In its fourth generation, the flagship Audi A8 L flagship model is 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 the first production automobile in the world to have been developed for highly automated driving.
Exterior design
The Audi A8 is stylistically defining – 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 A8 delivers on the promise made by the Audi prologue design study. The luxury sedan possesses a powerful presence, especially in the A8 L form (which is standard for Malaysia), with its generous wheelbase.
The Audi brand is renowned worldwide for sports appeal, lightweight construction and quattro permanent all-wheel drive – and the design of the new A8 conveys these values. The balanced proportions emphasize all four wheels in equal measure. Muscular shapes above the wheel arches give visual expression to the quattro drive. Viewed side-on, the upright front end combined with the gently inclined rear create visual tension. The flagship model proclaims its identity both day and night, drawing on both the striking HD Matrix LED headlights, and the LED light strip rear lights.
Luxury Interior
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.
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 rear passengers can also control an array of functions such as ambient lighting and the new HD Matrix reading lights. The rear seat remote, with its OLED display as large as a smartphone, is a removable unit housed in the center armrest.
Fingertip response: the controls
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 center 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 center 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.
Mild hybrid: the drives
The new A8 starts is launched in Malaysia exclusively with the 3.0 TFSI in the long wheelbase A8 L form.
The engine operates in conjunction with a belt alternator starter (BAS), which is the nerve center 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 liters per 100 kilometers in real driving conditions.
The new Audi A8 L is built at the Neckarsulm site. The Audi A8 L 3.0 TFSI quattro Tiptronic retails in Malaysia for RM 879,900.
Audi A8 is a multiple award winner
Audi A8 most innovative model of 2018 – The Audi A8 is the most innovative model of the year 2018 and Audi is the most innovative premium brand in the “Autonomous driving and safety” category. The “Center of Automotive Management” and consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers AG, who together presents the “Automotive Innovative Award,” reached this verdict.
The victory for the Audi A8 is testimony to the numerous innovations which the brand’s flagship delivers.
For the award as the most innovative premium brand in the “Autonomous driving and safety” category, the four-door design vision Audi Aicon proved compelling alongside the assistance systems in the Audi A8. The futuristic design study is geared entirely to autonomous driving and dispenses with a steering wheel and pedals.
With the “Automotive Innovations Award,” which was held for the seventh time in 2018, the most innovative automakers and suppliers of the year were singled out for praise. The manufacturer’s standings were decided based on a study of the database maintained by the “Center of Automotive Management” in Bergisch Gladbach. An expert jury reached the decision for the suppliers. A total of 1,296 innovations from all leading automakers involving around 60 brands were incorporated into the 2018 rankings.
Audi A8 is “World Luxury Car 2018” – The win underscores the status of the brand’s flagship as the embodiment of “Vorsprung durch Technik.”
In their decision, the 82 jury members from 24 countries assessed not only the emotional appeal, passenger comfort and safety, but also environment aspects as well as driving performance, market relevance and price-performance ratio. The Audi A8 prevailed against two competitors in the final elimination round.
