- audi has announced that the upcoming e-tron gt electric sports sedan will have a high-performance rs model.
- it also released a clip of what the e-tron gt will sound like, although the rs model will have its own unique sound.
- the 2021 audi e-tron gt will be built in the same factory as the audi r8 supercar and will begin production at the end of this year. it'll arrive in the u.s. sometime next year.
the 2021 audi e-tron gt will debut later this year and will join the e-tron and e-tron sportback suvs as well as the upcoming q4 e-tron crossover in audi's electric lineup. ahead of its official debut, audi showed us what the new electric grand tourer will sound like and announced that a high-performance rs model will debut alongside it.
the e-tron gt will be powered by two electric motors that will produce 590 horsepower, and a complex cooling system will allow the battery pack to hit repeated runs without compromising acceleration. power will be routed to all four wheels through audi's quattro all-wheel-drive system, and audi is claiming a 3.5-second sprint to 60 mph in the standard e-tron gt, though won't release any information on the higher-performance rs model.
unlike internal-combustion engines, electric motors make almost no noise at all, so audi developed artificial sounds, specific for the e-tron gt, which play through an exterior speaker and change depending on drive mode. there will also be an available sound package that adds an additional exterior speaker at the rear along with two inside the rear doors to amp up the sound. the e-tron gt's sound (heard above) sounds similar to that of most electric cars today, but once it winds up, it reminds us of a turbine engine. an audi spokesperson told car and driver that the rs e-tron gt will have its own unique sound.
the 2021 audi e-tron gt, which has an aluminum and steel body with an optional carbon-fiber roof, will be built alongside the v-10–powered r8 supercar at audi's böllinger höfe plant in germany starting at the end of this year. it's expected to arrive in the u.s. sometime next year starting at around $100,000.