Audi has begun building its new electric compact car, the A2 e-tron, at its home plant in Ingolstadt, with the first cars rolling off the line in the presence of Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder. The company says the model is its most efficient production car to date, with WLTP energy consumption of 12.8 kWh/100 km and a range of up to 646 km (401 miles). Order books opened on 10 September 2026 and German prices start at 38,200 euros, with first deliveries due in December.
Audi has moved its smallest electric model from development into series production. The A2 e-tron is built at the company’s home plant in Ingolstadt, and Audi presents it as a test case for a leaner way of developing and manufacturing cars as much as a new product in the compact class.
According to the manufacturer, the car went from development to production readiness 21 months faster than comparable earlier projects. Audi credits streamlined development processes and a higher level of vehicle maturity in pre-series build, along with a reduced number of part numbers and variants.
Built on existing hardware
Rather than installing a dedicated line, Audi says it reuses more than 1,200 existing production components and around 250 robots that already served other models in Ingolstadt, which the company says lowers investment and saves resources.
The plant is also adopting the “pearl chain” production principle already used at Audi’s Neckarsulm site. Customer orders run through the factory in a fixed sequence, which the company says cuts complexity and reduces the effort needed for storage and sequencing. Audi additionally points to its “Edge Cloud 4 Production” system and AI assistants that help staff find information on the line.
The most efficient Audi so far
The headline number is consumption. In the 140 kW version with the optional efficiency package, the A2 e-tron is rated at 12.8 kWh/100 km under WLTP — lower, Audi says, than any series-production model the brand has built before. Maximum WLTP range is quoted at up to 646 km (401 miles).
Aerodynamics do much of the work. The drag coefficient is 0.24, which Audi calls the best figure in its compact range. The car uses a controllable cooling-air intake, a largely enclosed underbody, newly developed aero wheels and so-called gap reducers built into the wheel-arch trim to narrow the gap between wheel and housing. Electric door handles with haptic sensors sit flush in the body side; an energy store in the door allows the doors to be opened if the onboard electrical system fails.
Four power levels, three batteries
Buyers get a choice of four outputs, from 125 kW (170 hp) and 350 Nm in the entry version to 240 kW (326 hp) and 545 Nm at the top. Depending on the output, the car uses a 52, 61 or 84 kWh battery (gross capacity). Drive is by permanently excited synchronous motors driving the rear wheels, and there are four recuperation levels including one-pedal driving selected via the B position.
Bidirectional charging is optional. Vehicle-to-Load can power devices such as e-bikes from a socket in the boot or an adapter at the charge port, and in Germany, Austria and Switzerland Vehicle-to-Home allows the car to feed energy back into a household grid through a suitable DC wallbox.
Space and cabin technology
The wheelbase measures 2.77 metres, and Audi leans on short overhangs to free up interior room. The cabin’s main feature is the Softwrap, a fabric-covered surface running from the instrument panel across the doors into the rear. An optional panoramic glass roof covers roughly 1.6 square metres and carries a UV- and heat-reflective coating.
Standard displays comprise an 11.9-inch Audi virtual cockpit plus and a 12.8-inch curved MMI touch display. Infotainment includes the AI-based Audi assistant and an e-tron route planner, while Audi connected work adds Microsoft Outlook and Teams integration. The gear selector has moved to the steering column, freeing the console for a cooled phone tray that charges two handsets at up to 25 watts to the Qi 2.2 standard — a charging time Audi says is up to 70 percent shorter than with conventional 5-watt pads. Audi also claims a premium-segment first by fitting the patented Fidlock magnetic fastening system as standard, used for the cupholder, charging cable bag and tie-down straps.
Depending on specification, Audi says more than 300 components are made from recycled steel, aluminium and plastics, with over 100 using post-consumer recycled material. Standard driver assistance covers emergency brake assist, evasive assist, attention assist, adaptive cruise control, parking system plus and a rear-view camera.
What it means
A compact electric Audi starting at 38,200 euros places the A2 e-tron below the brand’s larger Q4 and Q6 electric models and squarely in the segment European buyers have been waiting for premium makers to serve properly. The more interesting signal may be the industrial one: if Audi can genuinely cut 21 months from a model programme while reusing existing plant equipment, it changes the cost maths for every electric car that follows.
“The A2 e-tron is more than a new model: It represents Audi’s renewal. It shows how we are rethinking premium for Europe: using resources more intelligently without compromising on quality, technology, or customer experience. Developed for the needs of our European customers and built in Ingolstadt, it demonstrates our ambition to shape the future of premium mobility.”
Facts: Audi A2 e-tron
- Power: four levels, 125 kW (170 hp) / 350 Nm to 240 kW (326 hp) / 545 Nm
- Drive: permanently excited synchronous motors, rear-wheel drive
- Battery: 52, 61 or 84 kWh (gross)
- Consumption: from 12.8 kWh/100 km (WLTP, 140 kW with efficiency package)
- Range: up to 646 km (401 miles) WLTP
- Drag coefficient: 0.24
- Wheelbase: 2.77 m
- Charging: bidirectional V2L and V2H optional (V2H in Germany, Austria and Switzerland)
- Price from: 38,200 euros in Germany
- Availability: orders from 10 September 2026, deliveries from December 2026
First cars reach Audi dealers in December 2026.
Source: www.audi.com