When is an Audi not an Audi? When it’s the AUDI E5 Sportback, of course.
The new AUDI E5 Sportback is the first car from the company’s new China-only brand — or is that sub-brand? — that will exclusively market “new energy vehicles”, or cars with electric and plug-in hybrid drivetrains.
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The E5 rides on the new Advanced Digitized Platform developed in conjunction with SAIC, one of the Volkswagen Group’s two production partners in China, and owner the MG and LDV brands. It’s unclear how much the new architecture borrows from other SAIC platforms, such as the one underpinning the IM Motor line.
According to Fermín Soneira, head of the new Audi/SAIC joint project, AUDI offers “the best of both worlds” by combining “Audi’s DNA” and “China’s digital ecosystem and innovations, specifically tailored for our tech-savvy customers”.
Like parent Volkswagen, Audi has been left flat-footed by Chinese automakers who have launched and iterated new electric vehicles at a rapid pace over the last few years. To help speed the development of EVs for the Chinese market, Volkswagen has teamed up with Xpeng, while Audi has partnered up with SAIC.
The AUDI E5 is 4881mm long, 1959mm wide, and 1478mm tall, making it 52mm longer than the latest petrol- and diesel-powered Audi A5 liftback, but 27mm shorter than the A5L sedan sold in China.
At launch the E5 will be available with either rear- or all-wheel drive, and the choice of four all-electric drivetrains rated at 220kW, 300kW, 425kW and 579kW. The latter is capable of propelling the E5 from 0-100km/h in 3.4 seconds.
Battery capacity maxes out at 100kWh, allowing one model in the lineup to have a 770km range rating under the generous CLTC testing scheme. Equipped with a 800V electrical architecture, the E5 can gain up to 370km of range in 10 minutes.
In terms of design, the AUDI E5 shares little with the regular Audi family. Throughout the E5 the famous four interlocking ring logo is nowhere to be found, instead there’s illuminated AUDI word script logos on the grille, tailgate and front seats.
On the outside, Audi’s single-frame grille has been replaced by the “AUDI Light Frame” grille with 1000 LEDs surrounding a floating element in the bumper. The company says minimalism is a key feature of the E5’s design, hence the smooth, but taut body surfaces.
On the inside the minimalism extends to the number of physical buttons. Across the top of the dashboard is a 4K 27.0-inch display that stretches from pillar to pillar, and is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 8295 automotive processor.
The infotainment system features the new Audi OS with facial recognition, a built-in app store, and the AUDI Assistant, an AI-powered service that can be called up via the touchscreen or voice recognition.
To help balance out the tech, there’s architecture-inspired lamella-shaped wood inlays, a fragrance diffuser, and a suede-like material for the armrests and dashboard top.
The E5 goes on sale in China during the third quarter of 2025. AUDI will flesh out its range with a new model in both 2026 and 2027.
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