Why don’t automakers drop the gimmicks and simply build a normal-looking EV? It’s a question that's haunted me since mainstream industry players went chasing after Tesla nearly a decade ago, stamping out imitator after imitator, draping their low-drag capsules in the least-imaginative bodywork you could ever design.
Audi finally produced a response to this very question. It’s called the Q6 e-tron. It drops the jellybean conventions of current EV design for a gorgeous, upright mid-size crossover look that just so happens to move around on electrons. My prediction: Audi's going to sell a ton of these things.
| Quick Specs | 2025 Audi Q6 e-tron / Q6 e-tron quattro / SQ6 e-tron |
| Battery | 94.4 net Kilowatt-Hours |
| Motor | Single Rear (Q6 Base) / Dual (Q6 Quattro) / Dual (SQ6 Quattro) |
| Peak Output | 322 Horsepower (Base) / 456 Horsepower (Q6 Quattro) / 509 Horsepower (SQ6 e-tron) |
| Range | 321 Miles (Base) / 307 Miles (Q6 Quattro) / 275 (SQ6 e-tron) |
| Base Price (Destination Included) | $65,095 (Base) / $67,095 (Q6 Quattro) / $74,195 (SQ6 e-tron) |
So what’s new here? Well, mostly everything. Audi is in the midst of what it has described as the largest model initiative in company history. They’ll launch or majorly redesign 20 new models by the end of 2026, including four all-new model lines.
The company’s nomenclature will also change to reflect these changing times. Odd-numbered model lines like the Audi Q5 will henceforth be powered by internal combustion. Even-numbered cars, like this very Q6, will be EVs.
Easy.
Underpinning many of these even-numbered next-gen vehicles is Audi’s Premium Platform Electric (PPE), the skateboard on which Ingolstodt shall ride headlong into the future. Compared to the previous generation of E-Tron models, PPE offers 30 percent less energy consumption and 33 percent better system performance, along with reduced dimensions, weight, and number of EV components. Its cooling and architecture have been better optimized for performance as well. These are nontrivial improvements.
In this case, PPE pairs to a newly designed front axle, a rigidly mounted steering rack for better feel, and available adaptive air suspension on the Q6 and its sportier sister car—the SQ6 E-Tron—which we also drove. That’s all great, but PPE won’t necessarily seduce buyers on efficiency claims, which is not to say it’s inefficient—just that people are tired of the way most EV crossovers look, no matter their power, performance, and range.
An Audi product manager said customers had recently started to reject EV design in the market, choosing gas-powered vehicles over competitive EVs specifically because EVs were so concerned with visually broadcasting their… EV-ness.
This was entirely predictable.
Pros: Good looks, Silent Cabin, Plush Ride
So Audi rejected these ugly EV conventions by returning to some classic conventions of its own. There are no slab sides on the Q6 e-tron or its high-performance SQ6 cousin. Instead, there’s a pair of swollen blister-style fenders, underpinned by taut creases that strake along the side of the Q6 to create interesting and athletic angles. Plus an upright cabin sits above a moderate beltline, and there's a tapered greenhouse aft of the D-pillar that makes the Q6 look just a touch more athletic.
A set of fender flares swing proud of the fenders, hovering above the 255- and 285-section tires, front and rear, respectively. The wheelbase stretches to 114.0 inches, with short overhangs at the front and rear.
It’s all straight out of a proven playbook; This is a great-looking crossover, in my opinion, a stick in the eye of those jellybean conventions that put a stick in the eye of most car shoppers. Audi claims these taut body lines accomplish another purpose: distinguishing Audi from its competitors. Panels like the rear quarter of the Q6 are more difficult to mass produce than comparable panels with smooth, ingot-like surfaces.
To some extent, Audi is making these complex panels because they are difficult to produce; Because other automakers can’t make them. It’s an interesting thought, and one I hope abounds in the near future. Every brand should chase handsome stuff that’s hard to build, rather than apeing chintzy-looking trash.
So the Q6 looks great on the outside, with only some “e-tron” badging and a body-color-matched nose panel in place of a slotted grille to betray its battery-powered powertrain. And the interior follows suit. It won’t surprise many readers that the Q6’s cabin is a lovely place to do some driving. That doesn’t mean there’s a similar reversion to tradition in the cabin, however. This cabin embraces Audi's specific blend of slick futurism, rather than that sense of whitewashed minimalism that bleaches the character from many EVs in the segment.
It is still 2024, however, so this luxurious space is packed with screens. These screens are however executed quite well, information-dense but not visually overwhelming. Simple but handsome. Effective at conveying essential information quickly without any faffing.
The main single curved display panel cants toward the driver, housing an 11.9-inch Audi OLED "Virtual Cockpit" that sits dead ahead of the driver while a central 14.5-inch touch OLED screen fills the right side of the curved display.
Cons: Middling Range, Busy Head-Up Display
Optionally, there’s a third screen ahead of the passenger that, using some neat filter technology, automatically turns off for the driver (but not the passenger) when video is playing. That means your passenger can enjoy season 3 of White Lotus while you’re on a road trip and it won’t distract the driver except for all the screaming terror and moaning that’s sure to come through the stereo.
Included in that three-screen package is Audi’s voice assistant. Simply say "Hey Audi" and you can adjust most anything that needs adjusting in the cabin. I asked about everything from basic math to complex instructions and found the system to be mostly serviceable.
"Hey Audi" works really well for processes that’d otherwise take a handful of touches on the center stack to reach. For example, "Hey Audi" is useful when asked to turn your head-up display on or off, or to adjust the volume of the voice instructions shouting through a speaker in your headrest; If you want to adjust any aspect of the car itself, that’s “Hey Audi” territory.
If however you have broader queries about the weather or air quality, or you need directions to the hotel, it’s a crap shoot, seemingly tied to whether or not the car has a data connection at that time, and/or whether you phrased the question in a way that the car can understand.
At any rate, it’s refreshing to use an OEM voice assistant (albeit Android-powered) that won’t turn on at every mention of "Audi," but does seem truly keyed in to the “Hey Audi” prompt. (We’re looking at you here, BMW, and with more than some disdain).
Finally, there’s a HUD that overdoes it with animations and information. No doubt you can adjust the amount of information that’s displayed by the HUD, but I found this one particularly distracting, and after a bit of poking around, elected to turn it off for most of our day spent driving on the good roads in California wine country, north of San Francisco.
Now, the Q6 e-tron is not explicitly a “performance” EV, unless your idea of “performance” is sitting in near silence, enjoying some music and the civilized ride and a quiet conversation with your passenger. During their presentation, Audi staff were at pains to describe the Q6 in terms of normalcy, rather than performance spreadsheets. While I’m careful not to buy into the narratives PRs pitch to the media (if the handling was a mess, for example, there'd be a lot of messaging about tuning for "comfort"), it’s also not useful to reflexively throw them out.
This is indeed a deeply comfortable vehicle with a refined ride and some of the finest noise isolation in the business. Shorn of ICE noises that penetrate the cabin (but that also mask annoying frequencies, squeaks, and rumbles), the Q6's interior was damned near silent for the majority of my drive. At low speeds in many other SUVs, you hear the annoying thrum of pedestrian warning systems—issued to those in the vicinity of the car—from inside the cabin (the Silverado EV is the most egregious offender). Not the case here.
Audi must’ve absolutely packed this interior with sound deadening. I didn’t have a decibel meter on either drive, but the Q6 E-Tron seemed to have a quieter interior than the Land Rover Range Rover Sport SV (at $180,000) I drove recently, and with less road and drivetrain noise.
The Q6 rides comfortably too, courtesy of an optional air suspension. Abrupt compressions elicit a controlled, smooth response from the suspension. Even if the springs themselves feel quite stiff, body motions from this 5000-plus pound SUV are well-controlled. Its cabin is big enough for my 6-foot-one-inch frame in every seat. Comfortably big, too. Not just passable.
Despite hedging the Q6’s character toward grocery runs and daily commutes, on a winding California two-lane, the Q6 is a fine-enough thing to hustle. Not a pair of knife-edged teeth, mind you, but not dissimilar enough from its sharper SQ6 cousin that it’d spend the extra money to jump up to the S model.
Then again, this SUV is so laid back and quiet that I honestly didn’t feel compelled to chuck it into every corner. This is a luxury vehicle in the most traditional sense; It's not necessarily one that trades in off-road capability or backroad prowess. It’s just very good to look at and very nice to relax in. If we’re honest about what most mid-size luxury crossover buyers need, this is the right vehicle.
There are a few choices within the range for prospective buyers to make.
The rear-wheel-drive Q6 e-tron, powered by a single rear motor that develops 322 horsepower and yields 321 miles of electric range, starts at $65,095 with destination fees included. The Q6 e-tron Quattro adds a front motor that usually stays off, except for when traction or acceleration demands it. That’s priced at $67,095 for 456 hp and 307 miles of electric range. The SQ6 jumps the price to $74,195, but adds about 50 horsepower and decreases the 0-60 mph time from 4.9 seconds (with the Q6 e-tron quattro) to 4.1 seconds.
Thanks to that new Audi PPE 800-volt architecture, all models can charge from 10 to 80 percent in about 21 minutes. That means adding 135 miles of driving range in about 10 minutes when the batteries are in a low state of charge. Wireless Carplay and Android Auto come standard.
My pick of the bunch? Go with the base car if you live in a dry climate. In most driving situations, the front electric drive unit is off, which means that with the Q6 e-tron quattro and the SQ6, you’re usually hauling extra weight along without benefit. Plus the base car gets the longest range.
Otherwise, the Quattro upgrade doesn’t cost much (about $2,000), adds some meaningful grunt, and includes a front axle that’ll help out when traction goes squiffy. For many Americans, this is your Goldilocks pick. I’d even say it’s good value. That's the pick I'd actually make for my life up here in the Pacific Northwest.
The SQ6 is for those who want the most-expensive one in the range, with a sportier and well-appointed interior you won’t find on the less-expensive models. But the steering calibration, braking performance, powertrain response, body control, and chassis from the Q6 Quattro and SQ6 felt so similar to me, I wouldn’t spring for the SQ6 unless I was willing to accept a meaningful decrease in range and had money burning a hole in my pocket(s). Some people have to have the best by default; I am not among them.
With any of these trims, I think Audi has a winner on its hands. The Q5 will be along shortly—very similar in design, quality, dynamics, and execution, I’m told—but powered by a traditional ICE powertrain. Finally, consumers have two choices in the same vein, neither one so far down their own lane that they leave a void in the middle where normies would be best served.
With any of these trims, I think Audi has a winner on its hands.
Those with a standard commute and a garage to charge and store their mid-size Audi crossover would likely be best served by the Q6 E-Tron. It's quiet, handsome, dignified, and feels a cut above its midsize competition in finishing and build quality. Those who need flexibility on road trips, or who don’t want to suffer EV infrastructure outside their home, can choose the familiar Q5.
I’m just grateful that finally, either choice can be the correct one, with no gimmicks involved in the equation.
Competitors
2025 Audi Q6 Base / SQ6 E-Tron
