Audi E-Tron, Q6 E-Tron Spied Cold-Weather Testing Near Arctic Circle

Audi’s lineup of electric vehicles will soon look different. The German luxury automaker is prepping a pair of crossovers that should debut before the end of the year. One is the updated E-Tron, which might get renamed to the Q8 E-Tron, while the other is the all-new Q6 E-Tron. New spy videos show their ongoing development, capturing the two cold-weather testing near the arctic circle

The E-Tron wears camouflage on the front and rear fascias, which hide the model’s mid-cycle updates. The model will get new fascias, revised front and rear styling with updated lighting units, and other minor tweaks. The crossover, available in both standard and Sportback configurations, will also receive improvements to the powertrain – something that doesn’t typically happen with gas-powered cars.

Those changes could include better batteries and improved electric motors, which should help the crossover’s range and overall performance. There likely won’t be any significant interior changes when it arrives. Audi plans to replace the E-Tron in 2026, where the model should receive a substantial overhaul inside and out

The Q6 E-Tron wears a full camouflage wrap that hides its design, but the camouflage can’t hide the lights. Our most recent spy shots captured the crossover with its production units, but the crossover in the new video has stand-in taillights at a minimum. It’s unclear what kind of headlights the crossover is wearing as the full-body wrap distorts its styling.

There is little information about the Q6 E-Tron powertrain, but rumors suggest that Audi is developing a high-performance RS variant. It’ll allegedly produce around 600 horsepower (447 kilowatts) and 612 pound-feet (830 Newton-meters) of torque. The Q6 will ride on Audi’s PPE architecture co-developed with Porsche. The PPE will also underpin the new Porsche Macan EV that will debut ahead of the Audi.

The new E-Tron and the Q6 E-Tron will debut sometime this year, hitting the market for 2023. The E-Tron might get a new name when it debuts this year as Audi has already announced that the Q8 E-Tron will replace it, and the company could preempt that by changing the model’s name now. We will have to wait for the full reveal of both to learn more about the two electric vehicles.