New Audi e-tron Sportback EV Coming this Summer, still no compassion with a Model Y.

[glide]

He did not take the interior build quality in consideration, which of course the etron will be the model Y.

How did he manage to gloss over one of the main selling points of the Audi?

He also managed to get the pricing and features wrong. And left out the $7500 tax credit for the Audi. This was a real hack job.

spoiler alert: the video does not show the actual vehicles in person. Clickbait.

 

[LowlyOilBurner]

I spent some time in a “first edition” e-tron last fall. Sticker was $98,XXX.00USD. Fully loaded, air suspension, night vision, Bang & Olufsen stereo, driver assistance package, ect,ect.

Yes, build quality is typical Audi (read: excellent). The interior is very nice as well, but a lot going on, too many steering wheel buttons, the two center screens could be combined into one, and simplified.

The range is dismal, and the performance isn’t great as stated earlier. The whole no regen thing really sucks. You can “manually” get it to regen buy using the paddles on the wheel. The “downshift” paddle gives you regen, and the car actually feels like it’s downshifting. This is something I feel nobody buying an EV gives a rats ass about. If you want to downshift, buy a car with a standard transmission.

Audi’s driver assistance package is pretty cheese grade also. 360deg camera and parking assist augmented reality thing is cool. Their adaptive cruise is nice, and works well. Traffic Jam pilot also works well, up to 37mph, where the terrible lane assist takes over. I tried the active lane assist in roads with hardly and curvature, and it failed, consistently. About on par with Jag’s active lane centering system.

Here’s my take: Put the drivetrain, battery, and tech (Autopilot) from a Tesla into the e-from, I’d buy one.
And, for $98,000.00, I’d probably just buy a MX at that point.

 

[Klau2]

How did he manage to gloss over one of the main selling points of the Audi?

He also managed to get the pricing and features wrong. And left out the $7500 tax credit for the Audi. This was a real hack job.

spoiler alert: the video does not show the actual vehicles in person. Clickbait.

You are right about the tax credit. Hack, ppl usually don't buy at msrp either. Especially in today's environment, but regardless the model y still will be cheaper with more features with the tax credit.

His other comparison are pretty on point I think.

 

[Klau2]

I spent some time in a “first edition” e-tron last fall. Sticker was $98,XXX.00USD. Fully loaded, air suspension, night vision, Bang & Olufsen stereo, driver assistance package, ect,ect.

Yes, build quality is typical Audi (read: excellent). The interior is very nice as well, but a lot going on, too many steering wheel buttons, the two center screens could be combined into one, and simplified.

The range is dismal, and the performance isn’t great as stated earlier. The whole no regen thing really sucks. You can “manually” get it to regen buy using the paddles on the wheel. The “downshift” paddle gives you regen, and the car actually feels like it’s downshifting. This is something I feel nobody buying an EV gives a rats ass about. If you want to downshift, buy a car with a standard transmission.

Audi’s driver assistance package is pretty cheese grade also. 360deg camera and parking assist augmented reality thing is cool. Their adaptive cruise is nice, and works well. Traffic Jam pilot also works well, up to 37mph, where the terrible lane assist takes over. I tried the active lane assist in roads with hardly and curvature, and it failed, consistently. About on par with Jag’s active lane centering system.

Here’s my take: Put the drivetrain, battery, and tech (Autopilot) from a Tesla into the e-from, I’d buy one.
And, for $98,000.00, I’d probably just buy a MX at that point.

Haha. If anything I want the etran battery in a Model Y. That's a 95kWh battery!

 

[Msjulie]

We used to be an Audi / VW family but diesel gate pretty much killed it - though because of the herd mentality of most car makers, the focus on SUVs had already soured us quite a bit. We do have Audi's A3 eTron (an ICE hybrid, since killed off in USA) which has luckily been pretty much trouble free, not always our Audi experience.

That said, we did like the generally better interior quality but, and perhaps mostly, because of the SUV focus, the vehicles look fat and aerodynamically challenged and that's not going to be great for range. And neither one of us wants a fat SUV for a vehicle driven primarily with 1 person, is handling challenged compared to a taut sedan etc.

I like @glide's comments about not trying to drag the full ICE experience over to the EV. Some find the Model 3/Y single screen too big a departure but man does Audi like it's buttons. Much room for improvement there w/o losing their Audi-ness.

I am happy they appear to be trying. Right now nothing but a Tesla for me but competition is sorely needed.

 

[MXLRplus]

I spent some time in a “first edition” e-tron last fall. Sticker was $98,XXX.00USD. Fully loaded, air suspension, night vision, Bang & Olufsen stereo, driver assistance package, ect,ect.

Yes, build quality is typical Audi (read: excellent). The interior is very nice as well, but a lot going on, too many steering wheel buttons, the two center screens could be combined into one, and simplified.

The range is dismal, and the performance isn’t great as stated earlier. The whole no regen thing really sucks. You can “manually” get it to regen buy using the paddles on the wheel. The “downshift” paddle gives you regen, and the car actually feels like it’s downshifting. This is something I feel nobody buying an EV gives a rats ass about. If you want to downshift, buy a car with a standard transmission.

Audi’s driver assistance package is pretty cheese grade also. 360deg camera and parking assist augmented reality thing is cool. Their adaptive cruise is nice, and works well. Traffic Jam pilot also works well, up to 37mph, where the terrible lane assist takes over. I tried the active lane assist in roads with hardly and curvature, and it failed, consistently. About on par with Jag’s active lane centering system.

Here’s my take: Put the drivetrain, battery, and tech (Autopilot) from a Tesla into the e-from, I’d buy one.
And, for $98,000.00, I’d probably just buy a MX at that point.

I'll admit I did not test the autosteering on the eTron. So since you rated it on-par with Jaguar's Steering Assistant, here's my take:

I totally disagree with your experience using the Jaguar Steering Assistant. Here's why. It works great on the freeway, it has an Alert Driver system, when you change lanes, it's doesn't automatically shut off as long as you use your turn signal. It's blind spot warning is better. It doesn't spaz out for no rea... DANGER WILL ROBINSON DANGER!! ..son when something invisible spooks it. If you don't agree with the autosteering, it allows you to adjust your position in the lane without turning off. 90 mph passing does not disable it for the rest of your journey. When it's a 1 lane into 2 lane, it realizes it and allows you to pick the lane YOU want instead of the lane the car wants.

However, Jaguar isn't the only ICE company with that level of technology. Tesla Autopilot™ is a totally different beast. Not better not worse, different. The others are safety systems, Tesla wants you to use it all the time. Since I don't use AP on surface streets, for my purposes AP is no better than the rest in 2020.

Drop the oversized wheels on the Audi, get your tax credits and Audi Incentives, and drop $20k off MSRP. It was a LOT cheaper than a Model X in California. But I chose the X.

 

[LowlyOilBurner]

I'll admit I did not test the autosteering on the eTron. So since you rated it on-par with Jaguar's Steering Assistant, here's my take:

I totally disagree with your experience using the Jaguar Steering Assistant. Here's why. It works great on the freeway, it has an Alert Driver system, when you change lanes, it's doesn't automatically shut off as long as you use your turn signal. It's blind spot warning is better. It doesn't spaz out for no rea... DANGER WILL ROBINSON DANGER!! ..son when something invisible spooks it. If you don't agree with the autosteering, it allows you to adjust your position in the lane without turning off. 90 mph passing does not disable it for the rest of your journey. When it's a 1 lane into 2 lane, it realizes it and allows you to pick the lane YOU want instead of the lane the car wants.

However, Jaguar isn't the only ICE company with that level of technology. Tesla Autopilot™ is a totally different beast. Not better not worse, different. The others are safety systems, Tesla wants you to use it all the time. Since I don't use AP on surface streets, for my purposes AP is no better than the rest in 2020.

Drop the oversized wheels on the Audi, get your tax credits and Audi Incentives, and drop $20k off MSRP. It was a LOT cheaper than a Model X in California. But I chose the X.

Your points on Autopilot are 100% valid. Have/having owned 2 Volvo’s with Pilot Assist, I totally agree with what you’re saying.

I’m saying just Autopilot does a far better job lane centering than any of the systems I’ve used on twisty roads. The E-Tron ran off the road on a slight curve that I figured it would have nailed, but didn’t.

 

[Can37]

The more choice the better, both versions of the e-Tron are good cars, if you prefer a Tesla, that's fine for you. I suspect less than 50% of car buyer's know how much power their car has or how big their gas tank is. Infrastructure is where the rubber hits the road and this is where Tesla shines.

 

[MXLRplus]

The more choice the better, both versions of the e-Tron are good cars, if you prefer a Tesla, that's fine for you. I suspect less than 50% of car buyer's know how much power their car has or how big their gas tank is. Infrastructure is where the rubber hits the road and this is where Tesla shines.

When I tested the I-Pace in Dec 2018, it charged at 84kW and carried most of it to 80% SOC.
When I tested my Model X in April 2020, it peaked at 72kW and then started to fall at ~55% SOC. IIRC, it was in the high 30's? at 80% SOC. I recently retested and it does reach 142kW but still starts to fall off 55% SOC.

While the SC system is better IMO than the CCS, it's not like it was 2016. Tesla still has the advantage, but it's not the advantage they had in the past.

In the next ten years, if EVs continue their climb in adoption rate, we will have to see a significant change in the way America sees EV recharging. It will need to be incorporated into new infrastructure and kludged into old infrastructure. And the government will have to step in to stop the utilities from mandating Demand tariffs which are the biggest threat to Remote Fast Charging for interstate travel. It will have to be done at the federal level, but if just one state refuses to participate, it will wreck EV support.

By dictating Demand tariffs such as exists in California, a utility can make up to 4x as much money selling power to a SC/CCS station as they do selling power to a business or residence. The California Public Utility Commission allowed that to happen. They knew what the effect would be and did it regardless.

 

[VT_EE]

I would pay an extra $15K for a decent interior, a properly assembled vehicle, and the service/customer support.

After almost 2 years in a Model 3, I get irritated by excessive buttons and cluttered looking interiors. Now if Audi had a sleek looking interior similar to the Model 3/Y using their normal awesome materials, I'd be all over that.

 

[MXLRplus]

After almost 2 years in a Model 3, I get irritated by excessive buttons and cluttered looking interiors. Now if Audi had a sleek looking interior similar to the Model 3/Y using their normal awesome materials, I'd be all over that.

I like being able to adjust my mirrors without dinking with the center console first, and not taking my eyes off the road to see NAV lane mapping. These are nice features that most premium cars have today.

But some do like the minimalistic approach as well. The VW bug was a big seller.

 

[TESLER2013]

I'll tell you what I do really like about this car. Regular door handles. I miss them.

 

[VT_EE]

Yeah, it really sucks being able to adjust your mirrors while watching the road. Or having to take your eyes off the road to see NAV lane mapping.

I don't find the center screen requires me to take my eyes off the road any more than a normal dash system does. Once you get used to it, the center screen works well. I would love to see a heads-up display in a Tesla though. I don't understand all this complaining about mirror adjusting. You are supposed to do that BEFORE you start driving, not while you are driving. I can't think of time when I needed to adjust mirror while driving. I'm sure I have sometime in the last 20+ years, just not recently.

 

[MXLRplus]

I don't find the center screen requires me to take my eyes off the road any more than a normal dash system does. Once you get used to it, the center screen works well. I would love to see a heads-up display in a Tesla though. I don't understand all this complaining about mirror adjusting. You are supposed to do that BEFORE you start driving, not while you are driving. I can't think of time when I needed to adjust mirror while driving. I'm sure I have sometime in the last 20+ years, just not recently.

Yeah, I rephrased that after I played with my dogs and re-read it.

I've adjusted mirrors to suit the driving conditions many times. Granted, most the time it involved trailers.

So if you lend your car out, every time you must explain to the driver how to adjust the mirrors. It's normally in the same place on all cars even the MS/X. I don't see that as an advantage.

It's not a biggie, but the Nested Tree Structure of the Tesla controls on the M3/Y I don't see as a solid advantage.

 

[Az_Rael]

I don't find the center screen requires me to take my eyes off the road any more than a normal dash system does. Once you get used to it, the center screen works well. I would love to see a heads-up display in a Tesla though. I don't understand all this complaining about mirror adjusting. You are supposed to do that BEFORE you start driving, not while you are driving. I can't think of time when I needed to adjust mirror while driving. I'm sure I have sometime in the last 20+ years, just not recently.

There is a bug I have noticed with the 3 where it doesn’t always fully return the mirrors to the proper position upon switching driver profiles or from reverse. I have figured out the workaround is to push the driver profile again and it corrects the mirror, but prior to that I was often finding my mirrors off after I was in drive and diving into that menu. I am guessing that drives some of the complaints. Otherwise, yes, no need to touch your mirror settings once you have them set.

 

[glide]

We used to be an Audi / VW family but diesel gate pretty much killed it - though because of the herd mentality of most car makers, the focus on SUVs had already soured us quite a bit. We do have Audi's A3 eTron (an ICE hybrid, since killed off in USA) which has luckily been pretty much trouble free, not always our Audi experience.

That said, we did like the generally better interior quality but, and perhaps mostly, because of the SUV focus, the vehicles look fat and aerodynamically challenged and that's not going to be great for range. And neither one of us wants a fat SUV for a vehicle driven primarily with 1 person, is handling challenged compared to a taut sedan etc.

I like @glide's comments about not trying to drag the full ICE experience over to the EV. Some find the Model 3/Y single screen too big a departure but man does Audi like it's buttons. Much room for improvement there w/o losing their Audi-ness.

I am happy they appear to be trying. Right now nothing but a Tesla for me but competition is sorely needed.

If dieselgate killed your love for Audi, what has batterygate/chargegate done to your feelings toward Tesla? Sounds like they are getting a pass?

 

[VT_EE]

Yeah, I rephrased that after I played with my dogs and re-read it.

I've adjusted mirrors to suit the driving conditions many times. Granted, most the time it involved trailers.

So if you lend your car out, every time you must explain to the driver how to adjust the mirrors. It's normally in the same place on all cars even the MS/X. I don't see that as an advantage.

It's not a biggie, but the Nested Tree Structure of the Tesla controls on the M3/Y I don't see as a solid advantage.

It's not just the mirrors I have to explain how to use. Just opening the doors from the inside usually requires an explanation :-D

 

[Electric Steve]

It's not just the mirrors I have to explain how to use. Just opening the doors from the inside usually requires an explanation :-D

There are stickers you can get for that.

 

[Msjulie]

If dieselgate killed your love for Audi, what has batterygate/chargegate done to your feelings toward Tesla? Sounds like they are getting a pass?

Don't get me wrong, still like some Audis but grr

As for batterygate, I can't claim any first hand knowledge there; recently I'm more bewildered by Elon's stock price and other out there tweets..

 

[MY-Y]

With Elon's recent behavior, I wish there was more competition. I have a MY on order, and don't see anything even close to it. The Audi and Jag don't have nearly the range, degree of autonomy with FSD, or performance.