Audi e-tron GT Review

The Audi e-tron GT is low, wide and seriously quick, with the sort of style that makes you glance back after you've parked. Thankfully, it isn't one of those performance cars that's only fun when you're driving like you've got somewhere very important to be. 

Underneath, there's plenty of Porsche Taycan DNA. Audi has taken that seriously capable platform and made it more of a grand tourer: fast when you want it to be, quiet and comfortable when you don't. You also get a suitably luxe cabin and rapid charging for longer journeys. 

Competition comes from the Porsche Taycan, BMW i5 M60 and Tesla Model S, but the Audi sits neatly between sports car and luxury cruiser. An Audi e-tron GT lease also means that you can enjoy all that performance without having to worry about what a high-end EV might be worth a few years down the line. 

In this Audi e-tron GT review, we'll find out how it performs in the real world, what it's like to live with and whether it deserves a place on your lease shortlist. 

Quick Verdict on the Audi e-tron GT 

The Audi e-tron GT is very, very fast. We’re talking 0-60 in 2.5 seconds. That probably won't come as a shock. What might surprise you is how good it is at all the boring everyday stuff too. It's comfortable on the motorway, quiet around town and packed with enough technology to earn its flagship Audi status. 

It also manages to feel special without constantly reminding you how sporty it is. Quattro all-wheel drive gives you plenty of confidence, the cabin is beautifully put together and rapid charging makes longer trips much less of a faff. Put your foot down, though, and there's more than enough performance to remind you that this definitely isn't a sensible electric saloon. 

There are compromises. The swooping roofline eats into rear space, the boot could be bigger and an Audi e-tron GT lease isn't going to be the cheapest monthly outgoing on your bank statement. If practicality comes first, an electric SUV makes more sense. 

If you want to lease a car that's genuinely exciting but won't make the Monday morning commute feel like hard work, however, you’ll want to read this entire Audi e-tron GT review. 

Overall Rating: 9.2/10 

The Audi e-tron GT isn't the sensible choice if you need acres of boot space, and a Porsche Taycan still has the edge if attacking corners is your main priority. For everyone else, it's a seriously accomplished electric GT.

Audi e-tron GT at a Glance 

Here's the Audi e-tron GT in numbers. As you'd expect, the performance figures are fairly bonkers, but it's the combination of serious range and rapid charging that makes it more than just a very fast way to flatten your hair against the headrest. 

Who Should Lease the Audi e-tron GT? 

The Audi e-tron GT makes the most sense for someone who wants their EV to feel like a bit of an event. It's quick and high-end, although that low-slung shape does mean making a few compromises when it comes to space.  

The Audi e-tron GT is a great choice if you:

The Audi e-tron GT may not be the best choice if:

Our Verdict 

If performance and comfort matter more to you than having the biggest boot in the office car park, this Audi e-tron GT review makes a very convincing case for itself. It's exciting when the opportunity arises without being exhausting when you're just trying to get home. That's exactly what a good grand tourer should be. 

Exterior Design & Road Presence

The Audi e-tron GT’s shape makes even a supermarket car park look a little more glamorous. It's low and wide, with a sweeping fastback roofline that gives it proper grand tourer proportions without straying too far from Audi's typically understated styling. 

Up front, the enclosed Single frame grille and sharp LED headlights give it plenty of presence, while higher-spec models turn up the drama with more advanced lighting technology. It's purposeful without looking like it's trying to pick a fight with every car at the traffic lights. 

From the side, those muscular wheel arches and large alloys do most of the talking. The flush door handles and sculpted bodywork aren't purely for show either, helping the e-tron GT cut through the air more efficiently and squeeze more range from its battery. 

It's certainly not a car for anyone hoping to blend into the background, but Audi has resisted the temptation to make its flagship EV look unnecessarily futuristic. The result is an electric GT that feels distinctive now without looking like it'll date horribly in three years. 

At the back, the full-width LED light bar gives the e-tron GT a suitably modern finish, without making it look like Audi has tried too hard to remind everyone that it's electric. There's no spaceship styling here, and that's probably a good thing. It's a design that should still look smart when your lease is coming to an end. 

The S e-tron GT and RS e-tron GT dial things up with bigger wheels, sportier bumpers and their own styling details. Even the standard car has plenty of presence, though. Nobody is going to mistake it for a sensible company car lease deal. 

Park it alongside a Porsche Taycan or BMW i5 and the e-tron GT takes the more understated route. It still looks special, just without shouting quite so loudly about it. 

Interior, Technology & Comfort 

Audi has built a reputation for producing some of the finest interiors in the premium market, and the e-tron GT is no exception. The cabin feels every bit like a flagship model, with high-quality materials, precise craftsmanship and a driver-focused layout that perfectly balances luxury with sportiness. Every surface you touch feels solid and well finished, creating an environment that's as enjoyable to spend time in as it is to drive. 

Inside, the e-tron GT feels reassuringly like an Audi rather than a tech demo with a steering wheel attached. The driving position is low and sporty and there's still enough physical switchgear that you don't have to poke at a screen every time you want to change something. 

You still get plenty of tech, of course. Audi's Virtual Cockpit puts customisable driving information directly in front of you, and the central MMI touchscreen handles navigation, media and the car's main settings. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard too, so you can largely ignore Audi's own system if you'd rather stick with your phone. 

The sports seats are supportive without feeling like they've got you in a headlock, which matters in a car that's supposed to cover serious distances. Wind and road noise are also kept impressively low at motorway speeds, allowing the e-tron GT to settle into its grand tourer role rather nicely. 

There's plenty of room up front despite the low roofline, with lots of adjustment for the seats and steering wheel. Everyday storage is decent rather than enormous, but the centre console, door bins and wireless phone charging give you somewhere to put the usual collection of keys, drinks and other car clutter.

Optional extras include a Bang & Olufsen sound system, panoramic glass roof and massage seats if the standard car isn't quite luxurious enough for you. None of them feel essential, though, which is good news when you're trying to keep an Audi e-tron GT lease at least vaguely sensible. 

What's the Audi e-tron GT Like to Drive? 

The e-tron GT is ridiculously quick, but Audi hasn't forgotten about the ‘grand tourer’ part. It's comfortable enough for everyday driving, then properly entertaining when the road opens up. 

Around town, light steering and instant electric power make it surprisingly easy to manage. You can also adjust the regenerative braking using paddles behind the wheel, so you aren't forced into aggressive one-pedal driving. 

Motorways are where it really earns its GT badge. Adaptive air suspension takes the sting out of rough surfaces, the cabin stays impressively quiet and the car feels reassuringly planted at speed. 

Find a decent B-road and there's plenty of fun available too. The quattro all-wheel drive provides huge amounts of grip, whilst the low-mounted battery helps keep its considerable weight under control. A Porsche Taycan feels slightly sharper, but the Audi is anything but boring. 

Then there's the acceleration. Even the less powerful versions are fast, but the RS models enter the territory where your passengers may start regretting getting in. That's the e-tron GT's real strength: it can behave like a comfortable Audi all week, then become something much more entertaining when you want it to. 

Battery, Range & Charging 

A grand tourer isn't much use if you're constantly planning your life around chargers. Thankfully, the e-tron GT has the numbers to back up the badge, with the latest versions offering up to 379 miles of official WLTP range. In the real world, expect that figure to move around depending on temperature, motorway speeds and how often you give in to the temptation of all that power. 

The clever bit happens when you do need to stop. Thanks to its 800-volt electrical system, the e-tron GT can charge at up to 320kW and go from 10% to 80% in around 18 minutes on a suitable ultra-rapid charger. That's quick enough to make finding the right charger more of an issue than the actual waiting around. 

Most of the time, though, you'll probably plug in at home. A 7kW wallbox can take care of regular overnight charging, so there's little reason to visit a public charger during normal day-to-day driving. 

It's this combination that makes this Audi e-tron GT review particularly convincing. The range is enough to make long journeys realistic, and when you do run low, you shouldn't need to settle in for lunch before the car is ready to leave again. 

Performance & Powertrains 

There isn't really a slow Audi e-tron GT. The question is less about how much performance you need and more about how ridiculous you'd like that performance to become. 

Even the standard e-tron GT produces more than 500PS with launch control, so there's absolutely no sense that you're settling for the sensible one. Quattro all-wheel drive helps to put that power down cleanly, and the delivery is wonderfully smooth when you're not attempting to rearrange your internal organs. 

The S e-tron GT turns things up another notch, whereas the RS sits firmly in the ‘because we can’ camp. In its most powerful form, the RS e-tron GT produces up to 925PS with launch control and can hit 62mph in just 2.5 seconds. That's a supercar pace from something with four doors and room for the weekly shop. 

Adaptive air suspension helps to stop all that performance ruining the e-tron GT's day job. Leave it in a relaxed driving mode and it's a comfortable long-distance cruiser; switch to Dynamic and everything tightens up when you fancy something more entertaining. 

For an Audi e-tron GT lease, we'd struggle to argue that you actually need the RS. The standard car is already outrageously quick and should cost considerably less each month. The faster versions are there for anyone who reads ‘more than enough’ and immediately thinks ‘yes, but what about more?’ 

Running Costs 

Nobody leases an Audi e-tron GT because they're looking for bargain-basement motoring. It's a high-end performance car, so insurance premiums and those enormous tyres make themselves known on the monthly budget. Still, running one doesn't have to be quite as financially alarming as the performance figures suggest. 

Home charging is where you'll save the most. Plug in overnight on a cheap off-peak tariff and your cost per mile becomes considerably lower than in a similarly powerful petrol car. Servicing should also be less involved, with no engine oil changes and fewer mechanical components demanding attention. 

Company car drivers have another reason to look closely at an Audi e-tron GT lease. Fully electric cars continue to attract favourable Benefit-in-Kind rates compared with petrol performance cars, which can make the Audi surprisingly appealing as a company car. 

Then there's depreciation. Premium EV values haven't exactly been a relaxing topic in recent years, so handing the car back at the end of a lease rather than worrying about what it'll eventually be worth has obvious appeal. 

We’ve made it clear in this Audi e-tron GT review that it isn't cheap to run by any means, and pretending otherwise would be ambitious. Compared with keeping an equally potent petrol performance car fed and maintained, though, the numbers can look rather more reasonable. 

Reliability & Safety 

The Audi e-tron GT shares plenty of engineering with the Porsche Taycan, and the whole car feels reassuringly solid. That's particularly important when you're leasing something this expensive, because nobody wants their flagship Audi spending more time with the dealership than it does with them. 

Audi covers new e-tron GT models with a three-year manufacturer warranty, and the high-voltage battery gets separate cover for eight years or 100,000 miles. For most of our lease customers, that means the important bits should remain under warranty throughout the agreement. 

There's plenty of safety technology watching your back too, including autonomous emergency braking, lane departure warning and parking sensors. Depending on specification, you can also get adaptive cruise control and a 360-degree camera, which is especially welcome when you're trying to squeeze such a low, wide car into a tight parking space. 

Overall, there's little here that should make prospective lease customers nervous. You get the reassurance of Audi warranty cover, plenty of driver assistance technology and a car that feels every bit as well engineered as its price suggests.

Audi e-tron GT Trim Levels Explained 

Choosing an Audi e-tron GT is really about deciding exactly how much performance you can reasonably justify. Even the standard car gets plenty of kit, so you certainly don't need to climb the range to make it feel special.  

The e-tron GT quattro is where we'd start after this Audi e-tron GT review. You get quattro all-wheel drive, adaptive air suspension and Audi's Virtual Cockpit alongside the sort of performance that already makes the word ‘entry-level’ feel slightly ridiculous. For an Audi e-tron GT lease, it gives you most of the experience without the biggest monthly payment. 

The S e-tron GT adds more power and a few extra visual touches for drivers who want something a little more serious. It's the middle ground for anyone tempted by the RS but struggling to convince themselves that they need quite that much car. 

Then there's the RS e-tron GT, where sensible decision-making largely leaves the building. It gets enormous performance alongside sportier chassis tuning and more aggressive styling, yet somehow remains comfortable enough to do the grand touring bit reliably. 

Audi e-tron GT vs the Competition 

Just to throw a spanner in the works in this Audi e-tron GT review, it has some seriously talented competition. The good news for Audi is that it doesn't need to be the fastest or the most practical to make sense. Its appeal comes from sitting neatly between a sports car and a luxury cruiser, without feeling like too much of a compromise in either direction.  

The Porsche Taycan is the obvious rival, not least because the two share plenty underneath. The Porsche feels sharper and more focused when the road gets interesting, whereas the Audi trades a little of that edge for a more relaxed character. If you're unlikely to spend Sunday mornings hunting for B-roads, that's hardly a terrible deal. 

The BMW i5 M60 is the more sensible executive option, with greater rear passenger space and a bigger boot. It does, however, look rather conventional parked next to the low-slung Audi. The Mercedes-AMG EQE takes a similarly luxurious approach, with more emphasis on cabin technology than traditional sports-car character. 

Then there's the Tesla Model S. It's enormously quick and offers impressive range, but the Audi has the advantage when it comes to interior quality and that premium-car feel. 

Choosing between them really comes down to priorities. The Taycan is the one we'd pick for pure driving enjoyment and the BMW makes more sense if practicality matters most. The Audi e-tron GT sits happily in between: still exciting enough to make an unnecessary detour tempting, but comfortable enough that you won't regret it halfway home. 

Is the Audi e-tron GT Worth Leasing? 

If you've made it this far in our Audi e-tron GT review hoping we'll talk you out of leasing an Audi e-tron GT, we're going to disappoint you. It's enormously quick and luxurious, but crucially, it's also comfortable and usable enough that you can enjoy it every day rather than saving it for an imaginary perfect Sunday drive. 

An Audi e-tron GT lease arguably makes more sense than buying one outright, too. Premium EV depreciation can be difficult to predict, not to mention battery and charging technology continues to move quickly. With a lease, you get to enjoy the car for a few years and then hand the keys back rather than worrying about what it'll be worth later. 

Of course, none of this makes the Audi e-tron GT cheap. You're paying flagship Audi money, and there are more practical EVs available for considerably less. Company car drivers can soften the blow with favourable electric-car Benefit-in-Kind rates, and don’t forget that home charging can make everyday running costs much friendlier than those of a similarly powerful petrol car. 

If you want maximum boot space or the lowest monthly lease cost, look elsewhere. If you want an EV that makes the commute feel a little less like the commute, however, the Audi e-tron GT deserves a very serious look. 

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