Audi Q8 E-tron Ending or Is It?
Words/Images NZ Autocar
The end may be nigh for the Audi Q8 e-tron. The German confirmed production of the range-topping electric SUV will stop on February 28 next year. It is not accepting any new orders. However, there’s a slim chance a replacement may be in the wings.
An Audi spokesperson told Auto Express: “Against the background of the intended end of production of the Q8 e-tron and current strikes by suppliers at the Brussels site, we have introduced a temporary order stop for the Q8 e-tron.”
Audi’s plant in the Belgian capital is set to close its doors when production ends for the Q8 e-tron and Q8 Sportback e-tron. There are no plans for an alternative use or a buyer announced for the facility. Around 3000 workers are reportedly facing redundancy.
Audi’s first mainstream EV, the e-tron as it was known then, went on sale in 2018. In 2022, it underwent a facelift and a renaming as the Q8 e-tron to compete with a host of new rivals.
The Audi Q8 e-tron isn’t based on a bespoke electric car platform like its smaller sibs that came later. It used the same platform as the regular combustion-engined Q8 SUV. Back then it offered just over 400km of range.
Its main rivals were Mercedes EQC and Jaguar I-Pace, both no longer in production. In 2021 the BMW iX arrived and moved the large luxury electric SUV game on some.
Audi made significant upgrades to the car as part of its facelift. These included much larger battery sizes that could provide more competitive range figures (up to 550km) and big power increases. There was also the SQ8 e-tron version with 370kW and 973Nm of torque. However, these moves clearly weren’t enough to prevent the Q8 e-tron’s demise. That said, slow demand for luxury EVs has impacted several other brands as well.
This may not be the end for the Q8 e-tron, however. According to Auto Express, it is thought Audi is working on a replacement to arrive as early as 2026. This will use the dedicated electric PPE platform that underpins the Q6 e-tron and the Porsche Macan Electric, as well as Bentley’s forthcoming electric SUV. But the firm has yet to confirm any of this.
