Next year should be another big year for Audi. The Ingolstadt company is working on the final touches of its brand new A8 luxury sedan which will first see the official light of day in 2010.
The 2010 A8 will be bigger and slightly longer than the current 5 metre car. It’s expected to be lighter as well, with more use of aluminium composites for the body. The new generation MMI with 3D capabilities and SD-card facilities, lane departure warning systems, blind-spot warning systems, quattro AWD and others are sure to feature in the new car while one or two unknowns will be unveiled closer to its launch.
Audi is extending the use of turbo technology in petrol engines to include the A8 and so we expect the ultra executive sedan to boast a twin turbo 3.0-litre engine at the bottom of the petrol range, while diesel fans get pretty much the same treatment. The 3.0-litre twin turbo petrol V6 should be good for at least 250kW and offer more than 440Nm of torque. At the top end we might see the V12 turbo diesel worth 375kW and 1000Nm appearing to bat for the A8. No hybrid plans are being announced at this point because Audi has its research and development budgets firmly in support of diesel technology at this point in time.
The A8 has been applauded generally as a worthy competitor to the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class but sales have generally not been anything close to its fellow Germans in the South African market. Audi will surely be applying new marketing strategies to lure buyers out of these two Teutons and even out of the upcoming 2009 Jaguar XJ into the A8 come 2010.
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