Gadgets Blog » Audi

I have a very tender place in my heart reserved for concept cars, and in fact, I believe its located right next to the tender place in my heart reserved for Santa Claus. It seems like for these big Auto conferences, such as the ongoing Detroit Auto Show, car manufacturers roll out their craziest, science-fiction inspired autos that are never to see the light of day. But boy, are they awesome to look at, and the idea that one day we might be rolling around in a car that looks like one of these. . . well, a boy can dream I suppose.

Yet this morning, car enthusiasts are excited over what looks to be a very special concept car from German manufacturer Audi. The Audi e-tron, which is a variation on the Audi E8 coup, boasts one of the most promising designs for an electric car that could be readily available in a realistic amount of time. Additionally, the car boasts some remarkable engineering features that conserve energy. The E-Tron (which has been spelled with varying degrees of capitalization on several different websites) is an electric car, with no gasoline required. Better yet, it can be plugged into a standard wall outlet to be charged.

Now for the specifications: One of the greatest difficulties in engineering an electric car is battery life, and the e-tron has some impressive numbers in this respect. Lithium ion batteries, the same kind found in many new consumer electronics, are located directly behind the passenger compartment and in front of the rear axel, giving the car a driving range of up to 155 miles on a single charge. Along with that impressive number is the charge time: only two hours on an entirely empty battery. But much like other electric or hybrid cars, the e-tron’s batteries also charge while the car is in motion.

Herein is the e-tron’s most innovative feature: Braking while operating the car actually charges the battery. The e-tron’s alternator converts the kinetic energy generated while braking into electricity that is then fed to the batteries, enabling the car to juice up on the road. This extends the driving range of the vehicle, powering the auto during a motion that is utilized frequently in driving. Additionally, the engineers at Audi used the old “brake by wire” principal on the car’s rear brakes, meaning there is no electronic or hydraulic element employed on its electrically actuated floating-caliper brakes. This eliminates any residual friction generated on the rear axels when the brakes are not being employed, further increasing the efficiency of the car.