The Upcoming Audi A2 e-Tron is the Most Efficient Audi Ever Made

• Audi is working on a new A2 electric city car.

• Like the original A2, the new model focuses heavily on aerodynamics.

• Thanks to this design, as well as more efficient powertrain and electronic components, the A2 e-Tron is the most efficient Audi ever made.

Although the A3 is the smallest Audi model offered in North America, the German automaker’s European lineup also includes the A1, a sub-compact hatchback.

Between 2000 and 2005, Audi also sold the A2, an ovoid-shaped hatchback that prioritized aerodynamics and efficiency above all else, achieving an impressive average fuel consumption of 3.0L per 100 km thanks to its aluminum construction and specially-tuned diesel engine.

More than twenty years later, the automaker is about to launch a new generation of the A2, but this time, with an electric powertrain.

Indeed, Audi is working on an A2 e-Tron, and from what we have seen so far, the new model will owe a lot to its predecessor in terms of design and philosophy.

Just because the internal combustion powertrain is gone doesn’t mean that the focus on efficiency has disappeared.

That is why the prototypes of the new model, which hasn’t been fully revealed yet, seem to look quite similar to the old A2, with a rounded roof that curves down into the rear window, which is split by a spoiler.

Of course, the front end is entirely different, taking inspiration from the brand’s latest models instead. This means we can expect to see divided headlamps, with LED daytime running lamps set at the edge of the hood and LED low beams installed lower down the fascia.

In addition to this aerodynamic design, the A2 e-Tron benefits from air curtains that redirect airflow in order to reduce turbulence around the car, as well as gap reducers that narrow the space between the tires and the wheel wells.

An active air intake also helps improve aerodynamics by remaining closed except when additional cooling is needed.

The result is a 0.24 drag coefficient, the best among Audi’s compact models.

The A2 e-Tron also received particular attention to its powertrain, again in an effort to improve its efficiency.

For example, Audi has used a new type of power electronics within the control systems of the powertrain, such as silicon carbide semiconductors, that reduce switching losses. The electric motor also features thinner laminations (0.2 mm instead of 0.3 mm) to reduce iron losses, and low-friction oil is used in the transmission to reduce rolling resistance.

The battery itself is a 61 kWh LFP (lithium iron phosphate) unit that can achieve up to 89.6 % charging efficiency.

In order to reduce weight and improve energy density, the battery’s cells are bonded directly to the housing.

While the LFP chemistry is usually less power-dense than other lithium chemistries, it is cheaper, ages more slowly, doesn’t require rare earth materials, and safer in case of a crash.

In addition, Audi says the A2 e-Tron’s LFP battery can be routinely charged to 100% without incurring much degradation, unlike other types of batteries, which are best charged to only 80%.

With the combination of its low drag coefficient and efficient powertrain, the A2 e-Tron achieved an average energy consumption of only 12.8 kWh/100 km in preliminary WLTP testing, making it the most efficient Audi model ever conceived.

The 2027 Audi A2 e-Tron will be officially unveiled this fall, but like the original A2, we don’t expect to see it on North American roads.

Nevertheless, the efficiency lessons learned by developing the new A2 are likely to make their way into other electric Audi models, some of which will be sold in Canada and the United States.