Amazingly, despite having such power, the car feels incredibly controllable and not intimidating in the least. Clear and authentic throttle response, together with excellent brake feel and a good level of off-centre steering feel help the prodigious 1,027Nm of torque feel manageable. This is thanks to a superb new active suspension system that’s standard on this Performance Vorsprung model, and a hefty £6,710 option on others. 

Without going into too much technical detail, this new suspension system uses electronically controlled hydraulic dampers to infinitely control the body’s movements. This means the Audi does without traditional anti-roll bars, and while it is still on air-springs, the dampers allow it to react far more quickly to dips in the road, or indeed, the extraordinary effects of so much performance on the chassis. 

The benefits are clear from the moment you drive away, because the set-up keeps the body incredibly stable, increasing the feeling of agility and engagement. But in the real world, this yields astonishing ride quality, with almost unbelievable softness and comfort, without ever feeling out of control or sloppy. 

It’s uncanny; the e-tron glides over horrible road conditions without anyone in the cabin being aware of them. Other than when you hit particularly sharp bumps, which resonate though the wheel rim, rather than the suspension, you’d be hard-pressed to distinguish this and hovering over the surface on a cushion of air. 

“The Q4’s squared-off steering wheel reminds us of the Austin Allegro’s wheel. As with BL’s most infamous of machines, the shape actually works quite well in practice, but we have issues with its touch-sensitive buttons, because on more than one occasion, I clipped the ‘skip track’ button by accident while driving.” – Alex Ingram, former chief reviewer.

The Q4 e-tron’s cabin is impressively spacious, offering nearly as much leg and headroom as the larger Q6 e-tron. The boot is on the larger side of the class average, too.

Dimensions and size

As its name suggests, the Q4 e-tron’s falls squarely between the Q3 and Q5 in terms of length, but thanks to its electric platform, there is nearly as much space inside as you’ll find in Audi’s next largest electric SUV, the Audi Q6 e-tron. There are short overhangs front and rear, but again, this doesn’t compromise boot space.

Driving position, seats & space in the front

The Q4’s driving position is high, so there’s a decent view of the road ahead, and the seat has loads of adjustment. Beneath the floating central dash section is a storage area for a smartphone, while the door bins are large and deep, too. The glovebox is only half-sized, however, due to the fuse box taking up part of the space. 

Seats & space in the back

Passengers have loads of space to stretch out in the back of the Q4, and the seats are very comfortable, too. The angle of the backrests is a little more reclined than in a Tesla Model Y, which works in the Audi’s favour, while there’s loads of foot space, too.

Boot space

At 520 litres, the boot matches the likes of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 for overall volume. The Audi’s is more usable though, because the load bay is deeper, allowing for more bulky items to be loaded inside. Drop the rear seats and the volume grows to 1,490 litres. But the Q4 doesn’t have a front boot.