AUDI E5 Sportback EV shown in Shanghai, ditches Ingolstadt design for Chinese style; 770 km range

Audi’s new China-exclusive brand, inexplicably still called “AUDI” but in all caps and unaccompanied by the trademark four rings, remains one of Ingolstadt’s most bizarre decisions. At the ongoing Auto Shanghai 2025 show, the company unveiled the first model of the unfortunately-named marque, called the E5 Sportback.

Essentially the production version of last year’s E concept, this big hatchback was developed in collaboration with Audi’s Chinese partner SAIC, built on the brand new Advanced Digitised Platform (ADP). Spinning off AUDI from Audi (yes, I know how ridiculous that sounds) enables the E5 to be catered specifically for the Chinese customer by ditching the main brand’s iconic design cues, such as the “quattro” box flares and the singleframe grille.

In their place are rounded haunches and a new Light Frame – a black ring that encircles the entire front end, incorporating the slim matrix LED headlights, the AUDI script, driving assistance sensors and air inlets. This is framed by an illuminated tessellated pattern made up of more than 1,000 lighting elements.

Moving further back, you’ll find a black roof and a kinked window line that leads up to the thick body-coloured D-pillars, while the rear end receives the same Light Frame as the front, here forming the taillights. A front spoiler, flush pop-out door handles and an elongated rear wing improves aerodynamic efficiency.

Inside, the E5 Sportback adopts several design cues already common in Chinese vehicles. These include a full-width 27-inch display panel that houses screens for the driver, centre and front passenger, as well as headrest speakers and an expansive centre console with storage for two phones and a 50-watt Qi wireless charger. You also get ambient lighting strips built into the wood inlays and an electrochromic glass roof.

The E5’s infotainment is underpinned by a new AUDI OS, running on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8295 chip and coming with an AI-powered AUDI Assistant and an app store that incorporates facial recognition. The aforementioned ADP includes a zonal electrical architecture, allowing next-generation connectivity and over-the-air updates for all vehicle systems.

This is a car designed for China, so of course the E5 gets highly-automated city and highway driving in the form of AUDI 360 Assisted Driving. Thanks to a lidar sensor, Adaptive Cruise Assist can evade obstacles, identify red lights and perform automated lane changes; it can even detect tricycles and delivery riders, Audi says.

The E5 is available in either rear- or all-wheel drive with power outputs of 299 PS (220 kW), 408 PS (300 kW), 578 PS (425 kW) or 787 PS (579 kW). Battery sizes ranging up to 100 kWh enable a range of up to 770 km (likely on China’s ridiculously lenient CLTC cycle), while an 800-volt electrical architecture means you can get up to 370 km of additional range with just 10 minutes of DC fast charging. Adaptive dampers and rear-wheel steering are also offered.

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