Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.
Fuel economy
97–115 MPGecombined; city 105–125, highway 89–104; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$4,040–$4,750U.S. average; Ohio $4,300–$5,060 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA electricity prices for Jul 2026
Owners have filed 0 complaints with NHTSA about the 2026 Q4 e-tron. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.
Complaints by model year
Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.
NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign for the 2026 Q4 e-tron over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2025 GTI, Golf R, Audi A5, A6 Sportback E-Tron, S5, S6 Sportback E-Tron, 2026 Q4 Sportback E-Tron, and Q4 E-Tron vehicles. The torsion bar in one or both front seat belt retractors may have been damaged during production.
Risk: In a crash, a damaged torsion bar in a retractor could fail. If this happens, the seat belt may not properly restrain an occupant during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will replace one or both front seat belts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 30, 2025, and October 31, 2025. Owners may contact Audi at 1-800-253-2834 or Volkswagen at 1-800-893-5298. Audi's number for this recall is 69UM; Volkswagen’s number for this recall is 694T. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning September 26, 2025.
Carmakers sent NHTSA 192 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2026 Q4 e-tron, the latest on Sep 25, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.
The parts they mention most: electrical system (88), unknown or other (30), structure (21), service brakes (13), suspension (9).
NHTSA hasn't opened a defect investigation that covers this model year.
Specs
EPA class: standard sport utility vehicle. EPA greenhouse gas score: 10 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Version
Engine
Transmission
Fuel
City / hwy / comb
Q4 45 e-tron Rear-Wheel Drive
170 kW Asynchron 3-Phase
Automatic (A1)
Electricity 288 miles of range
125 / 104 / 115 MPGe
Q4 55 e-tron quattro All-Wheel Drive
80 and 210 kW Asynchron 3-Phase
Automatic (A1)
Electricity 251 miles of range
105 / 89 / 97 MPGe
Q4 Sportback 55 e-tron quattro All-Wheel Drive
80 and 210 kW Asynchron 3-Phase
Automatic (A1)
Electricity 251 miles of range
105 / 89 / 97 MPGe
Sources and dates
U.S. EPA fuel economy data, file of Sep 29, 2026
NHTSA owner complaints, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA recalls, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA manufacturer communications, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA defect investigations, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings, file of Aug 7, 2026
U.S. Energy Information Administration, file of Oct 12, 2026
Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data