Battery size: 84 - 97 kWh
Miles per kWh: 3.8
E-Rating™: B
Max charge rate: 320 kW
Range: 299 -374
Introduction & history
Have you ever seen the film Brewster’s Millions? It’s a classic. To qualify for a multi-million dollar inheritance, Richard Pryor’s character has to try and spend money as quickly as possible.
If you find yourself in a similar situation, here is our advice - buy a fleet of brand new Audi e-tron GTs and then sell them immediately.
This car is highly desirable, but it’s a model which sheds value in the first few years at a genuinely alarming rate. And while that is bad news for the first owner, it means they make a really savvy used buy.
You can look like a million dollars while spending less than the price of a Corsa. But there is A LOT you need to know before you take the plunge.
First, the basics and history. At a glance, the e-tron GT could be ‘mistaycan’ for a Taycan. That’s because it shares a lot of its parts with the Porsche. It’s not just a rebadge though, as about 60% of the components are different.
Why would you want the Audi rather than a Porsche? Well the e-tron GT is designed to be more of a GT - so a grand tourer compared to a sports car. It’s a bit softer and more comfortable, with lighter steering.
That doesn’t mean it's not ridiculously fast if you want it to be - but it is a little more refined about it.
The e-tron GT went on sale in early 2021, and those early cars are now a bargain. We currently have loads for sale on the Electrifying.com used car listings at around £35,000 - and that price is only going down.
You could get it in different models - the first was a ‘basic’ e-tron GT quattro, but if you wanted more of everything there was the RS e-tron GT with around 630hp when in boost mode.
Both models have two electric motors, giving quattro all-wheel drive. They even have a two-speed gearbox, which is rare for an EV and makes it more efficient.
The battery was actually a bit larger than the Taycan of the time too, and it used an 800-volt electrical architecture, allowing charging which was the quickest available at the time - up to 270kW.
Then, from 2024, you got the facelifted cars. Every model in the range suddenly cost more than £100k, making the Taycan look cheap in comparison.
It doesn’t look that much different to the early GTs, but gets a bigger 97kWh battery which can charge faster - at up to 320kW if you can find a fast enough charger and you don’t have to share it with anyone.
What’s the real-world range of a used Audi e-tron GT?
The figures when the e-tron GT was new varied between 300 and 374 miles, but it all depended on the spec and wheel sizes. In the real world that would translate to 250 – 300, but bear in mind it will plummet if you use all that performance. The two-speed gearbox and slippery shape mean it isn’t as affected by motorway journeys as many other EVs though.
How long will the battery on the Audi e-tron GT last?
Like all EVs, the batteries in an e-tron GT will lose some capacity over years simply due to the natural wear and tear on the internal chemicals. This will increase according to the number of charge cycles and vary according to the way the car has been driven, stored and charged.
You can’t tell this just by looking at it of course, but many dealers will now give you peace of mind with a battery state-of-health check using independent tests that can’t be fudged.
Looking at the battery condition percentages of the used e-ton GTs listings and they are OK - but only OK. To be honest I am a little surprised at the degradation.
Don’t get me wrong - we have 91, 92 and 93% scores here, so they are still going to offer 250ish miles of range. But at around 40,000 miles I’d have expected more. A lesser Audi Q4 with the same miles would be averaging 96% for example.
That makes it important to look out for a car which has an independent battery check.
How reliable is a used Audi e-tron GT and what are the common problems?
We’d better start talking about the potential problems, because the list is quite long.
Check the government's recall database and you’ll see that the e-tron GT has been called back to have several battery fixes. For the early cars, these include worrying stuff like moisture entering the cells and potential fire risks. Gulp. Then there was another for cracking brake hoses, so important stuff.
Owners’ forums also mention Drive System malfunctions caused by software issues and cooling system faults, infotainment glitches and charging problems. These can sometimes mean the car won’t open and the handbrake locks on, which makes it very tricky to recover.
Then there are the brakes. Like a lot of electric cars, they don’t get used often as on ICE engined motors because the regen takes the strain. That sounds like a good thing, but it can mean the discs corrode and other parts seize up. Check for judder, grinding and warning messages on the test drive.
If you haven’t been put off it yet, bear in mind that all of these problems SHOULD have been fixed by now. But this is one car where I would suggest you will be wanting to make sure there is a decent warranty covering you just in case.
Which is the best version to buy?
As always with an Audi, the basic models are only the start and there were plenty of options to bump up the original price, including some brave colour choices and some bling wheels.
The actual spec will depend on the trim level and the number of boxes the original owner ticked, but you will never feel hard done by.
But some have the piano black trim which can look scruffy really quickly and the black interior with black leather can look a bit boring. I’d happily pay a bit more for a bit of colour.
There were a couple of those funny special editions which were not really limited in number too. The Carbon Black had a more aggressive look but what otherwise the same as the standard quattro. The Vorsprung is a different kettle of ballgames - Audi threw everything at that one and it had ALL the options. And a six figure price tag.
Early e-tron GTs came with adaptive suspension, with air suspension optional on the quattro and standard on the RS - and it gives the car a lovely balance between keeping that big body under control and delivering a proper GT ride. The 2024 facelift brought a new air suspension set-up as standard, but for even more waftiness.
Look out for a car specced with the optional active suspension - it can individually control each wheel to keep the body remarkably level over bumps and through corners.
In terms of specific models, I’d say the e-tron GT quattro has enough performance as you’d ever really need, and the 2024 facelift gives better battery capacity, charging and performance. Some of the early problems are ironed out too - so stretch to one if you can, preferably in an interesting colour combo.
How long is the warranty?
Audi covers the battery with an 8-year/100,000-mile battery degradation warranty of course and the rest of the car is covered by a three-year or 60,000 mile warranty. After that, you’ll need to arrange your own cover, but a used e-tron GT from a dealer should have some guarantee
What are the ownership and running costs of an Audi e-tron GT?
Compared to a petrol car with the same performance, the e-tron GT is cheap to run as it’s not burning expensive fuel, especially if you can charge at home. But you will still have to budget for the stuff which wears out or needs servicing.
The most obvious is tyres. This is a heavy, high performance car, and if you show off that acceleration too often you will wear out the rubber. A set of decent boots even on the models with smaller rims will set you back a grand. It could be more on the RS models.
Then there are the brakes. Like a lot of electric cars, they don’t get used often as on ICE engined motors because the regen takes the strain. That sounds like a good thing, but it can mean the discs corrode and other parts seize up. Check for judder, grinding and warning messages on the test drive.
There is a ceramic brake option on some e-tron. That will give you the ultimate stopping power on a track, but the potential for big bills would keep me awake at night.
Other servicing is comparatively cheap for a car of this performance, with Audi selling a plan for less than £1,000 which will cover a couple of routine check-ups, fresh cabin filters, new brake fluid, and a pair of MOTs.
Also bear in mind that GTs which were registered after April 1st 2025 will be liable for the government’s Expensive Car Supplement, which means you will be paying an extra £440 for the road tax - on top of the normal £200 - every year until the car’s sixth birthday. Ouch.
Finally – get an insurance quote if you are younger or inexperienced. The e-tron GT is in the highest possible group, which means the broker will suck through their teeth and charge through the nose.
What other cars should I consider?
If you’ve been put you off, there are other alternatives you might want to look at. The Porsche is the most obvious and there is the option of the cheaper, more efficient rear wheel drive option. But it still has the same reliability issues as the e-tron GT.
The Tesla Model S is getting old now, unless you can cope with left hand drive. The Mercedes EQE and EQS or BMW i7 are just as posh but not nearly as sporty. If you are brave, the Italian ambassador and want to benefit from even more depreciation, then there’s the Maserati GranTurismo Folgore.
Or there’s that brand new Corsa instead of course, which might suddenly seem like a good idea after reading this…..
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