Description: Full-size luxury sedan
Model options: A8L
Base MSRP Range: $ 68,500
Wheelbase: 121.1 inches
Overall length: 204.0 inches
Engine size: DOHC 2.4-L V8
Transmissions/speeds: Auto/6 Tiptronic
Rear/front drive: AWD Quattro
Steering: Power rack and pinion
Braking: Power 4-disc, ABS/EBD/ESP
Air bags: 2 (front), 2 (side), 2 (knee),4 (side curtain)
EPA mileage est. city/hwy: 17/26 mpg
Consider the new A8L flagship sedan from Audi of Germany: It's a kinetic work of automotive art, chiseled from aluminum with a space frame structure stretched to extravagant length and an elegant cabin decorated in glossy hardwoods and supple leathers and filled with limousine luxuries.
But it also scores world-class marks for the strength of a V8 powertrain and sophisticated electronics aboard governing all aspects of the vehicle's movement plus communications, navigation, comfort, even entertainment.
And did we mention it's absolutely gorgeous?
We parked a prototype edition of the A8L on a lot in Louisville, Ky., during an introductory drive simply to walk around the vehicle and scrutinize all of the sensuous styling points.
Theme for the exterior is understated elegance where subtle shapes and soft edgework come out of the less-is-more school of car design.
The body stretches to a considerable length yet linear dimensions are disguised by the raked-back windshield and rear tapered roof pillars supporting a gracefully arched canopy spanning the passenger compartment.
Forward and back decks are then abbreviated with a blunt prow and tail, leaving scant space for overhangs projecting beyond fore and aft edges of the massive wheels in multi-spoke patterns cast from aluminum.
Up front, the curving nose looks clean and organized with a narrow horizontal grille centered between elongated clusters of composite lenses shielding bi-xenon high intensity discharge (HID) headlamps. Monochromatic bumpers and highlights of chrome ringing grille and fascia air duct convey the image of an elite automobile.
Flanks are relatively flat below curved shoulders and interrupted only by modest bulges around wheelwells.
At the tail the body-colored bumper features a strip of chrome streaking from one side to the other above twin chrome rings from protruding exhaust pipes. Open any door and slip into a supportive seat that fits like a custom-built lounge chair.
Cabin layout is familiar with two broad buckets in front and a bench in back with indentions for two but room for three.
The stretched wheelbase -- fully ten feet long -- adds up to more than sufficient legroom for passengers in the rear quarters. There's as much space here as what you would expect from the limousine.
Driver's seat moves 16 different ways through power-motivated contortions to guarantee a comfortable position.
And the driver is surrounded with an ultimate assortment of electronic car controls, with most set on the steering wheel or driver's door, or operated from a handy joystick mounted at the front end of the center console's padded armrest.
The joystick, rotating and clickable and acting like a computer mouse navigating through cyberspace, links to a video screen that pops up front and center on the dashboard above the console to access various car controls like the variable suspension settings, as well as climate, navigation, audio and telecommunications equipment.
It simplifies all car functions and eliminates so many buttons and dials and dashboard clutter.
Audi dubs this stick the MMI -- Multimedia Interface.
The learning curve to operate the intelligent device is brief and, once mastered, you can fly through the various layers of controls -- or use voice commands to work it.
Computer-governed equipment hints at the high-tech sophistication of the A8L, but that really starts not with software but hardware tracing to the vehicle's unique structure and aluminum composition.
Audi, it seems, has been a pioneer in the use of lightweight aluminum alloy for constructing cars. The original A8 edition of 1997, in fact, was the first production vehicle whose unit-body structure came from aluminum -- stamped, extruded and sheeted -- in a complicated system designed to increase rigidity and pare chassis weight.
For A8L, the aluminum structure with components pared ends up with the mass of a smaller car so it acts and feels more like a sporty model than a limo-length luxury sled.
And Audi capitalized on the improved handling traits by adding an air suspension system that can change a suspension strut's firmness or the suspension height faster than an eye can blink in response to constantly changing conditions on pavement. The device has four settings for firmness (from sporty-hard to cushy-soft) and three different modes for incremental height -- low-down for speed work, up high for tracking through deep snow, or in-between for normal navigating around town.
But all acts automatically if you pick the right switch with the MMI joystick.
And don't worry about traction because the A8L comes with Audi's Quattro all-wheel-drive (AWD) equipment.
The sophisticated device employs a torsion-sensing center differential to direct up to two-thirds of the power to whichever axle, front or rear, maintains a good tire grip. Another mechanism applies electronic locking to front and rear differentials in a process that can sense and block an individual wheel from spinning, then redistribute the driving torque from one side of the axle to the other.
Speed-sensitive power rack and pinion steering feels precise and quick, and for braking, Audi adds a big disc at each wheel coupled to a computerized anti-lock brake system (ABS) as well as electronic brake force distribution (EBD), and an electronic stabilization program (ESP) to prevent wheels from skidding laterally.
Powertrain consists of an aluminum 4.2-liter V8 with dual cams and all torque translated through a sophisticated ZF six-speed electronic automatic transmission outfitted with Tiptronic manual shift mode.
Expect it to deliver 330 hp at 6500 rpm with torque of 317 lb-ft at only 3500 rpm. Also expect it to pin your shoulders to the seat if you step on it -- you'll think you're steering a sports car.
The A8L provides a comprehensive list of standard gear, including leather and wood trim in the cabin. Still, there are options, such as a convenience package with front seat ventilation, electric rear sunshade, tire pressure monitor and power for trunk opening and closing, plus stand-alone options -- a sunroof, front and rear Parktronic guidance, and different wheel and tire packages to 19 inches.
