Audi is busily expanding the plug-in hybrid technology that it introduced to the A6 range earlier this year, and the latest recipient is the slinky A7 Sportback four-door coupe.
40km electric range
The A7 Sportback 55 TFSIe uses a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine with 252hp, backed up by a 105kW electric motor. That motor is fed energy from a lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 14.1kWh. The electric motor is integrated into the seven-speed S-Tronic dual-clutch gearbox, so when it's running on electric power, the A7 continues to have full quattro four-wheel drive.
367hp total output
Tie the petrol and the electric power sources together, and you get a total system output of 367hp, plus torque of 700Nm. That's enough to make this A7 a de facto S model with 0-100km/h acceleration of 5.7 seconds, and a top speed of 250km/h. Top speed in electric-only mode is 135km/h.
Fuel economy? Well, as always with plug-in hybrids, take a good dose of salt with the official claimed figures - 2.1 litres per 100km, or 134mpg, seems pretty unlikely, but at least your tax savings will be sorted, with CO2 emissions of between 44g/km and 48g/km.
Clever regenerative braking system
Audi doesn't quote a seats-up boot volume, which suggests that space has been reduced a bit, but it does claim that the battery pack doesn't cause a step in the boot floor, and that seats-down space is 1,235 litres (that's about 160 litres less than a conventional A7).
Needless to say, there are three driving modes - EV, which is battery only; Battery Hold which, guess what, keeps the charge in the battery for later use; and Hybrid, which mixes petrol and electrons as needed.
Audi reckons that in hybrid mode, the A7 can cover most city journeys mostly on electric power, and the A7's systems can recuperate as much as 35kW of regenerated power under coasting, and as much as 80kW under braking.
Put a destination into the sat-nav, and the system will automatically juggle petrol and electric power to ensure that you arrive at any urban destination with sufficient charge to drive on zero-emissions in town. It can also decide whether to freewheel or regenerate, depending on what's the most efficient, and there's a haptic pulse through the throttle pedal to remind you to back off if you're being a bit lead-footed.
You can recharge the battery in a claimed 2.5 hours from three-phase power, or around seven hours if you're charging from a domestic three-pin. The air conditioning system uses a heat pump for maximum possible efficiency.
HD Matrix LED headlights, sport seats, four-zone automatic air conditioning, convenience key, Audi virtual cockpit, PHEV-specific displays, 19-inch, multi-spoke wheels and red brake calipers front and rear are standard equipment.
Sales of the A7 55 TFSIe Sportback start towards the end of this year.