THERE was a time when Mercedes-Benz’s S-Class was THE grand saloon. Then came BMW with its “sheer driving pleasure” 7 Series, followed by Audi with the Vorsprung durch Technik Audi A8, while Jaguar looked on as a bitpart player with its “traditional” XJ. All offered luxury combined with good dynamics and performance in varying levels of competence. Lexus did not upset the status quo too much when stepping into the fray with its luxury-biased LS model, but now Porsche has joined the battle for market niche honours with its first-ever saloon, the Panamera – and we know what to expect from that. South Africans have never really taken to the A8 despite its admirable qualities and high praise in CAR test reports and (for now) the latest version takes to the stage in just one model guise. Which begs the question, can it redress the balance?
For starters, it perhaps needs to be better than it looks because, although this thirdgeneration A8 has considerable presence – especially when standing on optional, wheelarch-filling 20-inch multispoke alloys – it looks just, so, well, Audi. Deliberately so, states the company. Built around an aluminium space frame, the latest, two-ton A8 is bigger than before, measuring 5 137 mm long and 1 949 mm wide but a relatively low 1 460 mm in height. With a lengthy wheelbase of 2 992 mm and near identical front and rear overhangs, the car’s proportions are very well balanced.
The Audi A8 is actually better in the metal than in pictures, the coupé-like profile with its neat C-pillar quarter-light and the more expansive but still A4-like rear end are familiar, but the effect of the bright horizontal slats on the single frame grille is, well, bordering on being OTT by emphasising what is already a pronounced nose. By comparison, the bright trim around the glasshouse, through the back bumper and along the sills is far more elegant. Overall, the test team was unanimous in wishing the Audi A8’s styling was a bit more cutting edge, though.
The interior, with its LED ambient lighting, is typically Audi welcoming, but the dizzy array of controls and instruments gives some indication of the technology beneath the skin. Most eye-catching is the floor console housing the near-horizontal Bose audio system, fourzone climate control and the upgraded and expansive MMI controller plus the gear selector – all set in a burr walnut/black panel/bright trim-bedecked unit. The audio and air-con controls are straightforward enough but the 60 GB hard-drive Multi- Media Interface now constitutes a trio of panels including a touch pad to navigate the MMI.
There are a host of setting options for seemingly every adjustable item in the car’s make-up and the trick is to gradually go through them all and select your preference so that, once configured, every time you drive it, the car is exactly suited to your requirements. A drawnout process perhaps, but patience will be rewarded.
Ah, but the gearshift. What is it about grand saloons and oddball gear selectors? BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz have all devised something “different”, and now Audi has joined the trend with an upside-down golf putter-like selector that is far too sensitive – tight manoeuvring requires a gossamer-like touch to avoid inadvertently selecting any of Reverse, Neutral and Drive at the wrong moment.
But get out on the open road and most of the gripes pale into insignificance. If you have spent time with the optional 22-way adjustable heated and ventilated front sports seats and got the steering wheel properly aligned, the big Audi fi ts like a glove. The view out is clear even though the glasshouse is shallow and the pillars thick: the A8 simply shrinks around you. The full and clear instrument cluster is rounded-off at the top corners to be completely visible through the wheel’s boss and upper rim. Drive and Sport modes are offered and paddle-shifting can be used but, as is often the case with such powerful cars, there is little advantage in DIY-shifting. Let the eight-speed Tiptronic’s control electronics keep everything on the boil and rather revel in the A8’s sure-footed dynamics and the effortless thrust from the oh-so-smooth yet crisp-sounding V8.
With the benefit of variable inlet and exhaust cam timing, the long-stroke 4,2-litre FSI direct injection – at 140 bar – motor puts out 273 kW at 6 800 r/min and 445 N.m of torque at 3 500 – outputs lower than those of its rivals, but the naturally-aspirated V8’s capacity is the smallest of them all. However, the A8 is certainly not the slowest – 0-100 km/h in 6,02 seconds and a standing kilometre in 25,6 seconds at 209,9 km/h are more than brisk – and the Audi is comfortably the most economical, with a CAR index figure of 11,4 litres/100 km. The brakes are impressive, too, including an electro-mechanical park brake with an auto on/off function. An electrical recuperation system is standard.
Ride and handling are a mixed bag. With the aid of the MMI you can dial-up one of three fixed settings or personalise the characteristics to your preferences. With air springs all round, we found that selecting Auto practically satisfied everyone’s needs with minimal body roll when pressing on. Dynamic mode (which alters the throttle map) is best left for really smooth blacktop.
However, whatever the setting, low speed ride over ruts and corrugations is jittery (a common air-spring malady), probably exacerbated by the optional 265/40 R20 tyres (19-inchers are standard). Dynamic steering electrically varies the ratio of the Servotronic hydraulic power steering as a function of driving speed and selected driving mode: the combination is weighty and accurate but lacks the desired feedback.
Audi’s famed Quattro four-wheel drive system – complemented on the test unit by an optional sports differential – has a default 40:60 front/rear split that helps to all but completely eradicate any typical 4wd understeer. A mechanical centre differential can apportion up to 60 per cent of the torque to the front wheels, and 80 to the rears. Two-stage ESP acts as the watchdog… the Audi A8 can certainly be hustled with confidence.
Up front, then, the A8 gets an A for acceptable, but aft of the B-pillar all is not so favourable. Large doors ease entry/exit but rear legroom and headroom – the rear seat is realistically sculpted for two – is marginal for what is after all a BIG car. And if there’s luggage to be carried, the boot is disproportionately small, although the test car had a no-cost option full-sized spare that naturally takes up considerable volume.
TEST SUMMARY
“Impressive but flawed” best sums up the new Audi A8. There is a lot to admire but its overall looks, low-speed ride, fussy interior and relatively cramped rear came in for criticism from the test team. Worryingly, the car exhibited some trim rattles that were also noticed on local launch vehicles, which is very un-Audi-like. More A8 derivatives are in the pipeline, but we cannot see the new car out-performing its predecessor let alone rocking the grand saloon market back on its heels.
However, there will continue to be a clutch of individuals to whom this new A8 will represent a wholly satisfying compromise of performance, luxury and technology while acknowledging that it is not the ultimate combination.