Audi A6 Sportback e-tron vs Polestar 2

The Audi A6 Sportback e-tron costs £24,690 more than the Polestar 2. For that premium it adds 119 miles more WLTP range, 90 kW faster peak rapid charging and 95 litres more boot space. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Audi A6 Sportback e-tron comes out ahead overall.

The Polestar 2 is £24,690 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £144 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Polestar 2 comes out roughly £24,610 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 386 miles for the Audi A6 Sportback e-tron and 231 miles for the Polestar 2 - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The Audi A6 Sportback e-tron goes roughly 155 miles further between charging stops. Both rapid-charge to 80% in a similar time, around 21-26 minutes.

The two are within 23 mm on width, so neither is meaningfully easier to thread into a tight space. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 541 mm of total clearance for the Polestar 2 and about 518 mm of total clearance for the Audi A6 Sportback e-tron. The Polestar 2 also turns in a 0.8 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 84% battery health for the Audi A6 Sportback e-tron and 90% for the Polestar 2. That gives the Polestar 2 a modest edge in retained real-world range. The Polestar 2's LFP-type pack tolerates daily 100% charging, while the Audi A6 Sportback e-tron's NMC-type pack lasts longest kept to about 80% for everyday use. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.