Audi revives A2 nameplate as efficient EV hatch

MORE than two decades after the original bowed out, Audi has resurrected the A2 name for an all-electric hatchback aimed squarely at European buyers, with order books opening this month for first deliveries in December.

Pricing in Germany starts at €38,200 ($A61,630) for the entry-level A2 e-tron with a 52kWh battery, rising to €51,200 ($A82,610) or the range-topping 240kW variant with an 84kWh pack.

Audi has yet to confirm right-hand drive availability, though a UK launch price of £32,200 ($A60,455) has been flagged for the base model, suggesting it might make it Down Under.

Where the original A2 made its name with a lightweight aluminium body and tight dimensions, the new version has grown considerably.

At 4.32 metres long, 1.79 metres wide and riding a 2.77-metre wheelbase, it’s now closer in size to a VW ID.3 than a supermini, putting it firmly in family-hatchback territory rather than the smaller class some may have expected.

Audi is leaning hard on aerodynamics to sell the new A2’s efficiency credentials.

A drag coefficient of 0.24 is claimed as the best in Audi’s compact line-up. For context, the related VW ID.3 manages 0.26, achieved through active front air intakes, a largely enclosed underbody, aero-tuned wheels and “gap reducer” wheel-arch trims that smooth airflow around the tyres.

Even the door handles are flush, electrically operated units designed to cut drag.

The payoff is claimed consumption as low as 12.8kWh/100km on the 140kW variant fitted with an optional efficiency package, which Audi claims make it the most efficient model the brand has ever produced.

The A2 e-tron will be offered (in Europe) with three battery options and four power outputs: 52kWh LFP / 125kW (up to 423km WLTP range), 61kWh LFP / 140kW (up to 515km WLTP range), 84kWh NMC / 170kW (up to 646km WLTP range), and 84kWh NMC / 240kW (up to 630km WLTP range).

All variants are rear-wheel drive only, with no all-wheel-drive option currently offered.

The 170kW and 240kW models get a 13-litre front boot in addition to the 396-litre rear boot (1336 litres with seats folded); the smaller-battery variants miss out on the frunk.

DC charging tops out at 183kW on the larger-battery cars, with a 10-80 per cent charge taking as little as 24 minutes on the smallest battery and around 29 minutes on the bigger packs.

Vehicle-to-load is standard, and in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, buyers can also use the car as a vehicle-to-home battery via a compatible DC wall box.

Performance ranges from a leisurely 8.8-second 0-100km/h in the base 125kW car to 5.7 seconds in the 240kW flagship, which also gets a 200km/h top speed versus 160km/h for the rest of the range.

Inside, Audi’s signature move is a fabric-wrapped dashboard treatment it calls Softwrap, running from the instrument panel across the doors and into the rear cabin.

The A2 also introduces Audi’s Fidlock magnetic attachment system as standard – a first for the premium segment – allowing cupholders, cable bags, and other accessories to click into fixed mounting points around the cabin.

A wireless charging tray with dual 25-watt pads (Qi2.2 standard) sits ahead of the gear selector, which has been relocated to a steering-column stalk to free up centre-console space.

Instrumentation is handled by an 11.9-inch digital cluster paired with a 12.8-inch curved touchscreen, with an optional augmented-reality head-up display and up to 30-colour ambient lighting also available.

A 1.6-square-metre panoramic glass roof is optional, and sound system choices range from a standard seven-speaker setup through to a 14-speaker, 660-watt Sonos system at the top of the range.

Audi says the A2’s driver-assistance suite punches above its segment, headlined by an optional adaptive cruise assist plus that can steer, brake to a stop at red lights and hold station in traffic up to 210km/h, with lane-change-on-indicator functionality flagged for a post-launch update.

Standard equipment includes autonomous emergency braking, evasive steering assist, front cross-traffic assist, adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic alert and a reversing camera.

Optional extras stretch to a trainable parking function that can memorise and repeat up to five parking manoeuvres, and a reverse-assist system that can back the car out of a 50-metre stretch on its own.

Audi says the A2 e-tron uses more than 300 components made from recycled material, over 100 of them from post-consumer sources, and has been engineered for easier disassembly at end of life.

On the production side, the car is built alongside the A3 at Audi’s Ingolstadt plant using around 1200 existing tooling assets and 250 robots repurposed from other model lines, with Audi claiming a 21-month reduction in development time compared with previous new-model programs thanks to a new Pearl Chain fixed order-sequencing system.

Whether the new A2 makes it to right-hand drive markets in current specification, and at what price, remains to be confirmed.