After having shown a handful of sporty coupes bearing its new e-tron moniker, Audi took the wraps off of what was almost certainly a production-intent A1 e-tron electric city-oriented car – only to later announce that the car will never see production.
Audi’s CEO, Rupert Stradler, confirmed that the A1-based e-tron would not see production, citing two reasons: the Polo platform on which the A1 is built will apparently not allow for the technology to be properly fitted and that they believe the standard versions of the A1 will be environmentally friendly enough – not warranting the need for the e-tron version.
However, Audi has now begun testing a 20 vehicle fleet of the A1 e-tron, nearly 1.5 years after saying that the car wouldn’t be built. Although Audi still hasn’t officially changed its position regarding production of the car, it hasn’t reiterated that the A1 e-tron won’t be produced either.
So for now it appears there is a glimmer of hope for this Chevy Volt-like vehicle in a smaller package, but should it be given the production nod yet again we expect it to be in limited quantities and likely not for another two years.
Details on the A1 e-tron concept
The A1 e-tron utilizes an electric-only motor for the first 31 miles during city driving, and once the battery is depleted, the A1 e-tron concept resorts to a single-rotor Wankel engine to drive an electrical generator capable of charging up to 15 kW. This configuration will turn to a Wankel engine, rather than a traditional four-cylinder engine like the Chevrolet Volt.
The powertrain is rated at 61 horsepower and 110 lb-ft. of torque of continuous output or 102 horsepower and 177 lb-ft. of peak power available for short bursts of acceleration. A single-gear transmission sends the power to the A1 e-tron’s front wheels.
Audi says that the A1 e-tron has been tuned for extra low-end torque and that it will be capable of sprinting to 62 mph in an acceptable 10.2 seconds.
Audi says the Wankel-powered generator will give the A1 e-tron an additional 124 mile range, and a final fuel consumption rating of 123.8 US miles per gallon.
References
1. ‘Breaking: Audi A1 will not…’ view
