Yahoo Autos 2025 Audi SQ6 e-tron Covers the Right Bases
Audi is quick to point out that it designed the new 2025 SQ6 e-tron (and its more pedestrian Q6 e-tron sibling) from the inside out, focusing first on the luxury SUV's user interface and accommodations. It's a wise move in an age when new cars double as rolling computer terminals. Yet Audis have long featured snazzy and smartly arranged cabins, so this approach isn't exactly a game changer for the brand. Fortunately, the SQ6's interior is only one of several things it has going for it.
There's a lot riding on the Q6 and SQ6, not least because they open a new chapter in Audi's EV saga. Along with introducing a new Android Auto-based infotainment system, they're its first models to utilize the Volkswagen Group's Premium Platform Electric (PPE) platform, which also underpins the Porsche Macan EV. What's more, their dimensions place them squarely in between the one-size-smaller Q4 e-tron models and the slightly larger Q8 e-trons, effectively making them electric alternatives to Audi's bestsellers, the gas-burning Q5 and SQ5. We'll focus on the sportier SQ6 here, as the Q6 we also drove in the north of Spain was a European-spec model with considerably less power than what will be offered in the U.S.
Inside Out
Audi's latest interior concept excels in its balance of form and function. The SQ6 leans more on the former with available red contrasts in its stitched upholstery, as well as in the LED light bar that sweeps across the dash and can communicate information such as turn signals, navigation prompts, and charging status. The overall presentation is straightforward and nicely crafted, accented with soft touch points such as a ledge on the dash that you can rest a hand on when working the central 14.5-inch touchscreen. This is accompanied by an 11.9-inch instrument display and an optional 10.9-inch passenger touchscreen that can play videos but can't be seen by the driver when the vehicle is in motion. Compared to Audi's existing infotainment systems, this new setup is richer in data and integrates more features, from climate controls to vehicle settings. Yet we found it easy to learn and manipulate even as we drove through unfamiliar areas.
Helping us acclimate were a new AI voice assistant, an available head-up display with augmented-reality navigation, and Bang & Olufsen audio systems with up to 830 watts and 20 speakers, including two in each front headrest. Though most of the limited secondary controls are of the capacitive-touch variety on smudge-prone piano-black panels, we were rarely caught out by illogical ergonomics, which together with the supremely quiet cabin kept our blood pressure low. The SQ6's sport seats coddled our backsides for hours at a time, and although the SUV's 37.4 inches of rear legroom are slightly less than you'll find in a SQ5, your near-six-foot author had no issues getting comfortable behind his own driving position.
All this is wrapped in sophisticated if conventional-looking sheetmetal that is all but identical to the Q6's. It's an attractive figure for an SUV, with prominent fender bulges that bring welcome contours to its flanks. But those looking to make more of statement will want to wait for the sleeker Sportback models that will follow the SUVs' release late this year, not to mention the higher-performance RS models that also will join the lineup. Arguably the highlights of the design are its lighting elements, including new high-definition OLED taillights that, together with the light signatures of the front daytime running lights, can be customized in eight patterns on top-rung Prestige trim levels. Sadly, the active high-beam function of the matrix LED headlights (standard on the SQ6, optional on the Q6) will not be activated in the U.S.
Polished Performance
All Q6 variants will initially feature dual motors and rear-biased all-wheel drive, with the SQ6 producing a strong 483 total horsepower that bumps up to 510 horses when launch control is engaged (dual-motor Q6 models in the States will make 422 and 456 horsepower, respectively). Audi doesn't quote a combined torque figure, but we estimate the SQ6 churns out well over 500 pound-feet, which should help this roughly 5500-pound sport-ute accelerate to 60 mph in around four seconds.
Some chassis alterations distinguish the Q6 from the Macan EV: Audi doesn't offer rear-wheel steering as on the Porsche, its rear power unit is packaged slightly differently, and it employs a less costly induction AC front motor instead of the Macan's permanent-magnet unit. But the SQ6, while a bit clinical in its driving behavior, still feels every bit as capable as its specs suggest. Driven spiritedly, it darts out of tight corners and can rocket past slower traffic for effortless highway merges. The SQ6 is eminently refined and well mannered, and we found little to complain about in its astute body control and taut-yet-compliant ride on the optional 21-inch wheels and summer tires (20s shod with all-season rubber are standard). Same goes for its tight, linear steering and the firm, progressive feel of its brake pedal, both of which fostered confidence on narrow, rain-soaked two-lanes.
Switching to Dynamic mode sharpens the SQ6's reflexes and activates the requisite whirring-spaceship EV noises, but the added soundtrack can be turned off, and the standard air springs and adaptive dampers (optional on the Q6) soaked up undulations with zero wallowing. Additional adjustability comes via steering-wheel paddles that manage regenerative braking, which in its strongest one-pedal mode can slow the SQ6 with up to 0.25 g of braking force. Lesser settings let you tailor the deceleration to your liking, but we often left it in Auto mode, as it smartly slowed the vehicle as needed based on data from the navigation system and the array of exterior sensors.
Charging and Pricing
All Q6 e-trons feature a 94.4-kWh battery, with Audi estimating the SQ6's U.S. EPA range at 276 miles (and around 300 miles for the Q6). But the big upgrade over the brand's current electric SUVs is the PPE's 800-volt electrical architecture, which allows for DC fast-charging at up to 270 kilowatts under ideal conditions; charging from 10 to 80 percent should take around 21 minutes, per Audi, with up to 135 miles of range added in about 10 minutes. And at stations operating at 400 volts, the PPE's brain can divide the battery in two and charge both halves simultaneously at up to 135 kilowatts, which should shorten the overall charging time. For level 2 AC charging, a 9.6-kW onboard charger is standard, though the company says an optional 19.2-kW unit will be added later. Additional practical elements include dual charging doors (an AC/DC combo port on the driver's side, AC-only on the passenger's side), a 4400-pound towing capacity, and 30 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats.
Even as a performance-oriented model, the SQ6 reveals the new Q6 e-tron to be a cool, sensible character that's hard to fault. And that's the point. For it to succeed as part of Audi's bestselling EV model range, which this almost certainly will be, it must appeal to a wide range of tastes. Some may balk at its estimated base price in excess of $70,000—a sizable upcharge over the $66K or so for the Q6 and significantly more than the current SQ5's $58,895 starting point—but its slick user interface and the PPE's more powerful electrical architecture are big steps in the right direction.
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