By SEMA News Editors
Audi and Porsche are sharing development of a new Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture, and one of the first Audi models to use the new underpinnings will be the Q6 e-Tron SUV and its Sportback variant. SEMA News sources recently photographed prototypes of both testing in Germany.
Confirmed for launch in 2024, the SUV and Sportback variants will sit between the Q4 e-Tron, which uses the VW Group's MEB platform, and the full-sized e-Tron flagship, which is based on a modified version of the MLB SUV architecture. Both Q6 e-Tron variants will be built in Ingolstadt, Germany, where Audi is also building a new battery production facility to serve its expanding EV lineup, according to industry sources.
The Q6 e-Tron will be one of the first Audi models built on the PPE platform developed with Porsche.
The Q6s will serve as sister cars to the expected electric version of the Porsche Macan, according to insiders, with the Porsche expected to arrive several months before the Audi Q6 e-Tron SUV.
The PPE architecture, based on the J1 platform used for the Taycan and e-Tron GT, is designed for full-sized luxury models, both in low-slung and SUV forms.
The prototypes suggest heavy influence from the full-sized e-Tron, with the Q6 SUV and Sportback adopting a cab-backward silhouette, a gently sloping roof line and bulky rear arches.
The Q6 will also be available as the e-Tron Sportback.
Both Q6 e-Tron will have a performance focus than the current combustion car, sources said. The most powerful variants, likely badged as RS models in line with Audi's plan to electrify its performance division, should send around 590 hp to both axles, a departure for the standard rear-mounted electric motor.
The PPE platform also has 800-volt charging functionality built in, which means the Macan EV and Q6 E-Trons will be able to charge at speeds of up to 350 kW. The expected range is in excess of 315 miles, those with information on the prototype said. The Q6 e-Tron is also expected to offer inbuilt torque-vectoring and rear-axle steering functionality on some models.