Audi has unveiled the latest generation of its flagship Audi A8 model at the Audi Summit in Barcelona, Spain. This is the fourth generation of Audi' interpretation of a full sized luxury sedan and the new Audi A8 comes packed with technology wrapped in a familiar yet slightly different exterior. Still unmistakably Audi.
The all-new A8 has a newer exterior design language, unrivalled connectivity, luxurious accommodations and cutting-edge technology across the vehicle. Staying true to Audi’s tagline of Vorsprung durch Technik, the new Audi A8 will also showcase the Audi AI traffic jam pilot, the Audi AI remote parking pilot as well as the Audi AI remote garage pilot, all of which combine to make the Audi A8 the first production vehicle to have been developed for highly automated driving. This Audi can drive itself in some manner, if you want to put it in plain ol' English.
Whilst its new, I must add that the Audi design language is still pretty much the same. It does look a little more majestic befitting a flagship limousine but I cannot help but wonder if they could make it a little more edgier or try out something new. Of course, if Tony Stark aka Iron Man uses it in the latest Spider Man movie, who am I to say otherwise. I also have to add the fact that when it comes to this full sized limos, it needs to be viewed in the metal before you can truly appreciate its proportions. You think the A8 is just another A6, but when you get up close, it is huge!
The new A8 will be on sale first in the German market with two extensively reengineered V6 turbo engines: a 3.0 TDI and a 3.0 TFSI. The diesel develops 210 kW (286 hp), and the gasoline version 250 kW (340 hp). Two eight-cylinder versions – a 4.0 TDI with 320 kW (435 hp) and a 4.0 TFSI with 338 kW (460 hp) – will follow slightly later. The exclusive top engine version is the W12 with a displacement of 6.0 litres.
The A8 L e-tron quattro with its plug-in hybrid powertrain will come at a later date. Its 3.0 TFSI and the powerful electric motor achieve 330 kW (449 hp) of system power and 700 Nm (516.3 lb-ft) of system torque. The lithium-ion battery stores enough power for about 50 kilometres (31.1 mi) 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.
The new Audi A8 and A8 L are being built at Audi’s Neckarsulm site and will appear on the German market in late fall 2017. The starting price for the A8 is EUR 90,600, with the A8 L starting at EUR 94,100.
PRESS RELEASE WHICH INCLUDES SPECIFICATION (AND MORE PHOTOS BELOW):
The new Audi A8: the future of luxury
Barcelona/Ingolstadt, July 11, 2017 – Today is where the future begins in the luxury class:
the all-new Audi A8 flagship model makes its world debut at the Audi Summit in Barcelona. In
its fourth generation, the Audi A8 again provides the benchmark for Vorsprung durch Technik;
with a new design language, an innovative touchscreen operating concept and a
systematically electrified drive.
The Audi A8 is also the first production automobile in the world to have been developed for
highly automated driving. From 2018, Audi will gradually be taking piloted driving functions
such as parking pilot, garage pilot and traffic jam pilot into production.
Doyen of Style: Exquisite Exterior
The new Audi A8 is the definition of style – 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 new Audi A8 draws inspiration from the
Audi prologue design study with powerful design – whether in the 5.17 meter (17.0 ft) standard version
or the A8 L, which has a wheelbase that is 13 centimetres (5.1 in) longer.
The Audi brand is renowned worldwide for sports appeal, lightweight construction and quattro
permanent all-wheel drive – and the design of the new A8 underlines these values. The balanced
proportions emphasize all four wheels in equal measure. Muscular curvature around the wheel arches
brings attention to the quattro drive system that defines the brand with the four rings.
Viewed side-on, the upright front end combined with the gently inclined rear create visual tension,
accentuated further with 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
whenever the driver approaches or departs from the vehicle.
Luxury Lounge: An Interior Redefined
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 centre
armrest.
Control: All at Your Fingertips
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 centre 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 user interface appears as soon as the car is opened. The driver controls the Infotainment system
with fingertip control on the large display. They can use a second touchscreen display on the centre
tunnel console to access the air conditioning and comfort functions as well as make text inputs. When
the driver activates a function in the upper or lower display, they hear and feel a click by way of
confirmation. The glass-look operating buttons respond in the same way. The combination of acoustic
and tactile feedback along with the use of common touch gestures such as swiping make the new
MMI touch response especially safe, intuitive and quick to use.
The new Audi A8 can also engage in intelligent conversation. The driver can activate an array of
functions in the automobile using a new, natural form of voice control. Information on destinations and
media is either available on board or is delivered from the cloud at LTE speed. The extensive Audi
connect range also includes traffic sign recognition and hazard information – innovative car-to- X
services that draw on the swarm intelligence of the Audi fleet.
The extensively optimized navigation is another new feature: It is self-learning, based on the route just
driven. This provides the driver with intelligent search suggestions. The map also incorporates highly
detailed 3D models of major European cities.
World Premiere: The Pilot-Driving Audi A8
The new Audi 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 (37.3 mph) on freeways and highways where a physical barrier separates the two
carriageways. The system is activated using the AI button on the centre console.
The traffic jam pilot manages starting, accelerating, steering and braking. The driver no longer needs
to monitor the car permanently. They can take their hands off the steering wheel permanently and,
depending on the national laws, focus on a different activity that is supported by the car, such as
watching the on-board TV. As soon as the system reaches its limits, it calls on the driver to take back
control of the task of driving.
From a technical perspective the traffic jam pilot is revolutionary. During piloted driving, a central
driver assistance controller (zFAS) now permanently computes an image of the surroundings by
merging the sensor data. As well as the radar sensors, a front camera and the ultrasonic sensors,
Audi is the first car manufacturer also to use a laser scanner. The introduction of the Audi AI traffic jam
pilot means the statutory framework will need to be clarified in each individual market, along with the
country-specific definition of the application and testing of the system. The brand’s high quality
standards are equally applicable in the realm of highly automated driving. In addition, a range of
approval procedures and their corresponding timescales will need to be observed worldwide. Audi will
therefore be adopting a step-by- step approach to the introduction of the traffic jam pilot in production
models.
The Audi AI remote parking pilot and the Audi AI remote garage pilot autonomously steer the A8 into
and out of a parking space or a garage, while the manoeuvre is monitored by the driver. The driver
need not be sitting in the car. They start the appropriate system from their smartphone using the new
myAudi app. To monitor the parking manoeuvre, they hold the Audi AI button pressed to watch a live
display from the car’s 360 degree cameras on their device.
A New Dimension of Dynamism, Comfort and Safety
With a whole package of innovations, the suspension revisits the very limits of what is physically
possible. One such innovation is dynamic all-wheel steering, which combines direct, sporty steering
with unshakable stability. The steering ratio for the front wheels varies as a function of speed; the rear
wheels are turned in or against the direction of steering depending on the speed range. The car’s
handling becomes even more dynamic and precise with the sport differential. This actively distributes
the drive torque between the rear wheels, complementing the quattro permanent all-wheel drive that is
now standard in the new Audi A8.
The second new technology, Audi AI active suspension, is a fully active suspension system.
Depending on the driver’s wishes and the driving situation, it is capable of raising or lowering each
wheel separately with electric actuators. This flexibility imparts the driving characteristic with huge
latitude – ranging from the smooth ride comfort of a classic luxury sedan to the dynamism of a sports
car. In combination with pre sense 360°, the car is raised with lighting speed if there is an impending
lateral collision, reducing the potential consequences of the accident for all occupants.
This highly innovative suspension system obtains the energy it requires from a 48-volt electrical
system. Audi now for the first time fits it as the primary electrical system in all model versions of the
Audi A8. In conjunction with the advanced air suspension for the A8, the innovative suspension
concept delivers an utterly new driving experience.
Mild Hybrid and e-tron: Drivetrains
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 210 kW (286 hp), and the gasoline version 250 kW
(340 hp). Two eight-cylinder versions – a 4.0 TDI with 320 kW (435 hp) and a 4.0 TFSI with 338 kW
(460 hp) – will follow slightly later. The exclusive top engine version is the W12 with a displacement of
6.0 litres. (These vehicles are not yet on sale. They do not yet have type approval and are therefore
not subject to Directive 1999/94/EC.)
All five engines operate in conjunction with a belt alternator starter (BAS), which is the nerve centre 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 litres (0.2 US gal) per 100 kilometres (62.1 mi) in real driving conditions.
The A8 L e-tron quattro with its powerful plug-in hybrid drive will follow at a later date (This vehicle is
not yet on sale. It does not yet have type approval and is therefore not subject to Directive
1999/94/EC.): Its 3.0 TFSI and the powerful electric motor achieve 330 kW (449 hp) of system power
and 700 Nm (516.3 lb-ft) of system torque. The lithium-ion battery stores enough power for about
50 kilometres (31.1 mi) 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.
The new Audi A8 and A8 L are being built at Audi’s Neckarsulm site and will appear on the German
market in late fall 2017. The starting price for the A8 is EUR 90,600, with the A8 L starting at EUR
94,100.
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