Official: 2018 Audi A8

Yep, here it is, one of the most highly teased cars in recent memory, the all-new 2018 Audi A8. For all the hype that surrounded this car’s debut it sure doesn’t look all that exciting, does it? But that is not really the point with the A8. This luxury sedan is designed to set new standards of luxury and technology in this segment, stuff that is traditionally the S-Class‘s job. 

So design-wise the new 2018 Audi A8 is very Audi-ish with mostly straight lines and sharp angels. If you dig that, great. If you don’t, well, you still have the BMW 7 Series with all those curves. The interior design of the new A8 is a much neater job. The cabin just looks high-class, and as for the features, it is packed with stuff you didn’t know you needed. The car has Matrix LED reading lights and a foot massage feature. The rear seat remote, with its OLED display as large as a smartphone, is a removable unit housed in the center armrest.

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In terms of engines and powertrain, the 2018 Audi A8 launches in Europe with 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. These all come with the Mild Hybrid system which consists of a belt alternator starter (BAS) with a 48 volt electrical system. There is also a plug-in hybrid available with the long-wheelbase A8 L e-tron boasting 330 kW (449 hp) of system power and 700 Nm (516.3 lb-ft) of system torque out of a 3.0 liter V6 mated to an electric motor. It offers 50 km of zero-emission driving.

But perhaps the coolest thing about the 2018 Audi A8 is its AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology features. The list includes traffic jam pilot which takes charge of driving in slow-moving traffic at up to 60 km/h (37.3 mph),  Audi AI remote parking pilot and the Audi AI remote garage pilot which autonomously steer the A8 into and out of a parking space or a garage, self-learning navigation, Audi AI active suspension, and Audi Wireless Charging, a pad in the garage floor that transfers the power inductively to a receiver coil in the automobile with a power output of 3.6 kW.

Prices for the new Audi A8 luxury sedan start at EUR 90,600 for the A8, and EUR 94,100 for the A8L. The first production units will hit the market in late fall 2017.

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