Audi E-Tron Scooter is a funky electric skateboard with a handlebar
It's scheduled for production in late 2020.
Just because you don't want to buy a car doesn't mean an automaker isn't interested in snagging a bit of scratch from your wallet. Many urbanites don't need a massively expensive way to be mobile, and Audi has just the solution for those folks.
Audi on Monday unveiled the E-Tron Scooter. The love child of an electric scooter and a skateboard, the E-Tron Scooter is designed to help people get around town more efficiently, gliding along silently between the office and the train, or bus, or whatever other method you use to get from Point A to Point B.
The E-Tron Scooter weighs 26 pounds, and it can fold up, taking up about as much space on the train as your average backpack. Its electric motor and battery provide a range of about 12.5 miles, with a top speed of 12.5 mph in Germany, where it's legally limited to that velocity. In other markets, it may be able to scoot faster, and Audi told Roadshow the E-Tron Scooter is definitely capable of a higher top speed. It has brake regeneration to improve its range, and the electric motor can be adjusted from a twist grip on the handle. When it comes to turns, you only have to shift your weight, like you would on a skateboard. It comes equipped with a headlight, a daytime running light, a rear light and a brake light. It's meant to be piloted with one hand, so you can keep the other hand free for signaling.
Of course, there's still an automotive connection. Audi is exploring all sorts of ways to make these available, including the notion of offering the E-Tron Scooter as an option for buyers of the E-Tron SUV. The scooter could get its charge from a plug in the back of the SUV and provide people with a quicker way between a distant parking lot and the office.
Like many other things Audi produces, the E-Tron Scooter won't be cheap. When it goes on sale at the end of 2020, it will cost about 2,000 euros (roughly $2,200).
Originally published Aug. 5.
Update, Aug. 7: Added information about the scooter's top speed.
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