Audi A6 Avant E-Tron Concept electric wagon revealed

Electric motors and SUVs won’t kill the station wagon – at least if Audi has any say, with the reveal of the near-production Audi A6 Avant E-Tron Concept.

Effectively a long-roof version of the A6 E-Tron ‘Sportback’ (liftback) concept revealed last year, the A6 Avant E-Tron Concept is rumoured to reach Audi showrooms in 2023 or 2024, just after its liftback sibling – with the petrol and electric A6 ranges expected to live alongside each other.

Underpinning the concept is Audi and Porsche’s new Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture, destined to underpin an array of models from the two brands sized from the mid-size A4, to the replacement for the flagship A8 limousine.

The platform can support single-motor, rear-wheel-drive or dual-motor, all-wheel-drive layouts – though the Avant concept shares its twin-motor setup with the Sportback, developing 350kW and 800Nm.

The A6 E-Tron Sportback concept quoted a 0-100km/h time of under four seconds in flagship guise – or seven seconds in entry-level, single-motor trim – with up to 700km of WLTP driving range. The Avant is said to “only deviate slightly” from the liftback’s performance.

With a 100kWh battery mounted under the floor, the A6 E-Tron wagon is capable of 270kW DC fast charging using an 800-volt electrical architecture – good for a five to 80 per cent recharge in 25 minutes, or over 300km of additional claimed range in 10 minutes.

Audi has previously hinted at a more potent RS-badged version – likely to be called the RS6 Avant E-Tron – with in excess of 500kW. Click here for more details.

Under the skin, five-link front and multi-link rear axles feature, with adaptive air suspension at both ends.

Measuring 4.96 metres long, 1.96m wide and 1.44m high, the A6 Avant E-Tron Concept is fractionally longer and just over 50mm wider than a petrol-powered A6 Avant wagon.

Audi doesn’t say how big the A6 Avant E-Tron Concept’s boot is, merely stating the car’s rear end is “as beautiful as it is spacious”.

The Avant borrows many of its design cues from the Sportback (liftback) it’s based on, with a similar closed-off front ‘grille’, smooth surfacing, black side sill detailing, 22-inch wheels, and short overhangs – but the wagon adds a longer roofline, and a sloping rear-most pillar (as per other Audi Avant models).

Combined with a unique, sportier rear diffuser styled in a wind tunnel, and camera-based side ‘mirrors’, the A6 Avant E-Tron quotes a drag coefficient of 0.24 – only 0.02 higher than the Sportback’s 0.22 figure.

While the ‘Neptune Valley’ grey-finished show car features single-piece ‘digital’ matrix LED headlights – which can project hazard warnings or indicators onto the road, or a video game onto a wall while charging – spy shots suggest the production A6 E-Tron range will feature split headlights.

OLED tail-lights feature at the rear of the concept, with “almost unlimited customizable variations of digital light signatures and dynamic lighting displays that can be adapted to the customer’s personal taste,” according to Audi.

No images of the concept’s interior have been released.

The Audi A6 Avant E-Tron Concept is expected to launch in production guise late in 2023, or sometime in 2024, according to overseas reports – though the German car maker is yet to officially confirm the car for showrooms.

Audi has confirmed its first electric production car based on PPE underpinnings will be revealed next year – expected to be the Q6 E-Tron mid-size SUV, followed by the A6 Sportback E-Tron later that year.Audi A6 Avant E-Tron Concept revealed