ALWAYS the bridesmaid and never the bride, the Audi A8, for all of its virtues as a solid if not spectacular member of the grand saloon brigade, has perennially been marginalised by the likes of the BMW 7 Series and the segment-defining Mercedes-Benz S-Class. But with a mid-cycle refresh hot on the heels of a steady growth of its share in the premium D segment, it looks as though the A8 could emerge from the shadows to make a strong case for its viability as a genuine alternative to its Teuton rivals.
As with most midlife alterations, the changes are largely cosmetic with a hint of engine output and efficiency improvements thrown into the mix to sweeten things.
Audi’s adherence to its well-established design language means that aesthetic updates are not always immediately apparent, but on the facelifted A8 they are actually quite extensive.
The front sees the application of a new bonnet with character lines that merge more prominently with the apexes of a newly bevelled take on the signature single-frame grille. The front and rear aprons have also undergone mild aesthetic tweaks to freshen things up, but it’s in the lighting department where the major changes are afoot.
A number of our launch cars were fitted with Audi’s innovative LED matrix headlamps. This system utilises a bank of 25 LEDs that can be alternately dimmed and illuminated via a camera-based scanner, allowing you to keep your headlamps on full beam while portions of the LED matrix dims the diodes according to the positions of up to nine oncoming vehicles, while illuminating the surrounding environment.
The eye-catching sweep LED indicators that first saw service on the recently updated R8 range further supplement this setup.
The short wheelbase model we piloted is powered by a retuned version of Audi’s long-serving 3,0-litre, six-cylinder turbodiesel. This unit has undergone a number of minor revisions that have bumped up the power and torque outputs from 184 kW/550 N.m to 190 kW and 580 N.m.
In the well-insulated and beautifully solid cabin, with its typically understated Bauhaus design, very little diesel chatter permeates your surroundings and vibration is all but absent.
Although the aluminium space frame-based A8 is a relative lightweight in its field, tipping the scales at around 1 880 kg, the earlier engine always felt as though it laboured under the car.
The output hikes have gone a long way to addressing this, and while it doesn’t feel ballistically quick it does feel suitably strong and refined, with the power arriving in more of a swell than a shove. That said, it responds surprisingly crisply to manually actuated gearshifts and the wonderfully silken and assured 8-speed transmission befits of a car with such a comfort-orientated bent.
The handling is predictable in that Quattro-underpinned sense. There’s bags of grip and proceedings seem to veer towards the understeery side of the handling spectrum when pressing through corners, something that’s not really helped by electro-hydraulically-assisted steering that feels rather heavy and lifeless. Our car wasn’t fitted with the optional rear sports differential; a system that subtly brakes the inside wheels under hard cornering. I’ve sampled a version of this system in the RS5, and if the application there is anything to go by it could pretty much nix the problem of that nose pulling wide. Generally, the A8 is better suited to the more sedate and statesmanly progress expected of its ilk.
Ride quality has been a perennial gripe levelled at the A8, but this particular model, shod as ours was with fairly fat 40-profile rubber, felt pretty compliant. While it is good, it still errs on the stiff side and like most air-suspended setups it thuds over sudden, large road scars and small, regular surface imperfections unearth some tyre patter. A ride in the latest S-Class, although similarly apt to such air-sprung caprices, will confirm that the Audi still plays catch-up in this regard.
Broadly speaking, the A8’s updates have managed to smooth off some of the less polished aspects of the earlier car. Given the earlier cars already respectable talents, it’s fair to say that where the A8 previously dwelt in the wings, the refresh has done just enough to garner the A8 some well-earned attention in its segment.
*Specifications:
Model: Audi A8 3,0 TDI Quattro
Engine: 3,0-litre, V6, turbodiesel
Power: 190 kW at 4 000-4 250 r/min
Torque: 580 N.m at 1 750-2 500 r/min
0-100 km/h: 5,9 seconds
Fuel consumption: 5,9 l/100 km
CO2: 156 g/km
Top speed: 250 km/h
Price: R1 101 500
Maintenance plan: 5 year/100 000 km
Service intervals: according to on-board indicator
*According Audi
