Audi Q6 e-tron review

Introduction

It's been a busy time for Audi launches, and the flood of new models began with the car we're reviewing here – the Audi Q6 e-tron.

So what exactly is the Q6? Well – as the Q in its name suggests – it's an SUV, but this one's fully electric. Officially, it slots between the Audi Q4 e-tron and the Audi Q8 e-tron in the German brand's range. Unofficially? The Q8 e-tron has been axed, leaving the Q6 with some rather big boots to fill.

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100kWh Vorsprung Sportback 5dr Electric Auto quattro (428 ps)

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That means it’s fighting on two fronts. Entry-level versions will go toe-to-toe with the next BMW iX3 and the ever-dominant (in sales at least) Tesla Model Y. Meanwhile, pricier long-range Q6s will need to fend off the Mercedes EQE SUV and Polestar 3. No pressure, then.

Still, the fundamentals look strong. It sits on an all-new car platform shared with the Porsche Macan Electric, has cutting-edge battery tech, and promises competitive charging speeds.

Time to find out if the Audi Q6 e-tron can deliver the knock-out punch to its rival electric SUVs...

What’s new
- May 2024: Entry-level 302bhp rear-wheel drive Q6 e-tron joins range
- April 2024: Q6 e-tron on sale in the UK with Sport, S line, Edition 1 trims
- March 2024: Q6 e-tron unveiled with 100kWh battery. Developed with Porsche; 383bhp Q6 e-tron
quattro and 510bhp SQ6 e-tron quattro available

Overview

The Audi Q6 e-tron is a quiet electric SUV with a great range and decent practicality, but it's not cheap and the interior quality could be better for the money. Unless you really need quattro-level traction, we'd go for the rear-wheel drive Sport Performance version – it's the sharpest to drive and most efficient. The Porsche Macan Electric is better still and might just be worth paying a bit extra for.

Our pick

100kWh Performance Sport SUV 5dr Electric Auto (306 ps) review

RRP £64,065

Pros

• Competitive range
• Super-quiet on the move
• Fast charging potential

Cons

• Expensive
• Interior quality not as impressive as you might expect
• Slow-speed ride can be brittle

Our pick

100kWh Performance Sport SUV 5dr Electric Auto (306 ps) review

RRP £64,065

Trims available

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S line

Upgrading to mid-spec S line brings bigger alloys, sportier styling touches and a flat-bottomed steering wheel, but nothing of any real substance. We'd stick with Sport trim.

Sport

Gets you everything you’ll probably want, including 19in alloys, keyless entry, adaptive cruise control and a heat pump, for more efficient warming of the interior in cooler weather.

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Performance & drive

What it's like to drive, and how quiet it is

The term Q-car was used for sensible-looking models with rapid performance long before Audi started building Q-badged SUVs, but it suits the Q6 e-tron well. You see, the Q6 is surprisingly quick for what looks like a sensible SUV.

Most versions are single motor and rear-wheel drive, including the entry-level and least powerful Sport, but even that does 0-62mph in seven seconds. So, hardly slow. At the other end of the scale, the 383bhp, dual-motor, four-wheel drive Sport quattro slashes the sprint time to 5.9sec – and that's definitely not slow. It's hot-hatch territory.

Yet, because the Q6 is so smooth and quiet, the acceleration never feels as dramatic as the numbers suggest. Yes, the scenery flies by at an ever-increasing rate, but sat inside, the sensation is more like the seamless surge of a jet taking off rather than the neck-snapping rush of a sports car.

That’s why we’d plump for the mid-level, single-motor, Sport Performance – the Goldilocks option, if you will. With 322bhp, it’s not quite as powerful as the Sport quattro, but it still feels punchy and hits 62mph in 6.6sec.

Plus, the Sport Performance has the longest official range at 393 miles. Officially, the Sport quattro is just under that at 382 miles, while the Sport, in theory, runs for up to 326 miles on a single charge. The reason that the Sport falls short by such a margin is because it has a smaller, 75.8kWh (usable) capacity battery; the Performance and Sport quattro get a bigger 94.9kWh battery.

With that kind of potential range on tap, it's good that the Q6 is a very relaxing long-distance companion. Pick the entry-level Sport trim (confusingly, Audi uses the Sport name for the cheapest drivetrain and the cheapest trim) and it comes with 19in wheels. They produce very little road noise and the Q6 suppresses wind noise well, too – it's better than the Porsche Macan Electric in that respect. Just bear in mind that bigger wheels do introduce more noise from the tyres, which is why the Edition 1 trim – with 21in wheels – isn't as quiet at speed.

Talking of speed, on faster roads, the Q6's ride is really composed, with less fidget than the firmer Tesla Model Y. Around town it’s a different story, though. The ride turns brittler over urban scars and potholes, reminding you that this is still a hefty electric SUV on conventional steel springs.

Ah, but surely there’s an air suspension option, like there is with the closely related Macan? Nope. That's reserved exclusively for the performance-focused SQ6, which is a real shame. Fit air suspension to the Macan and it's not only sharper to drive but also more comfortable, so it's a shame the option isn't there for the Q6.

Still, ask the Q6 e-tron to get you from A to B (where B happens to be on the other side of a mountain pass) and it will do so with calm precision. It's not as agile as the Polestar 3 and doesn't have the feelsome steering of the Macan, but it always goes exactly where you point it and body lean is relatively well contained.

What’s more, its regenerative braking system is well-judged. There's an adaptive setting that automatically adjusts how quickly the car slows when you lift off the accelerator – based on the traffic and road lay-out ahead. Or you can override it using paddles behind the steering wheel to set the regen-braking at a consistent level.

And when you need to use the actual brake pedal to slow down, it delivers far smoother, more predictable stopping power than the spongy pedal in the Mercedes EQE SUV.

“Such a shame that Audi offered air suspension with the early Launch Edition Q6 but you can only have it now with the SQ6. The Q6's ride quality around town was far more impressive with air suspension fitted." – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor

Interior

The interior layout, fit and finish

If you’ve owned an Audi model that was launched before about 2018, you’ll have been lucky enough to enjoy build quality and interior materials that put rivals' to shame. If you’re hoping for the same with the Q6 e-tron, you’ll be a little disappointed.

These things are relative, of course, and the Q6's interior does look really swish, with dramatic ambient lighting and up to three big screens. It’s just a shame that, while the dashboard is covered by either faux leather or suede, the hard and hollow-sounding plastics underneath feel a lot less plush to the touch.

Likewise, the tops of the doors are covered in a thin layer of squidgy plastic, which is certainly better than nothing. However, the attempt is more in line with the efforts of Kia or Land Rover than Polestar, Porsche – or, indeed, the team in charge of Audi interiors a few years ago.

The driving position is harder to fault. You feel like you’re in a big SUV, hovering high above the road with a penthouse view of where you’re headed. The seat is comfortable and really supportive, although you don’t get fully electric adjustment unless you go for range-topping Edition 1 trim (it's standard on a Polestar 3 or Porsche Macan Electric).

We mentioned the trio of screens, and the first is an 11.9in Virtual Cockpit behind the steering wheel. Next to that, behind the same curved pieces of glass, there’s a 14.5in infotainment touchscreen, which is bright, quick to react to touches and easy to use. In fact it’s one of the best infotainment screens in the electric SUV class.

In Edition 1 models, there’s another 10.9in touchscreen in front of the passenger. Because the main infotainment screen is angled towards the driver, it’s harder for the passenger to use – and the second screen solves the problem. It’s also polarised, so the driver doesn't see what’s displayed on it and get distracted.

You might even argue that there’s a fourth display on models with the Sound & Vision Pack: a head-up display beams your speed, warnings and animated navigation directions on to the windscreen. The pack also brings an upgraded sound system, with a speaker in the headrest to deliver navigation instructions and warning messages.

“Audi’s old infotainment system, with its physical rotary controller, was less distracting to use on the move than the touchscreen-based system in the Q6. That said, I love that the dashboard is curved towards the driver making the screen easy to reach.” – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor

Passenger & boot space

How it copes with people and clutter

The Audi Q6 e-tron is a sizeable SUV (almost 4.8 metres long) and just as practical as you might be hoping – as long as you have no more than four passengers. You see, like it's main rivals, it's a five-seater only.

Still, two or three passengers are really well catered for in the back. The seating position is comfortable (far more so than in a Tesla Model Y) and there’s more than enough leg and head room. Frankly, even the smaller Audi Q4 e-tron can accommodate two six-footers with space to spare, and the Q6 does it in an even more opulent fashion.

(If you want an electric seven-seater, your options include the similarly-priced Kia EV9 or the cheaper Mercedes EQB and Peugeot e-5008.)

The Q6 has 526 litres of boot space – so a little less than the closely related Porsche Macan Electric (540). That still beats the Mercedes EQE SUV (520 litres) and Polestar 3 (484 litres), and in truth all these cars are so spacious that they can easily swallow a couple of pushchairs, a set of golf clubs or enough luggage for a week away.

There’s a respectable amount of underfloor storage for the charging cable and the rear seats split in a handy 40/20/40 arrangement, so you can fold down the narrower central section and slide through longer items, while still leaving room for two rear passengers.

If you fork out an extra few hundred quid, you’ll gain a second 64-litre front boot under the bonnet, as well as some extra interior storage cubbies and a lockable glovebox. We’d argue this is a must-have option.

“The front boot is massively useful because it saves you having to throw a dirty charging cable in the main boot with your luggage, but I can’t help thinking that it should come as standard.” – Stuart Milne, Digital Editor

Buying & owning

Everyday costs, plus how reliable and safe it is

The Audi Q6 e-tron is a pricey option compared with relative mainstream offerings such as the MG IM6 and Tesla Model Y. However, the single-motor Q6 Sport Performance, which is the sweet spot of the range, is cheaper than the entry-level Porsche Macan Electric or a Polestar 3 Long Range Single Motor. In that company, the Mercedes EQE SUV stands out for all the wrong reasons, demanding a significant price premium.

Crucially, the Q6 is predicted to hold its value better than most electric SUV rivals, although not as well as the Macan, which is expected to depreciate at the slowest rate.

Of course, the Q6 arguably appeals most as a company car because all electric cars attract a very low BIK tax rate. In short, it's far cheaper than any petrol, diesel or even plug-in hybrid alternative – and the difference in tax compared with direct rivals is so small that it’s unlikely to play a big part in your decision-making.

Charging capability is another area where the Q6 makes a strong case for itself. It has a maximum charging speed of up to 270kW, matching the Macan and outpacing the EQE SUV (170kW), Polestar 3 (250kW) and Model Y (250kW). In optimal conditions, a 10-80% charge can take as little as 21 minutes, although half an hour is more realistic.

The cheapest trim for the Q6 is Sport, and that gets you everything you’ll probably want, including 19in alloy wheels, keyless entry, adaptive cruise control and an EV heat pump. Upgrading to mid-spec S line brings very few extra toys, other than bigger 20in alloys, privacy glass, and a heated steering wheel. It's mainly about sportier styling.

Finally, there’s Edition 1 trim, which brings even bigger wheels, a second touchscreen for the front passenger, electrically adjustable front seats, matrix LED headlights and a module that can add an electronic soundtrack as you accelerate for a bit of drama.

The Q6 did well when it was tested for safety by Euro NCAP. It was awarded five stars out of five, with particularly strong scores for adult and child occupant protection (91% and 92% respectively).

Reliability, however, is less of a known quantity. But in the 2025 What Car? Reliability Survey, Audi’s overall performance was disappointing: it finished 22nd out of 30 brands and behind all the key rivals other than MG.

“The optional Sound and Vision Pack isn’t cheap but it introduces a superb augmented-reality head-up display and 16-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo, and ups power of the USB-C sockets to 100W – perfect for charging an iPad or laptop.” – Neil Winn, Deputy Reviews Editor

Buy it if...

- You want a quiet car to cover long distances in
- A roomy electric SUV for passengers and luggage
- A decent electric range and potentially fast charging

Don't buy it if...

- You want the best-riding car on lumpy town roads
- You want the sharpest-handling electric SUV
- You still think Audi interiors are exquisitely finished

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