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Audi debuts e-tron GT: 293 mile range, 155 MPH top speed, 590 HP, $99,900 starting price

Audi e-tron GT (Credit: Audi)

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German automaker Audi has unveiled its newest all-electric vehicle: the e-Tron GT. The e-tron offers between 269 and 293 miles of WLTP-estimated range with several different variants, a top speed of 155 MPH, and a 3.3 second 0-62 MPH time. The new e-tron will start at $99,000.

Audi unveiled the e-tron during a live event on February 9th, detailing the exterior and interior design, as well as the vehicle’s specifications and performance figures. The e-tron GT aims to bring world-class performance to an all-electric platform as Audi begins to transition to a more broad offering of EVs for the future, with plans to offer more than 30 cars by 2025. Audi says 20 of these cars will be fully-electric.

Audi e-tron GT: the embodiment of Audi

The introduction of the e-tron GT “perfectly embodies Audi’s innovative and pioneering spirit,” Hildegard Wortman, Member of the Board of Management of Audi AG for Sales and Marketing, said. The e-tron will offer four-wheel steering, along with torque vectoring for improved handling.

With range offerings between 269 and 293 miles (433 and 472 kilometers), the e-tron will offer plenty of driving range for travelers far and wide. Additionally, Audi stated that the vehicle’s 95 kWh battery pack would have the ability to charge from 0 to 80% in less than 23 minutes when plugged into a 700kW station. Audi focused heavily on aerodynamics to complement the range ratings, and stated the vehicle has a .24 drag coefficient.

Audi e-tron RS GT: the most powerful Audi ever

Audi’s premier, top of the line GT variant will be the RS. Its 0-60 MPH in 3.1 seconds is lightning fast and will compete with some of the quickest electric cars in the world. Additionally, a top speed of 155 MPH gives it a face-melting maximum rate of travel, although it will rarely be reached by the traditional driver.

Niko Rosberg, a former Formula One World Champion noted that the RS GT’s performance was one of a kind. The four-wheel steering system combined with the performance specifications offered one of the most unique driving experiences from a production car he’s ever experienced. Rosberg spoke highly of the GT’s performance variant, adding that it was unbelievable to drive an all-electric powertrain with the power, acceleration, and speed that was reminiscent of his F1 days.

Sustainable interior materials for unmatched environmental consciousness

One of the main focuses of Audi moving forward is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions during the vehicle’s life cycle. This begins with the manufacturing process, which Audi detailed in its goals to be CO2 neutral by 2025. The e-tron GT’s manufacturing facility is fully-powered by renewable energy, making the production process Earth-friendly.

Additionally, Audi looked to use sustainable materials within its interior. One focus was to eliminate waste within the vehicle by using sustainably-sourced materials that could be recycled when the car reaches the end of its cycle. The seats within the e-tron GT use around 99% of zero-waste materials, making it one of the most sustainable interiors in the automotive market.

The 2022 Audi e-tron GT starts at $99,900 plus destination fees, which haven’t been defined by the automaker yet. The RS e-tron GT will be $139,900, Autoblog says. The car is expected to begin sales later this summer.

Audi’s full unveiling of the e-tron GT is available below.

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https://youtu.be/StkkIdBY5r0

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Tesla Cybercab uses a unique strategy for picking up the right rider

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Credit: ARTSIMAGE | X

Tesla Cybercab is using a unique strategy for picking up the correct rider, which is a crucial part of ride-hailing to ensure people end up in the right place and are charged the correct price.

Cybercab will utilize an RGB strip in its front light bar that will illuminate in a variety of different colors to mark itself.

This identifying mark will also appear in the Robotaxi app, giving riders in the same location a notable distinction in an effort to avoid any confusion regarding who should get in each vehicle.

Other ride-hailing services use similar strategies: Lyft and Uber rides are recognizable through driver identity, vehicle type and color, as well as license plate. Waymo will display the rider’s initials on top of the vehicle, letting them know that the specific vehicle for them has arrived.

Tesla’s strategy is unique and interesting, but there are some flaws. Cybercab’s main purpose is aimed toward being an autonomous ride for all, including those who have disabilities like being blind or even color blind.

Tesla will likely have something in the pipeline for those who cannot see colors or have limited vision. There will definitely be multiple ways to identify which vehicle is the one that “you” specifically ordered.

Cybercab is set to start giving public rides next Thursday, September 3, in Austin, as it announced a dedicated event last week and invited many members of the Tesla community.

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Tesla will launch Cybercab on September 3

Additionally, members of the public will be invited as well. Tesla has been offering employee rides in Cybercab for nearly two months.

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Tesla ends in-house wrap service that always seemed like a short-term program

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has said goodbye to one customization option for its vehicles: the wrap service it launched several years ago.

After launching an in-house wrap service in August 2020 for the first time in China. In the U.S., it launched in October 2023. Tesla continued to expand the program and adjust it with better pricing and fewer options for the Cybertruck.

By December 2023, it was giving owners of the Model 3, Model Y, and the Cybertruck the opportunity to give their vehicle a fresh look with a vinyl wrap.

Tesla revamps in-house vinyl wrap service with better pricing

It was only available in five locations: Costa Mesa, Oceanside, Santa Clara, West Covina, all in California, and Seattle, Washington.

However, Tesla made some big adjustments to its shop, and the wrap service is officially gone:

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Wraps are very popular across the Tesla lineup, especially since the company offers relatively few colors. Many choose to wrap their Teslas with interesting colors, patterns, or even finishes, turning their cars from glossy to satin or matte.

However, Tesla’s wrap service was so limited geographically that it never really had a chance to get off the ground or compete with local shops. Every area in the United States is now overflowing with detailing shops, mobile detailers, and other automotive specialists, many of whom perform wrap services.

Tesla’s service was confined to the Pacific time zone and only spanned across two states. It was never going to be something Tesla was a major competitor in, nor was it going to disrupt the wrapping industry. Now that the program has ended, it seems pretty ideal to believe it was always going to be a short-term thing.

Along with the wrap service, Tesla removed several other products, but nothing too crazy. The Model 3 Door Pocket and Cupholder Liners, the Model S 19″ Magnetite Wheel and Winter Tire Package, Model X/Y Ski/Snowboard Carrier for Hitch Rack, Tesla’s Electric Summer Party Tee, and the Electric Summer Tee were the other items the company totally eliminated from its online shop.

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Tesla Robotaxi fleet gets a brain upgrade ahead of Cybercab launch event

Tesla’s Robotaxi service now runs longer hours nationwide as its unsupervised fleet quietly grows larger.

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Tesla’s Robotaxi service just got easier to catch, with the company’s official Robotaxi account noting that rides are now available from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, across its operating footprint. The account also said its unsupervised fleet is “a lot bigger” than before, though without specifics. The bigger change is what Tesla says upgraded intelligence in vehicle distribution and routing is what’s actually cutting wait times, not a new Full Self-Driving version.

While Tesla did not name the team behind the upgrade, the language points to its AI and fleet software group rather than the driving stack itself. Vehicle distribution and routing in Robotaxi has functioned mostly as a dispatch problem with the software deciding which idle car goes to which rider, and how far it has to travel to get there. “Upgraded intelligence” suggests a smarter version of that dispatch logic, likely using demand forecasting to position idle cars near where riders are about to request them rather than reacting once a request comes in. Tesla’s AI division has built similar prediction systems for other parts of the business, including the neural networks that power FSD itself, so applying that same approach to fleet logistics would be a natural extension rather than a new discipline for the team.

Tesla is also about a week away from a separate robotaxi milestone. The company plans to launch Cybercab, its purpose built two seat robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, in Austin on September 3. Cybercab has been giving employees rides on public and private roads for weeks, and the September event is expected to fold those vehicles into the existing Robotaxi fleet within days of the launch.


Austin previously ran Robotaxi from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. as of last September, a schedule set before the service expanded into Dallas, Houston, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Bay Area. Wednesday’s post did not specify whether that extended overnight window still applies in Austin specifically or whether 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. is now the standard across every market. Tesla’s post, visible on its official Robotaxi account, framed the change simply as fewer riders waiting around for a car.

Whether the wider hours hold once Cybercab enters the fleet next week is the next thing worth watching. Tesla has tended to expand Robotaxi in increments, first geofence, then hours, then fleet size, and each step so far has arrived without much advance notice.

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