It's World EV day - here's one of the rarest
Just four e-tron GT Ice Race Editions made it to the UK, so you won't see another plugged in anytime soon...
Just in case you also weren’t aware, September 9th is World EV Day. So if you see even more messaging today about charging, range, preconditioning and everything else, then that’s why. Clearly, there’s still work to be done when it comes to the messaging around electric cars; everyone knows about running and fuelling a combustion car, but not so much when it comes to EVs. Not helped by a charging infrastructure that’s more confusing than it should be, but that’s a discussion for another day.
This World EV Day, then, rather than the practicalities and worthy bits of electric motoring, time to look at one of the rarest battery-powered cars ever made. Alright, so the Audi e-tron GT Ice Race Edition is a derivative rather than a dedicated model in its own right, but still: just four UK cars out of a 99-unit production run - and with one for sale on PH - feels quite notable for this September 9th.
Unsurprisingly, the IRE was created to celebrate the Austrian GP Ice Race at Zell am See. So there was a wrap with accents like snow crystals, ice lakes and ski goggles (really), a purple and silver colour scheme inside plus almost every option box ticked. Not some kind of dedicated motorsport special, instead a demonstration of what Audi Design and the Audi exclusive personalisation programme were capable of. There was (and is) no mistaking an Ice Race Edition for any other e-tron, which must have been most of the point.
There was a premium to pay for the exclusivity and the Alcantara door trims, of course, and it was £30,000 - each Ice Race Edition RS GT cost £150,630. Four people must have really loved the Ice Race, or purple, or their local dealer, because that’s an awful lot to pay over a very good (and very expensive) 646hp e-tron. Maybe it was less than four, but there was at least one…
This Ice Race Edition was registered in 2024 and has covered 4,513 miles since; photographed at a dealership rather than pictured in a dedicated shoot maybe takes some of the limited edition glamour away, though it’s certainly still attention-grabbing. With the glut of Taycans and e-tron GTs out there, Ice Race Edition spec ensures it won’t be mistaken for a normal one. Its minimal use of course means as-new condition, down to seats and a wheel that look very susceptible to wear. Not that limited production run and a lavish spec were enough to save the Ice Race Edition from EV depreciation. At £90k this one is hardly being given away, though it’s still more than a third off the original RRP. Where an Ice Race Edition ends up, of course, is anyone’s guess.
We hardly need to say that regular cars are an awful lot less, that same £30k saving extending to secondhand examples. And depreciation isn’t going to stop here. But when so many will dismiss all electric cars as the same, something that stands out is surely to be celebrated. If Polestar can make a BST 270, Porsche a Taycan Turbo GT and BMW a Kith i4, a super niche e-tron GT seems more than justified. And a trip to Austria in the winter will certainly be memorable…
I genuinely didn't realise that there was a day for them.
Apparently Nissan is pushing V6 day. I find the whole concept tiresome, but I am old and grumpy. I stopped looking before I got to world air cooled two stroke. Admittedly niche.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steak_and_Blowjob_Da...
It's a piss take based on the concept that Valentines day is generally about the ladies being treated.
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