2020 Audi E-Tron Sportback goes 7% more miles, costs slightly more than SUV2020 Audi E-Tron Sportback goes 7% more miles, costs slightly more than SUV

For at least a short time, the swoopier, racier-looking 2020 Audi E-Tron Sportback—the version that looks faster—is a step ahead of the E-Tron SUV in something that definitely matters: range.
When the Sportback reaches dealerships this summer, it will include the E-Tron range improvement that Audi reported for the European market last November—boosting the usable range of the 95-kwh battery pack from its current 83.6% up to 86.5%, and incorporating changes including “optimized drive system hardware with software adjustments to improve efficiency.” 
Those changes added about 16 miles to the E-Tron SUV’s original European WLTP range of 255 miles—roughly corresponding to the Sportback’s new EPA range of 218 miles, up from 204 miles for the 2019 E-Tron SUV.
Green Car Reports has reached out to Audi to verify that that U.S. 2020 E-Tron SUV will also get this change. 
While the E-Tron SUV still doesn’t have a price tag for 2020, the 2020 Audi E-Tron Sportback does. It costs $78,395, including Audi’s $995 destination fee. It wraps in a standard air suspension and 20-inch wheels, plus heated-and-cooled front seats and a top-view camera system.
2019 Audi E-Tron – Best Car To Buy 2020
The 2019 Audi E-Tron SUV started at $75,795—so compared to that, the Sportback is a relatively minor amount ($2,600) higher. All E-Tron models are eligible for the $7,500 federal EV tax credit, plus state incentives where applicable. 
The E-Tron Sportback can dash to 60 mph in 5.5 seconds with its Boost Mode engaged, bringing output of the dual-motor system from 355 horsepower up to 402 hp—all identical to the E-Tron SUV. And just as with the SUV, the Sportback can fast-charge on the CCS standard at 150 kw (or a bit more), enabling the recovery of 58 miles of range in just 10 minutes or 174 miles in 30 minutes, according to Audi.
Initially, the E-Tron Sportback will be offered in a Launch Edition version, including Plasma (blue metallic) paint, orange brake calipers, and alu-optic trim, with Monaco Gray Valcona leather and a two-tone stitched dash with black headliner inside. 
Audi has done a lot more than just taper the roofline downward quicker toward the rear of the vehicle. The Sportback incorporates some clever contouring work with the roof and headliner, despite the steeper downward pitch and tapered sides, to make sure there was still enough head room for taller occupants. Based on my quick time sitting in the Sportback’s back seat last fall at the LA Auto Show, there’s only a slight difference versus the SUV.
LA Auto Show – Audi E-tron SportbackLA Auto Show – Audi E-tron SportbackLA Auto Show – Audi E-tron Sportback
From the front seats forward, and in terms of driving traits and comfort, we suspect that much of the same praise we’ve lavished on the E-Tron—Green Car Reports’ Best Car To Buy 2020—carries over here. 
Audi verifies that the Sportback also has the same 4,000-pound towing capacity when equipped with its available towing package. And all E-Tron models have from the start included a heat pump—an item that can boost cold-weather efficiency by 10% or more and has seen more attention recently with Tesla’s decision to include one in the Model Y.

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