Audi’s biggest car presentation at the Los Angeles Auto show later this week will be the e-tron GT concept, a model most expect to turn into the Audi version of Porsche’s Taycan.
This rumor has somewhat been confirmed by Audi’s head of powertrain, Ulrich Widmann, who said back in October that the concept does share some genes with the Porsche brand.
There is little information currently available on what the model will be all about, but given the fact that Audi has been testing electric drives for years now, including on the new e-tron SUV, don’t expect exciting new developments in terms of range, power and so one.
What we do know about the car is that it will be based on the J1 platform, just like the Taycan. This is one of the platform that the Volkswagen group is developing specifically for electric cars. The most important of them is of course the MEB on which most of the group's models will be built.
For the GT Concept, Audi is likely to fit on the J1 platform a battery pack that can be charged to 80 percent capacity in just 12 minutes. How many miles that translate into is anybody’s guess, but we expect ranges that can be more than 550 kilometers (341 miles).
On its part, MEB will be used in parallel with the newest generation of MQB, one to underpin electric cars, the other conventional ones. MEB will be used across a total of five brands and in three regions of the world.
Word is production of the e-tron GT will begin in 2020 at the Neckarsulm site in Germany. The model will be just one of 12 electric models Audi will be producing by 2025.
The offensive will start next year, with the introduction of the e-Tron Sportback. From 2020, classic body layouts like the Avant will also be electrified.
Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies. Full profile
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