Audi’s Elegant E-Tron GT Transforms From Movie Star To Real Car

Audi has consistently showcased its future vehicles in various high-profile movie roles, including the stunning Audi e-tron GT driven by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) in April 2019’s Avengers Endgame. Approximately 2 years after that film’s debut the production version of the Audi e-tron GT will arrive in dealer showrooms, looking just as cutting edge as it appeared with Iron Man at the wheel.

Even before you see the e-tron GT in Endgame you hear it, which is intriguing because the e-tron GT is 100% electric. Some of what you hear is tire squeal, coming from the car’s maximum output of 590 horsepower and 612 pound-feet of torque, but there’s an unmistakable...whirring(?) tone that rises and falls as the e-tron GT approaches the Avenger’s HQ. Audi calls this “e-tron sport sound” and it’s created by dual amplifiers in the luggage compartment that can change volume and tone based on driver mode and how the vehicle is being driven at any given moment.

What is the Audi e-tron GT?

This combination of factors — striking design, capable performance, and advanced technology, is really the theme of the Audi e-tron GT. The e-tron GT’s designer, Marc Lichte, says Audi’s electric vehicles will be the brand’s most attractive vehicles because proportions are the basis for great design. And electric drivetrains, with their low-mounted batteries, simplified drivetrains, and unique cooling needs, lend themselves to the low hood, clean grille, slim rooflines, short overhangs, and large wheels that are the basis for great design.

Take a long look at the e-tron GT and it’s difficult to argue with Lichte’s position. The wide body, punctuated by flared and sculpted wheel wells (Audi calls them “Quattro muscles”) located at the vehicle’s corners, and contrasted by narrow roof pillars, gives the e-tron GT a planted, purposeful profile. High-tech LED taillights and headlights (with optional laser high beams) feature a narrow, segmented pattern that provides unique animations when approaching or departing the vehicle. With a mere 0.24 coefficient of drag, and a top speed of 155 mph, the e-tron GT’s sleek appearance is as functional as it is beautiful.

What is the Audi e-tron GT’s interior like?

The e-tron GT’s beauty is more than skin deep. The exterior’s theme of technology and spaciousness dominates the cabin design, with Audi’s 12.3-inch “virtual cockpit” gauge cluster and 10.1-inch MMI central touchscreen sitting above a two-piece dash that flows into the door panels. A wool-like material, with contrasting stitching in a honeycomb design, gives the seats a premium look and feel — despite coming from recycled and sustainable materials, including water bottles. Options include a head-up display and Bang & Olufsen audio system.

How fast is the Audi e-tron GT?

Specific e-tron GT performance numbers will vary, depending on which model a buyer chooses. The base e-tron GT quattro features a 470 hp/464 lb-ft electric all-wheel-drive system good for zero to 60 in 4.1 seconds and a top speed of 152 mph. The battery is a 93 kWh unit with 85 kWh of usable capacity, providing the e-tron GT an approximately 300-mile range. It’s mounted below the floor and seats, giving the e-tron GT a low center of gravity and near 50:50 weight distribution between the front and rear axles.

The more performance-oriented RS e-tron quattro has the above-mentioned 590 hp/612 lb-ft of torque, good for a zero-to-60 time of 3.3 seconds and a top speed of 155 mph. Both models feature thermal management with four cooling circuits, as well as preconditioning technology to use DC fast chargers. Wheel sizes range from 19 to 21 inches, with optional carbon-ceramic brakes. Four-wheel steering is available on both models, while an adaptive air suspension comes standard on the RS and is optional on the e-tron GT quattro.

How much will the Audi e-tron GT cost?

Audi hasn’t released U.S. pricing for the e-tron GT yet, but in Germany the e-tron GT quattro will start at $120,550 and the RS e-tron quattro will cost $166,938.