Daily Podcast: A8 Misbehavin'
As promised in today’s podcast, here’s a teaser image of the forthcoming Audi A8 (courtesy of Top Gear‘s blog).
The A8 has been redesigned only once since it was introduced in 1994, and even then it traded total anonymity for mere subtlety. And not only did previous versions melt into the crowd, they didn’t sell well in the states either. As a result, you almost never see the things on the road. Which is too bad because it’s a great car. My first drive in one came courtesy of my boss at the time, and after a quick cross-town delivery I had to double-check the badging to make sure the “8” wasn’t a “6.” It was that nimble and it hid its executive-sized heft that well. Plus it made 80 mph in town feel like, well, the speed limit . . . at least to a kid who was commuting in a Neon at the time. Though the car is on my lifetime ownership short list, and I like the look of the redesign a lot, I find myself nursing mixed feelings. If this new generation is as sexy as the sketches promise, it might just become popular. It might become a car worth posing in. It might no longer be the best car that nobody ever sees or mentions. Which would be good for Audi, but not for me. Love can be so complicated.
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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The chase with the Mini in The Bourne Identity is one of my favorites.
@twotone Not so much Hollywood as France. They are the undisputed champions of the car chase.
Funny that you said you never see them because we spotted three in the same parking lot today in NJ, at Liberty State Park, while walking my dog. I even commented about them to my friend who was with me.
One reason where they fail as executive transports is that they are not that executive - the ride falls short of what you'd get in a 7 series or S class, and for me the headroom was a problem if I wanted to sit as high as I generally like. As for engines, in my experience the W12 is not the one to have - it's too heavy and makes the car understeer much more, so the only advantage is on an Autobahn. Plus in countries with rougher roads it tends to bottom out way too easily (an issue in the UK for instance), although that was much more a feature of the first generation W12 than the one in the current car.