New A8
Posted: Sat Jan 18, 2003 10:45 am
Audi A8
by Sam Livingstone
Audi’s new A8, showing for the first time at Paris, is an evolutionary design that has much of the proportions and graphics of its predecessor.
The car shares its platform with the Volkswagen Phaeton, and with the up and coming Bentleys, but is significantly lighter at 1780kg versus 2291kg (for the W12 Phaeton) despite offering much the same levels of accommodation. This is mostly due to its lightweight aluminium bodyshell, a feature that its predecessor, launched in 1994, pioneered with, but one that the new Jaguar XJ now also has in this sector.
Other technical highlights include air suspension, which is increasingly becoming the class norm, and the ‘MMI operating concept’, which is a slightly more simplified control system similar to BMW’s ‘i-drive’. PAX run flat tyres are an option that necessitate a unique wheel design (of 18.3 inches in diameter) and headlamps that turn with the car’s front wheels to illuminate around corners is also a unique feature on the market today, although previously seen on the Citroen DS and SM.
The A8’s exterior is quite a conservative design which more closely mirrors that of the Audi A4 than the A6, just as its predecessor was also quite similar to the then current A4. This is most notable in the upper DLO which has a slight kink at the C-pillar like the A4 and unlike the unbroken curve of the A6, and in the surfacing which is more faceted and less voluminous than the A6 and the previous A8.
Inside the car is dominated by a full width wood veneer running across the IP and into the binnacle, with the dials individually sunk behind this surface. This feature and the thin aluminium beading that highlights the dials, air vents, minor control areas and steering wheel gives a slightly retro feel. Otherwise the design is similar to other Audi saloons and is executed to class leading standards.
The previous A8 was often criticised for appearing too anonymous in a class whose reason d’etre for many customers is to have a status symbol that is clearly more than just an A6, 5 series or E-class. That car sold at a rate of 12,500 cars per year and so the new A8 has to improve on this performance.
This new car should sell better as its safe design picks up sales from those alienated by BMW's 7-series and from the many for whom the Audi brand has now become an accepted luxury class contender. But arguably the new A8 makes even less of a statement in it design and its specification, relative to its competitors, than its predecessor did. And this conservatism seems at odds with the market and the Audi brand, and may again be responsible for disappointing sales. Lets hope that the S8, maybe with a new face featuring a full depth front grille and new lamp graphics, might soon show what this currently softly spoken car can really achieve.
by Sam Livingstone
Audi’s new A8, showing for the first time at Paris, is an evolutionary design that has much of the proportions and graphics of its predecessor.
The car shares its platform with the Volkswagen Phaeton, and with the up and coming Bentleys, but is significantly lighter at 1780kg versus 2291kg (for the W12 Phaeton) despite offering much the same levels of accommodation. This is mostly due to its lightweight aluminium bodyshell, a feature that its predecessor, launched in 1994, pioneered with, but one that the new Jaguar XJ now also has in this sector.
Other technical highlights include air suspension, which is increasingly becoming the class norm, and the ‘MMI operating concept’, which is a slightly more simplified control system similar to BMW’s ‘i-drive’. PAX run flat tyres are an option that necessitate a unique wheel design (of 18.3 inches in diameter) and headlamps that turn with the car’s front wheels to illuminate around corners is also a unique feature on the market today, although previously seen on the Citroen DS and SM.
The A8’s exterior is quite a conservative design which more closely mirrors that of the Audi A4 than the A6, just as its predecessor was also quite similar to the then current A4. This is most notable in the upper DLO which has a slight kink at the C-pillar like the A4 and unlike the unbroken curve of the A6, and in the surfacing which is more faceted and less voluminous than the A6 and the previous A8.
Inside the car is dominated by a full width wood veneer running across the IP and into the binnacle, with the dials individually sunk behind this surface. This feature and the thin aluminium beading that highlights the dials, air vents, minor control areas and steering wheel gives a slightly retro feel. Otherwise the design is similar to other Audi saloons and is executed to class leading standards.
The previous A8 was often criticised for appearing too anonymous in a class whose reason d’etre for many customers is to have a status symbol that is clearly more than just an A6, 5 series or E-class. That car sold at a rate of 12,500 cars per year and so the new A8 has to improve on this performance.
This new car should sell better as its safe design picks up sales from those alienated by BMW's 7-series and from the many for whom the Audi brand has now become an accepted luxury class contender. But arguably the new A8 makes even less of a statement in it design and its specification, relative to its competitors, than its predecessor did. And this conservatism seems at odds with the market and the Audi brand, and may again be responsible for disappointing sales. Lets hope that the S8, maybe with a new face featuring a full depth front grille and new lamp graphics, might soon show what this currently softly spoken car can really achieve.