• Audi Gives The Electric Car Another Go Round


    All Photos Courtesy of Drew Phillips / AOL (c) 2015 via AutoBlog

    It should come as no surprise that the automotive industry is making a push towards hybrid and electric engine technology, particularly since government regulations are forcing their hand. In the European Union fuel consumption performance is expected to meet a requirement of 45.6 miles per gallon. In 2012, President Obama enacted a law supported by many of the big automakers requiring all new vehicles to meet 54.5 miles per gallon by model year 2025.

    At the Geneva International Motor Show, German car maker Audi unveiled an all electric R8 to compete with its V10 gas engine brother. This, however, comes as a bit of a surprise after Audi's last attempt at an electric engine more or less flopped.

    In 2009, Audi announced plans to release an electric sports car - the same electric sports car, in fact - and they were optimistic about the results. At the time the idea was novel and very few cars with an all electric motor were even considered as a notion at the time. The vehicle was slated to go from 0 to 62 miles per hour in 4.8 seconds. It even had its own cameo appearance in Iron Man 3. However, the 49 kWh lithium-ion battery would only make a range of 154 miles and required 6-8 hours to charge from a normal household outlet.

    Even at the time the distance was less than desirable and with Tesla's release of the Model S in 2012, it was mediocre at best. The Model S on the other hand boasted twice as much range, knocking Audi's release on its back. After 10 prototypes were produced, Audi called it quits on its all electric endeavor and focused instead on hybrid technology.



    Fast forward to today and the automaker is back with a vengeance with new technology and promising statistics. The new Audi R8 e-tron will go from 0 to 62 miles per hour in a meager 3.9 seconds, only 0.7 seconds more than the V10 model. The new battery has almost double the energy storage at 92 kWh allowing it to go much further - a full 280 miles - and on only a 2 hour charge. That puts it ahead of Tesla's US reported range of 270 miles.

    If all of the electric battery mumble jumble doesn't tickle your fancy, there's still the fact that its a beautiful car. It features all of the perks of the Audi R8 including a carbon fiber body and drag reducing wheel design. If you're interested, the R8 e-tron will be available for a mere $184,619 and built per request.

    Are you ready to get in line?
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