5 tech features you should experience in the Audi e-tron

A thoroughly modern Audi EV deserves a thoroughly modern interior, and so the Audi e-tron SUV pushes the tech boat out. The automaker’s all-electric rival to the Jaguar I-PACE and BMW’s iX isn’t expected to roll into dealerships until sometime in February, but Audi has given us a sneak peak of the cabin and all of the vehicle we can expect.

We’ve listed five of our favourite features;

Goodbye side mirrors, hello OLED

Cameras in place of side mirrors have been a mainstay of concept cars for years now, but Audi has brought them to a production vehicle. The e-tron’s Virtual Side Mirrors do away with the chunky appendages all other cars sport, replacing them with cameras mounted on slender metal stalks.

On the inside of the car, mounted at the junction of the A-pillar, the door trim, and the edge of the dashboard, there’s a 7-inch OLED screen embedded. That beams a real-time picture from the external cameras. However, because it’s all digital, Audi can switch up what’s shown depending on the situation. When you’re parking, for instance, the e-tron can show you a different view compared to when you’re on the highway.

The upshot isn’t just aesthetic, though the electric SUV does look good without traditional mirrors. Audi claims the virtual mirrors help cut drag by between 2- and 7-percent, leaving the EV more aerodynamic as a result. That should pay dividends when it comes to range.

Now for the bad news. The Virtual Side Mirrors will be offered as an option here when the e-tron launches. If it were up to me, I’d make them standard, and the traditional glass mirrors an option.

But wait, there are more screens

Audi led the game when it came to replacing analog instrumentation with digital, and the Virtual Cockpit unsurprisingly makes an appearance in the Audi e-tron, too. The driver gets a widescreen LCD panel to show speed, media information, and a full-screen map if they choose. In the e-tron it also has special EV graphics, showing things like battery charge and range.

In the center stack, meanwhile, just about everything is controlled by a pair of touchscreens. Audi calls it MMI touch response, and it’s the same infotainment system as we’ve seen used in the A8 and Q8.

The upper display is the larger of the two, and the e-tron uses that for navigation and multimedia. Like the Q8 and A8 it is fully connected, capable of tapping into cloud-based voice recognition along with local processing. It’s also where you access your paired phone. New for the e-tron are EV-related menus, showing information like how far the remaining charge will take you, which driving mode you’re in, and even how you could coax more km out of the battery if you turn off the climate control or other electronics.

The lower screen handles cabin comfort and text entry. It’s where the e-tron’s air is all managed from, including the heated and cooled seats, and heated steering wheel. Audi also uses it to show a QWERTY keyboard, but as we saw in the A8 you can also sketch out words with your fingertip and have handwriting recognition decipher them.

There are still some physical controls

The e-tron doesn’t have a transmission, and so Audi’s gear selector has a straightforward job. A simple slider switches the SUV between drive, neutral, and reverse. There’s a button for park.

Given those minimal controls, the size of the selector itself might seem unexpectedly big. That’s because the leather-topped surface is designed to be a wrist-rest, supporting your forearm as you tap and swipe at the lower touchscreen.

On the steering wheel, meanwhile, are buttons which can control most of the electronic features without you having to relinquish the helm. That includes switches to page through the Virtual Cockpit panes, shortcuts for the phone and voice control, and a mappable key that can be assigned to the driver’s choice of features. Cruise control is managed with a separate stalk behind the wheel.

Green motoring can be luxurious, too

You might be saving the planet with your zero-emissions SUV, but that doesn’t mean you have to suffer a hair-shirt cabin at the same time. Audi is among the best when it comes to interior trim, fit, and finish, and the e-tron is no different. Expect real brushed aluminum along with Valcona leather, in among the piano-black trim.

LED pinstripes with customizable colours certainly fits with the e-tron’s personality, though the ambient lighting is a cost option. As is, in fact, contrasting colours – like bright orange – to the leather seat stitching. Audi says it’s meant to look like tracks on a circuit board. We see the vision.

That may be subtle, but the Bang & Olufsen 3D surround sound system shouldn’t be. Its 16 speakers are also optional, though we suspect many e-tron drivers will take advantage of the relative hush of the SUV’s cabin to enjoy their favorite tracks.

Surely, electric means practical

The Audi e-tron should really put the “Utility” in SUV when it launches: after all, there are some core architecture advantages when you use electric motors rather than an ICE drivetrain. Even though you’re getting Audi’s quattro all-wheel drive, without the driveshaft running the length of the vehicle as you’d find in, say, a Q7, the whole floor of the cabin can be flat.

That pays dividends for legroom, particularly when you consider just how much interior space e-tron occupants are getting. Although the wheelbase is similar to that of the Q7, Audi opted to only fit two rows in the electric SUV. That may mean seating for five at most, rather than the seven you’ll get in a Q7, but it does leave them riding in far greater comfort. You should see the ample boot space.

Wrap-up

There’s no denying that the Audi e-tron is shaping up to be an interesting addition to the electrification options out there. Right now, the biggest questions we have are how many units will Audi move.

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Papi Mabele

Papi Mabele has a marketing background, he is a digital marketing expert with extensive experience in launching and building global brands in the emerging markets. Papi is also an avid tech writer, enthusiast and all round tech junkie. As a freelance writer and analyst he has been numerously published in Popular Mechanics (SA), GQ South Africa, Premier Magazine, Driven Magazine, Bloem News, Courant, The Weekly, Enthooze Magazine and PiE magazine amongst others.