The fourth-generation Audi A8 has just made its world debut at the Audi Summit in Barcelona. It will appear on the German market in late fall 2017. The starting price for the A8 is €90,600, with the A8 L starting at €94,100.
The A8 is stylistically defining - it signals the dawning of a new design era for the entire brand. The front end with the wide, upright Singleframe grille and the fluid, muscular body symbolize sporty elegance, sophistication and progressive status. The luxury sedan possesses a powerful presence - whether in the 5,170 mm standard version or the A8 L, which has a 130 cm longer wheelbase.
Viewed side-on, the upright front end combined with the gently inclined rear create visual tension. The flagship model proclaims its identity both day and night, drawing on both the striking HD Matrix LED headlights with Audi laser lighting, and the LED light strip combined with OLED technology rear lights. These produce unique light animations as the driver approaches and leaves the car.
Viewed side-on, the upright front end combined with the gently inclined rear create visual tension. The flagship model proclaims its identity both day and night, drawing on both the striking HD Matrix LED headlights with Audi laser lighting, and the LED light strip combined with OLED technology rear lights. These produce unique light animations as the driver approaches and leaves the car.
Freedom is the defining design feature with a new luxury slant. This explains the A8’s resemblance to a lavish, spacious lounge. Compared to the predecessor model, it has grown substantially in length in both body versions.
The range of equipment and materials is extensive, with every detail radiating superlative bespoke quality - from the perforation in the seat upholstery to the electrically opened and closed shutters on the air vents.
The classiest seat in the new Audi flagship model is in the rear right - the optional relaxation seat in the A8 L that comes with four different adjustment options and a footrest. In this seat, the passenger can warm and massage the soles of their feet on a unit with multiple settings incorporated into the back of the front-passenger seat. The new comfort head restraints complete the experience. The rear passengers can also control an array of functions such as ambient lighting, the new HD Matrix reading lights and seat massage, plus make private phone calls, via a separate operating unit. The rear seat remote, with its OLED display as large as a smartphone, is a removable unit housed in the center armrest.
The range of equipment and materials is extensive, with every detail radiating superlative bespoke quality - from the perforation in the seat upholstery to the electrically opened and closed shutters on the air vents.
The classiest seat in the new Audi flagship model is in the rear right - the optional relaxation seat in the A8 L that comes with four different adjustment options and a footrest. In this seat, the passenger can warm and massage the soles of their feet on a unit with multiple settings incorporated into the back of the front-passenger seat. The new comfort head restraints complete the experience. The rear passengers can also control an array of functions such as ambient lighting, the new HD Matrix reading lights and seat massage, plus make private phone calls, via a separate operating unit. The rear seat remote, with its OLED display as large as a smartphone, is a removable unit housed in the center armrest.
The luxury sedan’s interior deliberately adopts a reductive design, the interior architecture is clear and with a strictly horizontal orientation. Audi carries its high quality standards into the digital age with a radically new operating concept. It does away with the familiar rotary pushbutton and touchpad of the predecessor model. The instrument panel is kept largely clear of buttons and switches. At its center is a 10.1-inch touchscreen display which, when off, blends almost invisibly into the high-gloss black surround thanks to its black-panel look.
The new A8 is the first production automobile to have been developed specially for highly automated driving. The Audi AI traffic jam pilot takes charge of driving in slow-moving traffic at up to 60 km/h on freeways and highways where a physical barrier separates the two carriageways. The system is activated using the AI button on the center console.
The new A8 starts out in the German market with two extensively reengineered V6 turbo engines: a 3.0 TDI and a 3.0 TFSI. The diesel develops 286 hp, and the gasoline version 340 hp. Two 8-cylinder versions - a 4.0 TDI with 435 hp and a 4.0 TFSI with 460 hp - will follow slightly later. The exclusive top engine version is the W12 with a displacement of 6.0-liter.
All five engines operate in conjunction with a belt alternator starter (BAS), which is the nerve center of the 48-volt electrical system. This mild hybrid technology (MHEV, mild hybrid electric vehicle) enables the car to coast with the engine switched off, and to restart smoothly. It also has an extended start/stop function and an energy recovery output of up to 12 kW. The combined effect of these measures is to bring down the fuel consumption of the already efficient engines even further - by as much as 0.7-liter per 100 km in real driving conditions.
The A8 L e-tron quattro with its powerful plug-in hybrid drive will follow at a later date: Its 3.0 TFSI and the powerful electric motor achieve 449 hp of system power and 700 Nm of system torque. The lithium-ion battery stores enough power for about 50 km of electric driving. It can optionally be charged by Audi Wireless Charging. A pad in the garage floor transfers the power inductively to a receiver coil in the automobile with a power output of 3.6 kW.
All five engines operate in conjunction with a belt alternator starter (BAS), which is the nerve center of the 48-volt electrical system. This mild hybrid technology (MHEV, mild hybrid electric vehicle) enables the car to coast with the engine switched off, and to restart smoothly. It also has an extended start/stop function and an energy recovery output of up to 12 kW. The combined effect of these measures is to bring down the fuel consumption of the already efficient engines even further - by as much as 0.7-liter per 100 km in real driving conditions.
The A8 L e-tron quattro with its powerful plug-in hybrid drive will follow at a later date: Its 3.0 TFSI and the powerful electric motor achieve 449 hp of system power and 700 Nm of system torque. The lithium-ion battery stores enough power for about 50 km of electric driving. It can optionally be charged by Audi Wireless Charging. A pad in the garage floor transfers the power inductively to a receiver coil in the automobile with a power output of 3.6 kW.
