pulling hay wagons and horse trailers). We really only need a car and a truck. She's getting rid of her car in a couple of years, and we'll have one. So we test drove:
Volvo XC40 Electric - My wife's first choice and my second. It's very nicely put together, and fast. It's got a lot more space inside it than it looks from the outside (Dr. Who callbox?)
Model Y - Nice ride. Comfortable. Roomy enough. Tesla quick. Minimalistic interior. Neither of us liked the "atmosphere" in the car. Third in voting
Model X -Both of us didn't like the ride and feel....and I really don't like the refreshed look
Several PHEV's - didn't like any of them
I couldn't get Polestar to allow me to take a test drive. Their loss.
The S and 3 were out - too difficult for my wife to get in and out (bad knees), and the S refresh leaves me cold.

I really liked the Audi Sportback, for the reasons you mentioned, and my wife picked it as number 2. So, I'm a few months behind @Doc Brown, waiting for a May delivery of a Siam beige e-Tron Sportback Technik (different nomenclature in Canada (?)). Loaded up

It is also interesting to see that the US, California in particular, carries a lot more of these in dealer inventory. I saw one dealer in San Francisco area had more in stock than our whole country. There are about 10 in the whole Province, 3 in Toronto. Also different program here for free charging; 2 years free charging (30 minutes) at all Electrify America/Canada stations.

 

[mark95476]

e-trons in the Bay Area have had steep discounts (>$10k) for years so I don't think they're moving all that quickly.

It is also interesting to see that the US, California in particular, carries a lot more of these in dealer inventory. I saw one dealer in San Francisco area had more in stock than our whole country. There are about 10 in the whole Province, 3 in Toronto. Also different program here for free charging; 2 years free charging (30 minutes) at all Electrify America/Canada stations.

 

[BlindPass]

So . . . we've been wanting to go EV for more than 18 months now - and have been waiting to see if any additional EV options were going to hit the streets.

After two failed attempts in purchasing an MX (Tesla sold the first out from under me and then simply dropped the second) and a MY order then cancel after waiting sooooo long for a car - we finally came back to Tesla the past couple of weekends to drive a MY and possibly order one. Because of the popularity of the MY - test drives are limited to 15 minutes or so each at our only reasonably close Tesla showroom. Prior to all of this - a year or so ago - I had an MX for an "overnight" test drive - so we've spent a good deal of time in a Tesla.

Just for kicks - we also went and drove the Kia Niro EV, the Hyundai Kona EV, and the Chevy Bolt. They all seemed quite inferior to the MY - although we did like the range and features in the Kona. Then - we figured we would check out the Audi (even though we don't consider ourselves "Audi people."). The Audi dealership is just across the street from the Tesla showroom (Rocklin). I told the boss that we should just go look at it to close the loop on EVs - before we decide whether and which car to buy. Off to the Audi Quattro e-Tron's on the lot.

We were instantly impressed with the build of the car and the interior finishes. It is an Audi inside and out. The seat comfort and feel inside is amazing. So - we figured we'd take it for a test drive - and wow. We opted for the Sportback. Aside from it being an EV - it rides amazing. Adjustable suspension and steering (sport, dynamic, comfort, etc) were great - the ride was amazingly quiet - and the car handled amazing. So - we ended up getting it. Opted for a lease so we could hand it back in three years if we wanted something different. With available rebates, we got it for around $18K below MSRP. So - mid-$50K-ish.

Now - I completely agree the Tesla is wayyyyy better from a range and technology perspective. No doubt. We only have 220mi range, no OTA updates, no FSD, no autosteer. The acceleration isn't as quick in the Audi and it's heavier (built on an existing ICE platform). The MyAudi app is a bit clunky and only free for a limited time. But - the ride in the Audi is sooooo much better than the MY or MX (to us) and the creature comforts made this car the winner over the MY or MX for us. The dealer experience is good - free loaners when the car is being serviced - and a few other Audi perks (free Silvercar rentals, etc). The boss only drives a few miles to work each day - so range really isn't an issue for us (we've got my ICE truck for that).

We are still mulling over getting a MY or MX when we sell our truck (F-150) - but the Audi really won the day for us comparing everything we drove. not popular to say on a Tesla forum - but hey . . . . I'm sure there is plenty of criticism of the e-Tron - but it's in the garage now.

The EV future is bright - we are really looking forward to what other EV builders come out with in the future.

View attachment 643039

Beautiful car.

We felt the same. It’s a better car, and nearly equal EV to the MY. The range was nearly as functional as the MY given charging characteristics, and that we rarely needed 150+ miles.

The issue for me was the inferior acceleration. But my wife it’s plenty for my wife coming from ICE.

 

[DMC-Orangeville]

I finally got my e-Tron in August. 1 month of driving - my report

Audi positives:
Much quieter ride, no rattles, no road/tire noise
Smoother suspension. Like driving a couch (or chesterfield, if you're in Canada).
Heads up display
Android auto/Apple car play
Ventilated seats
Absolutely spectacular interior finish
0 defects at purchase
Great exterior finish - love the colour choices
Spare tire included
Roomy, comfortable back seats
Better than published range (published 351 KM, actual 370 ish)
Very fast DC charging to 90% (150 KW)
No yoke steering wheel
No vampire losses. Park it for a week, with no loss of range.
Much more internal storage space
Correctly placed cupholders
Electrify Canada/Electrify America free charging for 2 years
Charge ports on both sides of the car
Reasonably cheaper purchase price (vs S and X)
Regenerative braking on brake pedal

Audi = Tesla
sound system
HVAC
TACC/AP1 = Audi cruise and lane keeping
Body styling
Trunk space
Tesla Nav = Audi nav. (Audi does allow me to use Waze via Android)

Audi negatives:
Decent acceleration - but not Tesla quick
Limited range
Audi tech is behind Tesla. Many missing features (camp mode etc.)
Audi App sucks
No real frunk in Audi (storage area for charging cables and jack
The Supercharger network is awesome. Electrify Canada/America is improving, but is buggy, more difficult to initiate, and MUCH smaller. They say that they'll add 200-300 stations in the next year. We'll see. There are some other decent emerging networks to fill in the gaps. Superchargers are BY FAR, Tesla's biggest asset.
Programming/changing features on the Audi MMI (multi media interface) often take 3-4 clicks. Tesla normally 1-2. MMI is not as intuitive as Tesla.
Audi believes in coasting vs regenerative braking for energy saving. Regen must be manually set each time the car is driven. This is okay for highway driving, but I can't get used to it in city driving. This is partially annulled by the regen on braking. 6 years of Tesla driving makes me expect better regen. Most of the folks on the Audi forum disagree with me on this.

I'm not going to add AP2/self driving etc., as I don't want it anyways.

Overall, I'm VERY happy with my purchase. Did I mention that I didn't have to get a yoke steering wheel? My son is also very happy with my old S85D, and I'll get to visit it, now and again.

 

[SO16]

I finally got my e-Tron in August. 1 month of driving - my report

Audi positives:
Much quieter ride, no rattles, no road/tire noise
Smoother suspension. Like driving a couch (or chesterfield, if you're in Canada).
Heads up display
Android auto/Apple car play
Ventilated seats
Absolutely spectacular interior finish
0 defects at purchase
Great exterior finish - love the colour choices
Spare tire included
Roomy, comfortable back seats
Better than published range (published 351 KM, actual 370 ish)
Very fast DC charging to 90% (150 KW)
No yoke steering wheel
No vampire losses. Park it for a week, with no loss of range.
Much more internal storage space
Correctly placed cupholders
Electrify Canada/Electrify America free charging for 2 years
Charge ports on both sides of the car
Reasonably cheaper purchase price (vs S and X)
Regenerative braking on brake pedal

Audi = Tesla
sound system
HVAC
TACC/AP1 = Audi cruise and lane keeping
Body styling
Trunk space
Tesla Nav = Audi nav. (Audi does allow me to use Waze via Android)

Audi negatives:
Decent acceleration - but not Tesla quick
Limited range
Audi tech is behind Tesla. Many missing features (camp mode etc.)
Audi App sucks
No real frunk in Audi (storage area for charging cables and jack
The Supercharger network is awesome. Electrify Canada/America is improving, but is buggy, more difficult to initiate, and MUCH smaller. They say that they'll add 200-300 stations in the next year. We'll see. There are some other decent emerging networks to fill in the gaps. Superchargers are BY FAR, Tesla's biggest asset.
Programming/changing features on the Audi MMI (multi media interface) often take 3-4 clicks. Tesla normally 1-2. MMI is not as intuitive as Tesla.
Audi believes in coasting vs regenerative braking for energy saving. Regen must be manually set each time the car is driven. This is okay for highway driving, but I can't get used to it in city driving. This is partially annulled by the regen on braking. 6 years of Tesla driving makes me expect better regen. Most of the folks on the Audi forum disagree with me on this.

I'm not going to add AP2/self driving etc., as I don't want it anyways.

Overall, I'm VERY happy with my purchase. Did I mention that I didn't have to get a yoke steering wheel? My son is also very happy with my old S85D, and I'll get to visit it, now and again.

View attachment 714762

Not sure if it’s a fair comparison about the squeaks, rattles, ventilated seats, road noise, comfort, suspension, lane keeping comparison, etc to your old Tesla vs a new Model S today. But good review nonetheless. Enjoy!