A DIFFERENT SORT OF SPORT (some text hidden) SECTIONED_new_audiq8sportbacketron_2023

By Jonathan Crouch

Audi's Q8 Sportback e-tron is a large SUV that's somehow re-invented itself. Jonathan Crouch drives it.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 86

Audi's Q8 e-tron large luxury full-electric SUV is offered with a smarter look in the form of this Q8 Sportback e-tron model. Like the standard SUV version, this Coupe-SUV derivative offers the choice of two battery sizes and two or three-motor drive options. The Q8 e-tron is the only model in the class offering two body style alternatives and this, the sleeker variant, makes more sense now it can deliver class-competitive driving range. Plus, as before, it's difficult to better in terms of practicality and refinement.

Backgroundword count: 218

What's possibly the least environmentally sensible vehicle genre on the market? That for sporting large coupe-styled luxury SUVs would have to be right up there, cars like the BMW X6, the Mercedes GLE Coupe and the Audi Q8. Could a car of this sort ever be really socially responsible? Could a car of this kind ever be really dynamic and rewarding to drive? With this Q8 Sportback e-tron model, Audi thinks it can be. This car, as its name suggests, is a fastback version of the brand's regular Q8 e-tron, the company's large full-electric EV, which was launched in its original form back in 2019 (badged then simply as the 'e-tron') to battle segment rivals like Jaguar's I-PACE and the Mercedes EQC. The e-tron Sportback, a sleeker, swoopier Gran Turismo version of that SUV, was unveiled in 2020 and sold better than its boxier showroom stablemate. But it was hampered by the same things that hampered the e-tron SUV, primarily heavy weight and batteries that weren't large or dense enough to provide the driving range that rivals could offer. Hence the update that in late 2022 transformed the e-tron Sportback into the Q8 Sportback e-tron model we look at here. Behind the different badgework, the car is basically the same. But the proposition it offers is very different.

Driving Experienceword count: 331

The reason why not enough people bought the e-tron Sportback in its original form wasn't hard to fathom; driving range. The base '50' version could only take you 212 miles, less than some EV superminis. Forget all that now: the offending 71kWh battery of that old car has been junked in favour of the much gutsier 95kWh one of the base Q8 50 Sportback e-tron model that takes the car (a still not exemplary) 281 miles. If you want to do better, the pricier Q8 55 Sportback e-tron variant your dealer will prefer to persuade you into has a huge 114kWh battery capable of 330 miles between charges, which is much more like it. Both models still have motor on each axle, hence the quattro four-wheel drive system designation. The rear one though, has been improved, now with 14 coils instead of the previous 12, which pushes power up to 340PS in the Q8 50 Sportback e-tron, 27PS more than before. The Q8 55 Sportback e-tron has the same 664Nm torque figure, but serves up 408PS. If you want more, you'll be steered towards the top tri-motor SQ8 Sportback model, basically the old e-tron S Sportback, which means you get an extra motor at the back. With that, there's 503PS and an enormous 973Nm of torque, powering the car to a top speed of 130mph. Across the range, sprightly performance depends on selection of a 'Dynamic' drive mode that rather decimates the quoted range figures; to get closer to those, you'll need to keep more regularly in the drive select system's 'Auto', 'Comfort' or 'Efficiency' settings. Air suspension is standard with all Q8 Sportback e-tron variants and the ride height can be adjusted, with the 'Efficiency' mode lowering it by 27mm and 'Off-road' mode (yes, there is one) raising the car by 52mm. The steering's still Q5-derived, while much of the suspension uses Q7 bits. As with other electric cars, the low centre of gravity should help in reducing body roll.

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