New 2024 Audi A6 e-tron: price, specs and release date

Audi has drawn back the covers on its BMW i5 rival, the A6 e-tron.

With a promised range of more than 450 miles, the A6 e-tron brings the big Audi A6 into the modern age with a full-electric drivetrain and up to 270kW charging speed. It'll come in both rear-wheel-drive and quattro four-wheel-drive models, and a powerful S6 model too (pictured above). Both Sportback hatchback and Avant estate models will be produced.

The A6 e-tron is svelter than A6s that have gone before, with looks that follow the recipe written by the Q6 e-tron SUV and are honed for maximum aero efficiency – it's the most aerodynamic Audi ever made. Incidentally, Audi has a new naming convention for its cars that sees all-electric power for even-numbered cars, while odd-numbered models – like the new Audi A5 – use internal combustion power.

As well as the BMW i5, the Audi A6 e-tron will be a rival for cars like the Tesla Model S and the Mercedes-Benz EQE.

New 2024 Audi A6 e-tron: price and release date

UK sales for the Audi A6 e-tron start on 2 September 2024, when the full pricing and specification will be released. Expect initial prices to start around £68,000 for the Sportback and close to £70,000 for the Avant. A more affordable version with a smaller battery will follow, with prices around the £62,000 mark.

New 2024 Audi A6 e-tron: exterior and interior

If elements of the new Audi A6 e-tron look familar, it's because its styling takes much from the recent Q6 e-tron SUV. The biggest change is that the old A6 saloon is gone, replaced by a sleek hatchback called the Sportback, with a boot lid hinged at the top of the rear window for extra practicality. There's also an Avant estate model with a larger boot.

Outside, the A6 e-tron has slim daytime running lights, headlights almost hidden inside the bumper, and a large, wide grille behind which the various technical sensors are located. The car is wide and relatively low for a purposeful look, ehhanced by big wheels – the smallest on offer are 19 inches in size.

Flush door handles look slick and add aerodynamic efficiency, and there's a charge port on each side of the car – for one regular AC charging and one for DC fast charging at speed of up to 270kW.

At the back, there are full width rear lights, an illuminated Audi logo and a diffuser mercifully free of fake exhaust pipes.

The sporty S6 gets further exterior boosts to look more purposeful, although they're relatively subtle, leaving space for a future RS 6 e-tron.

Inside, the dashboard is dominated with a huge curved intotainment panel housing both an 14.5-inch touchscreen infotainment system and an 11.9-inch digital driver display. Some models also have a third 10.9-inch display on the passenger side thaht can show various infotainment features, including games. Clever tech that Audi calls Active Privacy Mode means passengers can watch the screen without the driver being distracted.

Options include digital door mirrors, which use external cameras connected to two moor screens monuted into the doors. An augmented reality head-up display is available too, projecting navigation information onto the windscreen.

New 2024 Audi A6 e-tron: range and performance

While we'll have to wait until September for full details of the new Audi A6 e-tron, Audi says the Sportback model is capable of up to 756km on a single battery charge, which equates to 470 miles. The Avant estate, meanwhile, will manage up to 447 miles on a charge, with the S6 Sportback e-tron  promising up to 420 miles and the S6 Avant e-tron up to 402 miles.

Performance wise, the A6 Sportback e-tron (technically called the A6 Sportback e-tron performance, with Audi insisting on lower-case letters for some reason) makes 367PS from its electric motor, sent to the rear wheels. That means a 0-62mph time of 5.4 seconds, and the same specs apply to the Avant model, too.

The more powerful S6 e-tron models have all-wheel drive and a power output of 503PS, boosted to 550PS if you use launch control, giving an extremely brisk 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds.

More models are planned for the future.

All models can be charged at up to 270kW with a suitable charger, and Audi says this means an added range of up to 192 miles can be achieved in just 10 minutes.