Audi has looked at the future of electric cars and apparently decided the biggest enemy isn’t range anxiety, weight, or even physics itself. It’s waste. Enter the new A2 e-tron, a compact EV with the efficiency obsession of a monk and the aerodynamics of something designed in a wind tunnel after everyone else went home.

The headline figure is a remarkable 12.8 kWh/100 km. That’s not just good; that’s the sort of number that makes larger electric SUVs look like they’ve been dragging a caravan through treacle. The secret is a drag coefficient of just 0.24, with clever tricks including air curtains, smoother wheel arches, and an active grille that closes itself when cooling isn’t required.

Underneath sits a 61kWh LFP battery, a chemistry chosen not for headline-grabbing performance but for durability, safety, and everyday usability. It can happily be charged to 100 percent, while improved thermal management squeezes more efficiency out of every kilowatt.

The motor system has also received the full Audi engineering treatment: silicon carbide electronics, reduced internal losses, and a taller transmission ratio all combine to cut energy consumption. It even works as a mobile power station, sending electricity back out through Vehicle-to-Load and Vehicle-to-Home functions.

The original A2 was famous for doing more with less. This electric reincarnation follows the same recipe: clever engineering, sensible packaging, and a refusal to waste energy. In a world obsessed with bigger batteries and bigger cars, Audi’s smallest EV might just be its smartest.