Enlarge / Audi took the lead on developing VW Group’s new Premium Platform Electric, and its first EV to use PPE is the 2025 Q6 e-tron. (credit: Audi)

The arrival of the Q6 e-tron marks a significant milestone on the electric journey that Audi and its corporate siblings began in the wake of dieselgate, nearly a decade ago. Now, after developing electric vehicles based on its own gas-powered models, a cheaper VW platform, and a tweaked Taycan, the brand has led the development of a new platform just for electric vehicles, one that incorporates lessons learned from those earlier EVs.

We’ve followed the development of that Premium Platform Electric architecture and the Q6 e-tron for some time. Now, we’ve finally been behind the wheel.

Audi made its name with “quattro” all-wheel drive powertrains, and both versions of Q6 e-tron to be offered initially will use twin-motor, all-wheel drive powertrains—an asynchronous motor driving the front wheels and a permanent magnet synchronous motor at the rear. Both versions will use the same capacity 100 kWh (94.4 kWh net) battery pack, which operates at 800 V and DC fast-charges from 10–80 percent in 21 minutes.