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Launched back in 2021, the Q4 e-tron was an important model for Audi. So important that Ingolstadt felt the need to create two distinct variants, this Q4 Sportback e-tron derivative being the more dynamic-looking one. Like its standard counterpart, it was built on the Volkswagen Group MEB chassis for volume all-electric cars, but pushed the boundaries of that platform in terms of the premium prices being charged for the size of car delivered. Still, you certainly get a very up-market feel that might help ease you into your new electrified phase of motoring ownership. Here, we look at the early 2021-2023-era versions of this car.
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History
Back in 2021, Audi's all-electric e-tron range continued to widen as more was revealed of the company's capabilities when it came to EV technology. The e-tron sub-brand had once designated PHEVs but by the beginning of this century's third decade it had been set aside for all-electric models, the first three of those being the e-tron large SUV, the e-tron Sportback large five-door GT and the e-tron GT quattro sports saloon. But these were merely preludes to the BEV model that really mattered to Ingolstadt, the Q4 e-tron, which was offered with a choice of body shapes, this Q4 Sportback e-tron obviously being the sportier one.
Where the standard Q4 e-tron took on the plushest versions of boxy compact EV crossovers like the Volkswagen ID.4 and the Skoda Enyaq iV, the Q4 Sportback e-tron took aim more directly at sportier contenders in this class like the Skoda Enyaq iV Coupe. Actually, all the engineering bits that matter are common between these three cars, namely the MEB platform and the battery tech. Yet Audi claimed to have put its own stamp on the way this car drove. The Q4 Sportback e-tron sold in its original form until late 2023 when the powertrains were significantly updated. It's the earlier-spec 2021-2023-era Q4 Sportback e-tron models we look at here.
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What you get
The Q4 Sportback e-tron is definitely a sleeker thing than its standard-shape counterpart - and not just visually - the drag coefficient drops from 0.28 to 0.26Cd. This sportier variant's more sharply swept back silhouette culminates in a roof spoiler that sits much lower on the split and steeply raked rear window, and as the area in which the air swirls as it comes off the vehicle is restricted to the zone beneath the spoiler, that area is significantly smaller than in the ordinary Q4 e-tron. This not only highlights the more unique design of this SUV coupe, but also enhances its range by around 7 miles, while also reducing the lift on the rear.
The front end is of course just as with the ordinary Q4 e-tron, dominated by a rather in-your-face multi-faceted 'e-tron'-branded version of the brand's usual Singleframe front grille, which isn't a grille of course (this being an EV) but was retained by designer Marc Lichte to keep the sense of brand continuity that many rival models in this segment had lost. Outer black framing flows into the LED headlights, which can be of the intelligent Matrix sort, each one with 16 individually activated LEDs which give you more precisely targeted illumination and the option of selecting between four variable digital light signatures.
Inside, it's certainly nothing like anything you'll have seen from any previous Audi. Everything on the upper level is angular, with none of the elements appearing to blend very harmoniously with each other, but it all kind of works in a contemporary, minimalistic sort of way. There's an unusual jutting lower console trimmed in smudge-worthy piano black for the neat little gear selector slider. And, just above, the silver trimmed central fascia section incorporates horizontal vents and the 11.6-inch MMI Navigation Plus central display, with a sweep across the cabin that gets interrupted by a beady-browed instrument binnacle. If you've a Q4 with brake recuperation paddles, that binnacle's 10.25-inch 'Virtual cockpit' screen has to be viewed through a rather weird quartic steering wheel with flattened top and bottom sections. Futuristic? You'd say so. Premium? Possibly, but only really if you get a car whose original owner spent some cash on a more up-market level of trim.
To get in the rear, you've to duck slightly as you get in, but it's nothing too serious. To accommodate the battery, the back seat is mounted 70mm higher than the front, which you might expect to create a head space issue given this Sportback variant's swept-back roof line; actually though, while those of basketball-playing stature might struggle, most other adults should be fine in the back, unless they enter wearing particularly elaborate headgear. It's also a wider cabin than you'd expect a relatively compact mid-sized SUV to be able to provide and with no central transmission tunnel to obstruct things, three adults could actually fit reasonably easily into the back of this car. All models get 3-zone automatic air conditioning, which means you get separate climate controls in the back, along with a 12v socket and a couple of USB-C ports.
Boot space in this Sportback actually rises slightly over the ordinary model - 535-litres rather than 520-litres; but capacity when the 40:20:40-split seatback is lowered falls slightly - 1,460-litres, rather than 1,490-litres.
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What to look for
You're going to need to be aware of a number of issues if you commit to any Audi Q4 Sportback e-tron, these mainly centring around charging, software and brakes. But these don't need necessarily to be an issue if the car you're looking at has had regular checks at an Audi franchise.
Some customers found the physical brakes hard to modulate. Others had problems with the infotainment software, with issues like navigation addresses being wiped randomly, random 'phone calls being made when handsets are Bluetooth-connected and being unable to log in. We've also heard reports that charging capability isn't very good and that the car doesn't always reach its top charging speed; getting it to charge to 100% can be problematic - check this before you buy. Some owners also reported that the car would randomly switch from its D to B gear setting; check this on your test drive. Look out for dashboard error messages. And there were problems in some cases getting the automatic parking system (if fitted) to properly work. The www.e-tronforum.com website is a good place to survey potential problems. And www.q4forums.co.uk.
Check that the car you're looking at doesn't have difficulties when starting a charge session, usually because of connector issues. In some cars, the connector can't make a proper contact, which affects the connection between the car and the charger. You have to make sure the connector is pushed firmly into the charge port, a movement that will create the required connection, which will enable you to start the charging session.
Otherwise, it's just the usual things; alloy wheels scuffs, interior child damage and the need for a fully stamped-up service history.
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Replacement parts
(approx based on a 40 Sportback e-tron SUV 2021) - Ex Vat) A cabin filter costs in the £7-£25 bracket. Front brake pads sit in the £35-£98 bracket for a set. Front brake discs sit in the £57-£145 bracket. A wiper blade is in the £5-£16 bracket. A shock absorber is in the £106-£152 bracket.
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On the road
With its Q3 and Q5 Sportback models, Audi had slightly differentiated the suspension feel with base variants but there was none of that here, so the Q4 Sportback e-tron drove in the same way as the conventional Q4 model. You select drive using a slider-type shifter situated on the centre console and once underway, there's the kind of instant throttle response you'd usually get from an EV of this sort.
By 2021, apart from a few track tamed versions of the R8 supercar, no Audi of the modern era had been rear-driven, but almost all Q4 Sportback e-trons were. Had to be because that was the drive format chosen for the MEB chassis and EV powertrain that this e-tron model borrowed from the VW Group parts bin. Two flavours of this confection were offered in the mainstream Q4 Sportback range. Starting with the '35 e-tron' package that gave customers a 170PS electric motor mated to a 52kWh battery. Ideally though, you'd want to stretch at least to the '40 e-tron' model most original customers chose, which has a gutsier 204PS motor powered by a bigger 76.7kWh battery, which boosts driving range up from the rather sub-par 215 mile figure of the base version to more acceptable 323 mile reading.
There's also a third option, a '50 e-tron quattro' variant which also uses a 76.7kWh battery and, as the badging suggests, offers 4WD and more power. But you won't feel either of those things in day to day driving with it because the additional 109PS motor that's added to the front axle of the '50' variant is never engaged unless maximum traction is needed or you really stamp the throttle down. Should you do that in a '50' model, a 299PS total output will be released, enough to get you to 62mph in just 6.2s. That's quite a bit quicker than the two rear-driven versions - the '35' derivative manages 62mph in 9.0s, while the '40' version takes 8.5s, both being limited to a top speed of just 99mph, which seems rather '70s-like. The '50 e-tron quattro' raises that only marginally to 111mph - still not enough to go autobahn-burning - and the extra motor weight that top model has to carry about drops its driving range figure to 302 miles. As for battery replenishment, well with the '40 e-tron' variant charging at 125kW in ideal conditions, the battery can achieve an 80% state of charge from a 5% starting point in 38 minutes. If you're using a conventional 7kW garage wallbox, a Q4 Sportback 40 e-tron can charge 255 miles of range in eight and a quarter hours.
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Overall
Within the Q3 and Q5 ranges, the Sportback body shape tends to out-sell the conventional SUV version and the same trend was replicated here. Understandably. After all, the Q4 Sportback e-tron didn't cost vastly more than its boxier showroom stablemate, yet made a significantly more dynamic driveway statement. There's no real penalty for the more slippery shape in terms of either boot space or rear cabin head room either.
In this form, the original version of this Q4 Sportback e-tron is more likely to appeal to premium EV customers who might be looking at more stylised rivals from the 2021-2023 era like the Polestar 2, the Ford Mustang MACH-E, the Kia EV6 and the Hyundai IONIQ 5. Arguably, this Audi can shade all of these competitors when it comes to cabin ambiance - it has the finish, the luxury and (to some extent) the driving dynamics of an electric crossover from next class up. The kind of thing you'd get from larger EV models from this era like the Jaguar I-PACE and the Mercedes EQC. But of course you pay for that. With Audi, it was ever thus.
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