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Road Test: 2013 - 2014 Audi A8L Quattro
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Road Test: 2013 - 2014 Audi A8L Quattro

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September 7,2013
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9 min read

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Apart from beautiful architecture, beer and brilliant painters such as Albrecht Altdorfer, Germany is also famous for being home to a number of outstanding automobile manufacturers. Think of large premium sedans and Mercedes S Class, BMW 7 Series and Audi A8 are the names most likely to come to mind. 

I had blocked my calendar and it was time for me to roll in Audi’s flagship sedan, the 2013 Audi A8 L. We had earlier tested the big momma, W12 Audi A8 in June, now we received the 4.0 TFSI V8, which arrived to UAE shores in late 2012. Filled with excitement, I made my way to the Audi office where I was seated and greeted by the extremely friendly staff. A few signatures later and we made our way to the parking lot where I first laid my eyes on the stunning A8 L Quattro. As the spectacular LED headlamps illuminated the surrounding area, I noticed our test car was equipped with gorgeous 21” wheels and finished in a hue Audi likes to refer to as Classic Red – which is Maroon to mere mortals like you and me. 

Interior Finishing

Open the door and you’ll feel like you’re entering the first class compartment of an airline. The supremely comfortable leather seats that can be adjusted in much too many ways to count, along with an array of buttons to control various gizmos and the fine grain birch wood pearl beige trim are just a few things you’ll notice once you’re inside.

It’s quite clear that customization is what Audi wanted to offer its customers with the A8 L since everything from how snuggly your seat is to the color of the ambient light can be adjusted with just a few clicks. The ambient lighting system offers 3 lighting options, Ivory, Polar and Ruby that light up the cabin, door panels and footwell in yellow, white or red respectively. 

Up front, both the driver and passenger benefit from heated and cooled seats with a memory function. Recline a little in your seat and once you’re done admiring the suede roof liner you’ll notice the panoramic sunroof that can be opened completely in the front and tilted in the rear. 

Interior Technology 

Upon launching their new Multi Media Interface (MMI), Audi have integrated a small touch-sensitive control panel known as MMI touch which allows the driver to input navigation destinations or a telephone number simply by writing on the pad with a finger. Though it is a brilliant concept and works well most of the time, I couldn’t help but question if it really was quicker than the conventional method of typing the information in.

Being a premium sedan, I expected the A8 L to have an absolutely banging audio system. I was a little disheartened when I discovered our test car didn’t have the Bang & Olufsen Advanced Sound System however after pairing my phone to the Bluetooth system (which took under 1 minute) and turning the music up, the 19 speaker Bose system was a treat! Everything from the amount of surround sound wanted to your desired levels of bass, treble and ideal sound positioning can be customized to ensure you can enjoy your music just the way you like it.  

With our reliability on the internet increasing exponentially on a daily basis, some of you will be delighted to know that the A8 L is equipped with its own full scale internet connection, making it a moving Wi-Fi hotspot. Speaking of interesting technology, the A8 L is also equipped with numerous cameras which show you the front view, front corners, rear view, rear corners and an overhead view as well. As you’ve probably guessed, with all those cameras, parking the mighty A8 L that measures in at 5267mm does become a breeze. 

Interior Space

Hop into the back and it won’t be long before you get extremely comfortable in seats that can be reclined, raised, heated, cooled and even saved in the position of your choice. Rear passengers also receive two massive 10.2” screens which can be used to watch live TV or DVD’s, control the radio or even view the map.  

Since comfort and privacy are very important to some in a premium sedan, the Audi A8 L allows rear seat passengers to control the electric blinds on the windows and rear windshield, as well as open and tilt the sunroof all from their very own door panel. Additionally, Audi have also integrated vanity mirrors with LED lighting into the roof liner for rear seat occupants. 

The Audi A8 L definitely embraces the idea of individualization. The driver and rear passengers each have monitors that are individually controlled and are not linked to one another. Essentially, this means that 3 people in the car could watch 3 movies at the same time. The same applies for the A/C as well. Audi offers a 4 zone automatic air conditioning system as well, this means the driver, front seat passenger and rear passengers each have their own controls for the temperature they would like the A/C pointing towards them operate at. 

Though overall the interior is of top notch quality, there were a few shortfalls. For starters, the monitor attached to the back of the driver’s seat was loose which caused it to rattle and create a rather annoying sound even while travelling on the highway - not something you’d like to find in a premium sedan you just paid over AED 350,000 for. Secondly, I was disappointed to find Audi had used bits of hard plastic in the door panels especially since it’s the exact part your knee comes in contact with when taking sharp turns. Finally, though the A8 L packs in a reasonable 510 liters of boot space, it still pales in comparison to its main competitor the Mercedes S Class which is able to swallow up 550 liters into its boot.   

Drive Performance

Before moving on to the nitty-gritty details of the performance, if you’re wondering what the Quattro badge on our Audi A8 L meant, it is a system that distributes power to the wheels that need it most. This improves control during inclement weather and performance driving situations. In short, it creates a distinct advantage by better distributing the engine's power. 

Acceleration

Hold the brake, push the ignition and the mighty V8 comes alive. The 4.0 liter twin turbo unit under the hood produces 420 horsepower and a head pinning 600 Nm of torque. This translates to a very impressive 0 – 100 km/h time of 4.7 seconds and a top speed of 250 km/h. 

The Audi A8 L offers a drive select system allowing drivers to select between dynamic, auto, comfort and individual settings. Depending on which mode is selected, alterations take place in the engine, transmission, steering, shock absorbers and centre differential. Under normal driving circumstances, the centre differential divides the torque flow from the engine with 60 percent to the rear axle and 40 percent to the front.

Suspension

Our test car was also fitted with the adaptive air suspension that allows you to raise or drop the car depending on if you want a sportier ride or better ground clearance. Though I’ve driven many cars that have been fitted with an adaptive air suspension, there were times when I questioned if the A8 L was actually raising or not because none of the other cars have been able to do it as smoothly as the Audi. 

Transmission

Though some automobile manufacturers have moved on to rotary gear shifters, Audi have stuck with the yacht style shift-by-wire selector. This is connected to an 8 speed transmission that is silky smooth when cruising around town and impressively quick when driving enthusiastically with the paddle shifters. 

Drive Technology

Being a premium sedan, you can expect to find the usual driver aids such as adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring and lane assist. I was particularly a fan of the lane assist system as it did not send out any annoying aural or visual warnings but simply vibrated the steering wheel when drifting out of a lane to grab my attention. 

Fuel Efficiency

Considering there was a 4.0 liter twin turbo V8 under the hood, I didn’t expect the fuel tank to last me more than two days but I couldn’t have been any further from the truth. On a full tank, the A8 L is capable of delivering over 800 kilometers! Over the course of 4 days, comprising of a fair bit of enthusiastic and highway driving, I was pleased to see a quarter tank of fuel still remaining and an average of just 11 liters / 100 kms. With a range of efficiency technologies such as start-stop being integrated, Audi claims the A8 is now 22% more fuel efficient than its predecessors. 

Handling and Brakes

Audi have utilized Space Frame technology to build the body of the car and though they claim this has resulted in a 40 % weight advantage over a comparable steel body, the A8 still feels extremely heavy when driven enthusiastically around corners. The other main issue I encountered was to do with the braking system. Though the A8 L was fitted with 365mm ventilated disks upfront and 330mm ventilated disks at the rear, they struggled to bring the car to a halt once you cross the 200 km/h mark which is a shame because the car is more than willing to reach those speeds. 

Overall Verdict

As the weekend came to a close and I made my way to the Audi office to return the car, there was just one thing on my mind. I loved the exterior, I loved the interior, I loved the drive and I loved the respect it commanded on the road but something was missing. Being the flagship sedan from one of Germany’s top automobile manufacturers, the A8 L was lacking in terms of innovation. I couldn’t help but think that nearly every feature on the A8 L was already in the market and being offered for substantially lower by the Koreans and Japanese. Yes I know there is no comparison in quality and reliability but still, when it comes to features and technology, it seems other competitors are now catching up with the Germans. So my recommendation is to focus on developing new innovations and technology for Audi. 

Check Out

- Road Test: 2013 Audi A8 L W12

- Audi A8 L Prices and Specifications

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