2019 Audi A8 L has 48 Volts and Even More Gadgets
Newest version of Audi A8 is packed with all the goodies you’d expect in a luxury car and a few that may surprise you.
Rivalries between automotive companies are about as old as the industry itself. The Ford vs. Chevy war rages on to this day. Those two brands also battle it out against Ram in the light and heavy duty truck segments. Then there’s the full-size luxury sedan part of the market, where the German Big 3 constantly try to one-up each other in search of market share and profit. The 2019 A8 L is Audi’s newest entry in that contest.
Roman Mica of The Fast Lane Car recently went out to Big Sur, California to test the latest A8, which will only come to the U.S. in its extended-wheelbase L form. Mica praises its new design – half of it, anyway. He said, “It almost feels like two different designers did the front and the back of the car because back here, no more intersecting lines. It’s round, not angular.” In fact, the A8’s rump reminds him of the rear of a completely different car: the new Lincoln Continental.
As of right now, the A8 will hit the U.S. market with a relatively modest power plant. Mica said, “You’re expecting a V8? You’d be wrong. Yep, it’s a 3.0-liter turbocharged V6 that puts out 335 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque. It is mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission and, perhaps most interestingly, it is a 48-volt mild hybrid.” Given how much power the top-of-the-line BMW 7 Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedans can crank out, it’s safe to assume that Audi will eventually offer the new A8 with more potent engines.
Inside, the new A8 delivers the materials, creature comforts, and technologies befitting a car that will probably typically carry a final price of around $90,000. According to Mica, “This car will pamper you. It will waft gentle smells of spring or winter into the cabin. It will massage your feet. It will massage your back in all four seats and it will almost drive itself” thanks to its Level 2 autonomous driving capabilities.
Mica spends time learning about the new Audi flagship with A8 Product Manager Anthony Foulk. Pointing out the Range Rover Velar-esque duo of center touchscreens, he said, “Before, we had 35 buttons. Now we’ve gotten rid of them.” When he pulls up the navigation system on the top screen and requests to enter a destination, the lower screen automatically turns into a writing pad that recognizes natural fingertip handwriting. He enters a destination many A8 owners will probably scribble in: Starbucks. Other POIs can be pulled down from the cloud.
As an extended-wheelbase luxury sedan, the A8 L offers a wealth of comfort features to passengers riding in the back. Mica’s test car is equipped with the Rear Seat Comfort Package, which includes heated and cooled outboard seats with 18 massage modes – great places to smell the A8’s cabin fragrance system. Instead of fixed overhead reading lights, the A8 L features Matrix lighting, which can change its size and focus to make backseat reading easier and more pleasant. A detachable tablet allows passengers to control a variety of features, including the back seats, audio, and rear sunshades. Even the rear HVAC vents, like those in the front, are trick. A simple finger swipe can open or close them.
Only time will tell how the new A8 L will fare against the slick and tech-rich 7 Series and beautifully sculpted and lavishly equipped S-Class. Right now, it looks as if customers will win, no matter which model they choose.
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