13 q5 hybrid

What happens when a q5 hybrid losses its battery, can it still drive, i see it has no tc in trans, so the only way i can see it being able to function like a regular q5 is a clutch setup like a manual transmission would have, am i correct?

MP4.2+6.0

Not sure from any experience there, but variously: Unlikely to lose battery for a long time. Actually, there are two small batteries besides the main Hybrid drive one. All the heavy functions are handled by the main drive pack. Car knows state of the various batteries as far as both charging and fault messages to display if needed.

The electric drive motor sits where the torque converter normally is. Handles a variety of things--the Hybrid drive function, drive pack charging, alternator, starting. Explained in a lot more detail in the internal Audi training publication (SSP) for the Hybrid. There is a DC-DC inverter to handle the step down from the high voltage power to the 12V system where the "normal" battery is in the loop.

ZF sells it as a modular swap out system, so actually the same you will find in other 8 speed ZF's--BMWs "Active Hybrid", Porsche Cayenne that is really just a Q7/5 drivetrain w/ Audi style quattro, etc. They all try to claim lots of innovation, but its really ZF at its core. The vehicle manufacturers do more of the balance of drivetrain integration, size of battery pack choice, etc. Porsche did move to plug in Hybrid level in last year or two. Because there is no torque converter, tranny fluid does get changed every 40K since internals take more load without torque converter buffering --the only Audi with the 8 speed that has that service interval. I had to remind dealer of that under AudiCare for the 35K service when they missed it the first time.