The Audi e-tron electric SUV was off to a slow start, but it is now gaining momentum in the US with the 2021 model year getting a price cut and range increase.
The e-tron, Audi’s first next-generation electric vehicle, already had success in Norway and a few other European markets, but it didn’t sell in significant volume in the US during its first full year of sales.
We expected that to change after the German automaker came up with a big update for the 2021 model year of the e-tron.
Audi increased the range of the e-tron by 18 miles to 222 miles on a single charge and slashed the price by as much as $9,000.
The Audi e-tron now starts at $65,900 before EV incentives in the US. After incentives, the price goes well below $60,000, making it very competitive with a lot of luxury SUVs.
The automaker announced today that it delivered 3,474 e-tron electric SUVs in Q1 2021 in the US – up 103% over the last year:
Audi also delivered 850 e-tron Sportsback, which wasn’t being delivered in the US during the same period last year.
Electrek’s Take
With 54,000 sales in Q1 in the US, electric vehicles are still representing only about 8% of Audi’s sales, but that could increase quickly with the Q4 e-tron and the e-tron GT coming later this year.
However, the German automaker might face some challenges later this year if the US goes forward with its new EV incentives only for electric vehicles built in the US, since Audi’s EVs are currently coming from Europe.
If this change goes through, it could give Tesla, GM, and other American automakers a big advantage in the US.
But in the meantime, Audi seems to be starting to do well in the US market with the e-tron.
You can check with your local dealers for inventory and orders of the new Audi e-tron 2021.
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Author: Fred Lambert
Source: Electrek
