The E-tron GT is Audi’s third electric vehicle to make it to the U.S., following the E-tron compact crossover and the E-tron sportback. The five-seater is aerodynamically slippery and is built on the same platform as the Porsche Taycan. The RS E-tron GT packs 637 hp and 612 pound-feet of torque with an estimated range of 232 miles. Pricing for the RS E-tron GT will start at $139,900, excluding delivery. We’ve collected a sample of RS E-tron GT reviews from the automotive media.
“On the road, the RS GT tours grandly. It hums and hauls so smoothly that the big numbers on the speedometer readout might come as a surprise. The low, hefty weight of electric cars works in their favor when it comes to stable cornering, and 590 electric horses are more than enough to reshape your eyeballs. The GT’s biggest challenges come from not having the longest range and not being the quickest or flashiest thrill ride in the park.
“Audi gets points for using the steering-wheel paddles to control regenerative braking. It’s just the sort of setting you might want to change on the fly, say, heading down a steep hill or coasting along in highway traffic, and being able to adjust it without having to dive into a settings menu is smart. The middle setting will feel the most familiar to gas-engine aficionados, and the max regen is almost but not quite aggressive enough to allow for one-pedal driving. The RS offers rear-wheel steering as an option. When fitted the rear wheels also turn in phase with the fronts to improve high-speed stability; below 30 mph the rears turn opposite to tighten maneuverability. Steering efforts are light, almost too light at slow speeds if the car is equipped with optional Power Steering Plus, which just boosts the steering assist to feathery at low speed. But once you get used to it, you’ll be flipping tight U-turns just for the fun of it.”
— Elana Scherr,
“Putting the RS E-Tron GT in Dynamic mode, the dampers stiffen as the air suspension hunkers down and the power delivery gets more aggressive. The wide stance and ultralow center of gravity keeps this thing flat as a pancake through hairpin turns, the torque-vectoring tech shuffling power left and right, getting all that instant thrust down to the tires with the most grip. The E-Tron GT’s optional rear-wheel steering virtually shortens the wheelbase, just like it does in Audi’s RS6 Avant and RS7 Sportback, and this thing dives into corners with the fluidity and precision of a maestro’s baton. Even on the occasional wet patch of pavement, the RS E-Tron remains wholly unflappable.
“Is it exactly like the Taycan? Not quite. Crucially, the Taycan’s steering is a lot better, with a more progressive buildup of weight and a whole hell of a lot more feedback. The Porsche also feels ever so slightly more buttoned-up while pushing hard, though I suppose that could also be a demerit if you err on the side of hooliganism.”
— Steven Ewing, Roadshow by CNET
“In the performance arena, an EV turns its low center of gravity into incredible grip. As if to demonstrate, the sky unleashed buckets of rain during our short circuit of the Malibu canyons, yet the RS e-tron GT didn’t flinch. With its traction and stability control systems fully engaged, the EV never once flashed a loss of traction as we pushed it through each bend. Greedy pulls of the accelerator and late stabs of the brake were met with effortless poise. Agreeable resistance through the steering and modular regen braking kept us tied to the experience, but it nonetheless felt a bit like cheating. Driving hard in the rain shouldn’t be easy, but the RS e-tron GT missed the memo.”
— Miles Branman, Digital Trends
“As thrilling as the acceleration is, the car is no less amazing or amusing in the curves, taking the same dignified approach to fast driving as other sport-tuned Audis and playing it back in fast motion. The finger-light steering belies the 5,000-plus-pound weight of the E-Tron GT. A good chunk of its heft is concentrated in the 93-kWh underfloor battery pack, but the upshot is that weight helps lower the car’s center of gravity. With optional four-wheel steering to further improve its stability (which we’re betting it probably doesn’t need), the E-Tron GT RS flies through the curves with maximum grip and minimum fuss before rocketing onto straights like, well, like a rocket.
“The experience is enhanced by a piped-in soundtrack, complete with a grumbly idle. We’re not sure the digitized noises are necessary, but they do lend the driving experience a sort of sci-fi unreality — are we really jetting through the curves this quickly, or are we having a dream about the world’s most intense driving simulator? (If it was a dream, you were all in it!)
“Ride? Yep, that’s pretty good, too. The E-Tron GT is home to Audi’s first three-chamber air-suspension system, which the company says allows for greater differentiation between Comfort and Sport modes. We didn’t notice all that much of a difference — we were a bit preoccupied with clinging onto the steering wheel for dear life— but we thought it delivered what air suspensions do best, which is to maintain comfort and poise while delivering physics-defying handling behavior. That said, a good, hard bump sent the suspension up to the top of its travel. We’ve driven plenty of cars over that same bump with less drama, but we can’t all be perfect, can we?”
— Aaron Gold,
“The car rolls out with a friendly, engineered whine similar to that of the Taycan, or some kind of hovering transport in a sci-fi movie. But mash the pedal and the takeoff is nothing short of immediate. It’s cliché to say that acceleration pins you against the seat, but it does. With 637 horsepower and 612 pound-feet on tap, the RS E-Tron GT goes from 0-60 in just 3.1 seconds (the non-RS has 522 hp and 464 lb-ft and takes 3.9 seconds).
“That’s not to say it’s turbulent, though. A fast ICE sports car like the Nissan GT-R NISMO snarls as it claws at the asphalt. You can feel the gnashing of metal and churning of machinery all around you. The RS E-Tron GT, on the other hand, simply picks up the pace like it’s floating on a beam of light, with only a slightly louder hum and wind noise.
“Most surprising, however, is the RS E-Tron GT’s steering response. Given the loose feel of the A6 and A7, a certain level of drive-by-wire fuzziness was expected. Instead, the steering returned feedback that was, for lack of a better term, Porsche-like. Body roll is imperceptible, thanks to a heavy battery pack in the floor sucking the center of gravity way down.”
— Ben Hsu, Autoblog