Late on Monday night, Audi fans from all around the world tuned in to see the car on Audi TV. Was it worth the wait? Definitely! Many of us believe the existing A8 is the most appealing luxury car in this segment of the market. However, in the true spirit of Vorsprung durch Technik, Audi could not resist taking it to the next level.This new epitome of luxury is now bigger, in fact it is now the biggest in its class. 7.5cm longer, 5.5cm wider and 2.6cm taller and yet this new muscular build does not come at the expense of fuel economy. Technology has moved along so far that the new Audi A8 is actually lighter and coupled with our new efficiency features, fuel economy has increased by up to 16%. CO2 emissions have also been reduced, some even by 21%! We now have a 3.0 TDI that produces only 159g/km and this is not at a loss of power as this has also been increased across the engine range. The 4.2 TDI now produces 350 PS (previously 326 PS), propelling the flag-ship to 60mph in 5.5 seconds and the 4.2 FSI has been increased to 372 PS from 350 PS.
In addition to the car’s green credentials, Audi Pre-sense has to be one of the highlights of the preview; this new system gives the car what we can only describe as pre-cognitive abilities. If the car senses an accident is about to happen, it will close the windows and the sunroof and turn on the hazard warning lights. For more minor incidents, if the Audi Pre-sense system predicts that there is a remote risk of a collision, it will prime the brake callipers, allowing the brakes to be applied that split second sooner. If the driver does not react to the impending collision, then Audi Pre-sense will alert the driver and even begin to slow the car down, buying the driver a few all important seconds. In the case of a rear collision the new Audi A8 will even move the front seats forward, reducing inertia and moving the passengers further away from the impact.
Other new features include the adaptive LED headlights. These revolutionary new all-LED headlights use less energy than conventional headlights. The adaptive lights use information from the new satellite navigation system, they will adjust to provide better visibility of upcoming corners and even offer different lighting dependant on the type of the road. The advancements don’t stop there either; the new A8 comes complete with an 8-speed automatic gearbox and electronic gear-lever. The Audi MMI system has been condensed and now includes a touch-sensitive pad, whereby the user can write numbers and letters with their finger to input phone numbers, and addresses.
To recap, the car is bigger, lighter, safer, more luxurious, more economical, has more technology and it is even more powerful – worth the wait? Definitely!
We have already requested two cars to use for demonstration, including the new 4.2 TDI model. We anticipate receiving those in April 2010. If you would like further information on this superb car, contact our sales team on 01202 775050.
