Audi EV patent 2026: simulated shifts, sparks and motor vibrations
Audi’s German patent application describes an EV that can transmit motor vibrations, simulate gearshifts and turbo lag, create sparks and even change cabin scents.
Audi wants to make an electric car deliberately less quiet and less smooth. German patent application DE 10 2025 107 436 A1 describes a system that can transmit electric-motor vibrations into the body and cabin, simulate gear changes and even let the motor rev while the car is stationary. It is still a pending application, not an announcement of a new production model.
Audi AG filed the application on February 27, 2025, and it was published on August 27, 2026. The document contains ten claims. One of the main claims covers transmitting sound and vibrations generated by the electric motor into the cabin or to the outside. Another describes a system of visual effects linked to the vehicle’s operating mode.
The ideas then become much more unusual. A clutch can disconnect the electric motor from the driveline, allowing the driver to rev the motor while stationary. The control electronics can simulate gearbox steps, gear ratios and acceleration character, while the description also provides for software-generated turbo lag.
But sound is only part of the project. Audi considers an electric-arc generator, a device that produces real sparks using a metal element in contact with the road, flashing exterior lighting and effects around the edges of the windshield that intensify the sensation of speed and acceleration. Another claim covers a scent generator: the smell could change with the driving mode, from calming in traffic to more stimulating during dynamic driving.
The approach is effectively the opposite of the industry’s usual fight against NVH — noise, vibration and harshness. The application instead proposes deliberately transmitting some electric-motor vibration through a rigid structural element and, when desired, reducing its isolation. Exterior light strips, displays and other components could also react visually to speed or driving style.
Audi also considers even more unusual scenarios. Examples in the description include a smell reminiscent of “electrosmog” or a toy railway, as well as changing the color of certain body elements depending on the driving mode. These examples extend the concept to simultaneous effects on hearing, sight, touch and smell.
Audi has recently been patenting other unconventional powertrain ideas as well. In another application, the brand proposed using the electric motor on a second axle both as a traction motor and as a generator in a range-extender system. At the same time, the company is already bringing the more conventional A2 e-tron into production with three battery options and up to 646 km of WLTP range.
The key limitation of the new concept is still legal and technical: publication of the application merely records a set of engineering solutions for which Audi is seeking patent protection. It says nothing about which of these ideas the company will actually put into production. For now, an EV with sparks, an “electrosmog” scent and artificial turbo lag exists only as a concept described in patent documentation.