Overview

• The E5 Sportback is sold exclusively in China under a distinct AUDI subbrand that swaps the four rings for a plain wordmark.
• Developed and manufactured with state-owned SAIC at the Anting facility near Shanghai, the car uses software tailored for Chinese buyers.
• Audi advertises up to 776 PS, a range of over 600 kilometers, and a cockpit-spanning display, with a starting price around €28,000 that undercuts comparable German-market models by roughly half.
• Industry outlet Automobilwoche cautions that the roughly 10,000 reservations may not translate into equivalent sales because low-deposit preorders are often used as marketing tools.
• Audi signals two additional China-focused EV launches within two years as analysts cite cheaper batteries, lower energy costs, scale efficiencies, and thinner margins in China, against a backdrop of German auto job cuts including about 7,500 planned at Audi and more than 50,000 industrywide last year.