The Audi A6 E-Tron Concept Is A Long-Range EV With A Confusing Name

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Image: Audi

Audi’s electric range is finally taking shape, now that the E-Tron GT and Q4 E-Tron have joined the existing E-Tron crossover. And in case you thought the E-Tron branding couldn’t possibly get more puzzling, Audi just revealed a concept of the A6 E-Tron it expects to hit showrooms sometime in the next two years.

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It’s bothering my obsessive-compulsive tendencies that E-Tron now exists as a standalone nameplate and a version of existing Audi models, but I’ll try my best to keep that down to focus on the concept itself, which looks pretty good. The A6 E-Tron debuted at the Shanghai Auto Show today, and marks the first Audi we’ve seen based on the company’s Premium Platform Electric architecture.

Audi calls the A6 E-Tron a sportback, which followers of the brand may argue actually make it more of an A7 by nature. According to Audi, the A6 name was chosen to link this car to one of the brand’s most historically significant models, and dimensionally it’s equivalent to the existing A6. Here I am again talking about the car’s name — you just can’t get away from it with these new electric Audis.

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Image: Audi

The design you see here is reportedly 95 percent representative of the final model, which isn’t bad news considering that the A6 E-Tron cleans up for the most part. Sure, it’s derivative in places — the high beltline of the profile evokes the departed Ford Fusion in my mind’s eye, and the way the headlights meet the grille — I’m sorry, the inverted face, as Audi calls it — strikes me as remarkably similar to the Mustang Mach-E’s furrowed brow. Neither of these familiarities are necessarily bad though. Don’t hold your breath for images of the interior yet — Audi is saving those for later.

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Image: Audi

Audi designers say the tautness of the roofline and width of the track on this concept will be scaled back slightly ahead of production, though the black trim near the floor that looks like a cutaway panel will be retained. It’s a neat visual trick that slims the car down somewhat, and I like the way it trails toward the rear bumper. There are projectors at the corners that beam light at the ground to greet passengers and signal turns that may or may not make it to the final iteration. There’s a precedent for similar tech in road cars already, though, so it wouldn’t be inconceivable if it did come to pass.

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In terms of performance figures, Audi is mostly keeping those close to the chest for now. This concept packs a pair of electric motors combining for 469 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. That’s projected to get the A6 E-Tron to 62 mph from a standstill in under four seconds.

Illustration for article titled The Audi A6 E-Tron Concept Is A Long-Range EV With A Confusing Name
Image: Audi

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Turning to range, Audi claims the A6 E-Tron will return more than 700 km on a full charge (434 miles), though under the generous WLTP cycle. The E-Tron GT is rated for 298 miles by that same measure, so the A6 E-Tron is sure to bring a huge range improvement to the brand even if the actual, real-world distance falls short of the WLTP-based projection. For reference, the latest Tesla Model S starts at an EPA-estimated 412 miles of range.

The A6 E-Tron’s efficiency is helped by an ultralow drag coefficient of 0.22 — one of the lowest out there, matching Mercedes-Benz’s A-Class — though there’s no confirmation on whether those slight exterior changes to the production car will dent that somewhat. Like other new electric Audis, it supports 800-volt peak charging that aims to replenish 300 km of range in just 10 minutes.

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As far as timing of the sedan’s arrival, for now Audi is saying only that its first PPE-based cars will emerge in the second half of next year. That will likely begin with the Q6 E-Tron, before this A6. In the meantime, I’m going to try and work out a flowchart to make sense of all these E-Trons.

Ford Fusion: Dead

Illustration for article titled Ford Fusion: Dead

Photo: Ford

This is how the sedan ends. Not with a bang, but with a whimper. This week Ford phased out the last remaining blue oval-branded sedan. At its height in 2014, the Fusion moved over 300,000 units, but Ford only managed to push about 60,000 units out the door in the first half of 2020. Obviously there are extenuating circumstances when you consider 2020 sales numbers, but Ford has been planning a phase-out of all non-Mustang cars for a couple of years now, and it’s finally made that happen.

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The Fusion will join its Fiesta, Focus, and Taurus brethren in the great junkyard in the sky.

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The mid-sized sedan has been a staple of the Ford lineup since that segment has existed. Falcon, Maverick, Granada, LTD, Taurus, Fusion. It would be difficult to say any of those models were particularly inspiring, but many of them were revolutionary and provided exactly the right car for the American family to traverse the highways and byways. I know not many will mourn the passing of the Fusion, but it was a really good car. I will pour one out for the loss of this American institution.

Ford stopped taking new orders for the Fusion back in February, and had planned to close the production line on July 21st, but due to the coronavirus pandemic it was pushed back to the end of the month. The last Fusion ran down the Hermosa, Mexico assembly line on July 31st, according to a report by Ford Authority. When the Lincoln Continental meets its demise at the end of 2020, FoMoCo will no longer produce any cars, bar the Mustang, shifting to an all-SUV and truck lineup.

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For all its talk about future tech and electrification and emissions goals, Ford has managed to allow its electrified car lineup to dwindle to just two. With the incredibly efficient Fusion Energi now gone, the only electrified models in the Ford fleet are the Escape Hybrid and the $53,000 Explorer Limited Hybrid. While there are plenty of hybrid and battery electric Fords on the way, this seems like a short-sighted move by the big F.

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We knew the Sedanocalypse was coming, but seeing it coming doesn’t dull the pain. I’m not going to lie, folks, this one hurts. Would you really rather have an Ecosport over this?