Audi A6 e-tron review
The superb Audi A6 e-tron has a wide appeal, making it the best executive EV from the brand to date
Our opinion on the Audi A6 e-tron
Audi took its sweet time finalising an all-electric executive car, but it has been worth the wait. This sleek, comfortable, refined, and tech-filled model hits all the right notes – tight rear seats notwithstanding. Of more importance are its impressive electric range and the fact that it is also available in a more practical estate (or Avant in Audi-speak). The latter is good news for those seeking extra space but in a more aerodynamic package than an SUV.
About the Audi A6 e-tron
Audi released a number of EVs prior to the A6 e-tron’s arrival, but this is among the brand’s first ground-up EVs based on its own PPE platform.
Admittedly, we’ve already seen a couple of cars on this platform – the Porsche Macan Electric and Audi Q6 e-tron – but the A6 e-tron is arguably the most interesting because it goes up against the big-selling electric executive car elite. In fact, Audi expects this car to be one of its biggest sellers.
Our expert road testers have driven several variants of the latest Audi A6, and this review focuses specifically on the Audi A6 e-tron Sportback. If you’d prefer an electric estate car, be sure to check out our in-depth Audi A6 Avant e-tron review or, if you’d rather do without a plug, we also have dedicated reviews of the regular Audi A6 and Audi A6 Avant.
Audi A6 e-tron prices and latest deals
The Audi A6 e-tron line-up is arranged around three powertrains and four trim levels, with prices ranging between £62,500 and £74,000. If you want to upgrade to the sportier Audi S6 e-tron, prices start at around £92,500 and go up to £100,000.
Used - available now
You can build your perfect Audi A6 e-tron through the Auto Express Buy a Car service to get offers from our nationwide network of dealers. We also have a selection of A6 e-tron leasing deals to choose from, and can even help you to sell your car.
Performance & driving experience
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The architecture underneath the latest A6 e-tron was co-developed with Porsche and also underpins the electric Porsche Cayenne. There are pros and cons to such an arrangement, but luckily for Audi, the A6 has much to be positive about, starting with the driving experience.
What the A6 is not, though, is cumbersome to drive. It’s around 165kg lighter than an equivalent Mercedes EQE with a similarly sized battery, and matches the weight of a BMW i5 despite having a significantly larger capacity battery. Because of this, Audi hasn’t bothered with chassis aids such as rear-wheel steering or active anti-roll systems, which helps to promote a natural driving experience and reduce weight and complexity. The A6 e-tron is a car that feels designed from the outset to handle its mass rather than employ convoluted solutions to hide it.
| Model | Power | 0-62mph | Top speed |
| A6 e-tron (standard) | 282bhp (321bhp with launch control) | 7.0 seconds (6.0 seconds with launch control) | 130mph |
| A6 e-tron Performance | 362bhp (375bhp with launch control) | 5.4 seconds | 130mph |
| A6 e-tron Quattro | 422bhp (455bhp with launch control) | 4.7 seconds (4.5 seconds with launch control) | 130mph |
| S6 e-tron | 496bhp (543bhp with launch control) | 4.1 seconds (3.9 seconds with launch control) | 149mph |
Electric motors, 0-60mph acceleration and top speed
Entry-level models have an 83kWh battery and a single, rear-mounted e-motor that produces up to 321bhp and 423Nm of torque. This will get the A6 from 0-62mph in six seconds flat using launch control (seven seconds without), with a limited top speed of 130mph.
Next up is the ‘Performance’ powertrain, which retains a single motor layout but ups the power to 362bhp and torque to 565Nm, meaning the 0-62mph time drops to 5.4 seconds. At the top of the core A6 line-up, though, is the dual-motor quattro variant, with 422bhp and 580Nm of torque dropping the 0-62mph time again down to just 4.5 seconds using launch control (4.7 seconds without).
Naturally, the progression from the A6 e-tron to the S6 e-tron results in a power upgrade up to 543bhp while the torque remains unchanged at 580Nm.
Town driving, visibility and parking
The A6 e-tron certainly isn’t petite, so narrow streets require a fair degree of concentration. Aside from this, driving through the city is a stress-free and comfortable experience, thanks to the suspension's ability to soak up imperfections, even when the car is fitted with larger wheels.
Country road driving and handling
Hit the B-roads, and you can soon tell that there’s some real class to the A6’s chassis. It’s a big car with depth to its engineering, because every aspect of the driving experience feels resolved and well considered. The steering is accurate and sharp, while the brake pedal has a very good feel, with a seamless transition between the powerful regen and friction braking methods.
Motorway driving and long-distance comfort
It might be electric, but the A6 e-tron still performs like a typical big Audi on a cruise. There’s more than enough oomph from every powertrain to get up to speed and overtake, and the suspension maintains an effortless gait; our test car rode well at higher speeds despite being fitted with the largest 21-inch wheels. However, one aspect that lets the side down is too much tyre noise.
“We preferred to drive with the adaptive regenerative braking setting turned off; as with all systems of its type, it’s unpredictable, and the inconsistent response is a little unnerving.” – Alex Ingram, Auto Express special contributor.
Range, charging & running costs
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The Audi A6 e-tron Performance boasts the longest range figure of the A6 e-tron line-up, and it’s literally miles ahead of many rivals, including those from BMW and Mercedes. This 463-mile figure is derived from both the 100kWh battery pack and the fact that the Audi is also more efficient than its main competitors, with an on-paper rating of 4.4mi/kWh.
During our own real-world testing, we achieved an average of 3.9mi/kWh. Although this is short of the claim, it’s still a very impressive number, even more so when considering the hilly terrain on our test route and the large 21-inch wheels on our car. These produce greater rolling resistance than smaller wheel sizes.
For context, a close rival to our A6 Performance S-Line is BMW’s i5 40e M Sport, which has a 110-mile deficit in EV range, returning only 351 miles on the WLTP combined cycle. The Audi is also ahead of the 428 miles that a Mercedes EQE350+ AMG-Line is claimed to be capable of, and if you’re tempted by the larger 21-inch wheels on the Merc, they’ll cost you another 50 miles of range on paper.
Both the standard 83kWh and optional 100kWh battery pack in the A6 e-tron have the same peak charging speed of 270kW. The larger pack is fitted as standard on the S6 e-tron. On a suitably powerful rapid charger, you’ll be able to top both up from 10 to 80 per cent capacity in around 21 minutes. Utilising a typical 7kW home wallbox charger, it’ll take a little over 12 hours to fully recharge the 83kWh battery, while the 100kWh unit will take just over 15 hours due to its greater capacity.
| Model | Battery size | Range | Insurance group |
| A6 e-tron Sport | 83kWh | 384 miles | 43 |
| A6 e-tron Sport Performance | 100kWh | 463 miles | 44 |
| A6 e-tron Sport Quattro | 100kWh | 438 miles | 48 |
| S6 e-tron Black Edition | 100kWh | 409 miles | 50 |
Insurance groups
The A6 e-tron’s insurance costs are very similar to those of direct BMW and Mercedes rivals. This means that premiums won’t come cheap; the A6 e-tron starts in group 43 (out of 50) for the rear-wheel drive Sport, rising all the way to group 50 for the high-performance S6. The BMW i5, meanwhile, also sits between groups 43 and 50.
Tax
The Audi A6 e-tron benefits from the lowest applicable company car tax rates, but this model’s premium status and pricing mean it’s very much on the wrong side of the £50,000 electric luxury car tax threshold. This adds a further £440 to be on top of your standard annual vehicle excise duty (VED) road tax bill, and this additional surcharge applies between the second and sixth year after registration.
Depreciation
The A6 e-tron is expected to hold on to its value better than its i5 and EQE rivals. According to our market data, after a typical ownership period of three years or 36,000 miles, the A6 e-tron will retain between 47 and 51 per cent of its original value.
In contrast, the BMW i5 saloon only manages 36 and 39 per cent after the same period, while the Mercedes EQE retains 30 to 35 per cent.
Interior, design & technology
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Regardless of colour choice, wheel design or whether you’re looking at the Sportback or less rakish Avant, the A6 e-tron is a striking car. There’s a lot to take in, as the design is fairly complex, yet also slightly generic at the same time.
Audi’s designers have done well to hide the PPE platform’s inherently high floor through oversized graphics along the car’s lower flanks, and the super-slim windows and lights help the overall design look very sleek. However, it doesn’t exactly scream Audi.
Interior and dashboard design
The interior, which has typically been a high point for an Audi on executive models, is pretty complex, thanks to an array of materials, shapes and colours crammed into a relatively small space.
The dashboard architecture is dominated by a massive curved dual-screen display positioned at the top. Yet no matter your driving position, it never rises above the windscreen base, and thanks to the curve, everything is within easy reach.
This cliff of high-gloss display can initially be a little intimidating, but the clean, largely minimal graphics help reduce visual clutter, with varying degrees of success.
The key controls are still easy to access, with a volume knob, constantly visible on-screen temperature controls, and even a physical button to deselect the lane-keep assist are all within easy reach. There’s also a bank of secondary switchgear on the door panel, resembling a TV remote, that controls the lights, mirrors, windows, and door locks. While it initially looks a little complicated, it doesn’t take long to master and brings all these elements out on a touchscreen.
Materials and build quality
There are a lot of glossy black elements, especially around the centre console, but this is offset by plenty of other nice materials regardless of whether you’ve chosen the standard synthetic leather, high-quality full-leather upgrade or full-fabric options.
Infotainment, sat-nav and stereo
The A6 e-tron’s bank of screens consists of a 14.5-inch main touchscreen and an 11.9-inch driver’s display, which share the same resolution and brightness, creating a seamless interface.
They do need some navigating to get to know, but it’s easy enough to shortcut to common functions, such as disabling various driver aids or programming the embedded sat-nav.
However, the main menu system arguably lacks a little bit of hierarchy, as more and less important features are quite difficult to distinguish between, especially given the monochrome icons.
On the plus side, response, feedback and consistency are all good, if not quite at Tesla levels of crispness, but it doesn’t take long to understand how the navigation system, radio, climate or online services work, plus they all feel intuitive when in use. Climate functions are all controlled on the screen, but key functions such as temperature and fan speed are all housed in a big, dedicated bar at the bottom of the screen.
It can be a little tricky for passengers to access the screen because it curves towards the driver, but high-spec models have a third passenger display that alleviates this issue. However, while it is a useful addition, you can’t access Apple CarPlay or Android Auto on it, which somewhat limits its integration. If you stick to the main Audi interface, it is undeniably useful, allowing passengers to change radio stations or enter new destinations into the nav without disrupting the driver's main displays.
Those who want the high-end Bang & Olufsen stereo and head-up display will need to plump for the optional Technology Pack for around £3,200. This comes with a few other goodies, including the full ambient lighting upgrade and higher-spec USB-C charge points.
“We’d steer clear of the ‘virtual’ side mirrors. They’re better than other examples of this tech we’ve tried, but they still make parking manoeuvres unnecessarily trickier than with traditional mirrors.” – Alex Ingram, Auto Express special contributor.
Boot space & practicality
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The Audi A6 e-tron is shorter than both its BMW i5 and Mercedes EQE competitors, and although it still looks like a sizable car on the outside, this executive EV is a bit lacking in outright passenger space.
Dimensions and size
The latest A6 e-tron isn’t quite as long as its combustion-engined predecessor, but it does come with a longer wheelbase, a little more width, and a bit more height to offer some more room inside.
| Dimensions comparison | |||
| Model | Audi A6 Sportback e-tron | BMW i5 | Mercedes EQE |
| Length | 4,928mm | 5,060mm | 4,964mm |
| Width | 2,137mm | 1,900mm | 1,961mm |
| Height | 1,455mm | 1,515mm | 1,510mm |
| Wheelbase | 2,950mm | 3,000mm | 3,120mm |
| Boot space | 502 litres | 490 litres | 430 litres |
Seats & passenger space
Given the sizable exterior dimensions of the A6 e-tron, you’d be forgiven for assuming that it’ll be very spacious inside. Upfront, this is very much the case for the A6 e-tron, with a wide range of adjustment in the seats and steering wheel. All versions come with four-way electric lumbar adjustment as standard.
If there’s one problem to contend with, though, it's cabin space in the back. To fit the batteries, the cabin floor is quite high, and with the heavily sloping roofline, the rear bench feels cramped as a result. This is compounded by a dark headliner that makes the space feel even smaller, but you can alleviate this somewhat by ordering the optional glass roof and light interior trim options. Better yet, the Audi A6 Avant e-tron is a better bet for taller passengers in the back thanks to its higher roofline.
Interior storage is fairly good, with a decent-sized glovebox and centre console, but the door bins are too small for larger bottles.
Boot space
The boot space is more generous than the back seat accommodation. At 502 litres, there’s more space here than you’ll find in the BMW i5 and Mercedes EQE. The Audi also has a very handy underbonnet area of 27 litres to store your inevitably grubby charge cables,
Remarkably, both the Sportback and Avant have the same boot capacity with the seats up. However, the estate has the edge over the regular hatchback when the 40/20/40 split folding rear seats are down, increasing the boot capacity from 1,330 litres to 1,422 litres.
“You get a healthy 2,100kg towing capacity with the A6 e-tron, which is far more generous than the 1,500kg maximum the BMW i5 is rated for.” Max Adams, online reviews editor.
Reliability & safety
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Audi has acquired a comprehensive safety record over the years, and the A6 e-tron is no exception. It received a maximum five-star rating from Euro NCAP when tested in 2025. It could have done better in the vulnerable road user category, because not every model comes with a safety system that prevents occupants from opening the doors into the path of approaching cyclists or motorbikes.
As a brand-new model, there’s not a huge amount of data to go on regarding reliability, and given that it uses a fresh platform, there could be one or two teething issues. However, lessons learned from the rollout of other VW Group models should help iron out any problems.
Audi has improved its previous 2024 Driver Power manufacturer ranking from 27th out of 32 to 19th out of 31 brands in the 2025 survey. However, that still means it falls behind its biggest competitors, like BMW in eighth place, or Mercedes up in second.
| Euro NCAP safety ratings | |
| Euro NCAP safety rating | Five stars (2025) |
| Adult occupant protection | 92% |
| Child occupant protection | 91% |
| Vulnerable road user protection | 75% |
| Safety assist | 80% |
Buying and owning
- Best buy: Audi A6 e-tron Sport Performance
For the best value for money, we’d recommend the entry-level Sport. It comes very well equipped with all the items you really need and saves a significant amount of money compared with the mid-range S-Line, which could be better spent on upgrading to the Performance version with the larger-capacity battery pack (up from 83kWh to 100kWh).
This battery will afford you well over 400 miles of driving range, which is incredibly important for long distance drivers who would traditionally buy these sorts of cars and would have gone for a diesel engine.
Audi A6 e-tron alternatives
As with just about any other Audi, the A6 e-tron faces two key rivals from its generations-long German competitors. The BMW i5 and Mercedes EQE do come with their own merits, but neither can match this car’s outright battery range. If you’re prepared to look further afield, the Volvo ES90 is another attractive alternative.
Key updates of the Audi A6 e-tron review
6 May 2026: Latest driving impressions and depreciation data.
Frequently Asked Questions
Audi only offers a 60,000-mile or three-year standard warranty, which feels a little bit tight compared to the three-year, unlimited mileage warranty policies of its BMW and Mercedes competitors. It feels even more disappointing when there are so many more affordable cars out there that now offer far longer seven-year/100,000-mile policies.
Deals on the A6 e-tron and alternatives
