The 2014 Audi A8 flagship luxury sedan has been revealed about three weeks ahead of its world premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show (September 10th).
[Can't watch the video? Head to Youtube]
The updated sedan gets subtle design changes like new Matrix LED headlamps, revised front bumper, grill and a slightly more sculpted bonnet. The lower line of the headlamps have been straightened out.
The Matrix LED headlamps consist of 25 light emitting diodes for high beam that can be dimmed individually depending on the illumination. The headlamps interact with navigation data from MMI and prepare themselves to efficiently illuminate corners. The headlamp units also incorporate redesigned DRLs and dynamic turn signals.
The profile of the car is untouched and the rear gets flatter LED taillights that complement the headlamps. The taillamps are bridged by a chrome strip and the redesigned bumper houses rhomboidal exhaust tips (except for the S8). The boot layout is altered for easy loading and the sedan makes do with additional noise cancelling materials and 10 liters worth of extra volume.
The interior of the car hasn't undergone much of a change save for the three spoke steering wheel that now is standard across all the variants. A number of seat cover and trim options are available to choose from. The MMI connects to the internet via UMTS module and makes the car a WLAN hotspot, delivering tailor made services such as traffic info, Google Earth, Google Street View, online news, etc. The rear seat entertainment package contains two displays, Bluetooth headsets and a DVD player.
The new A8 gets enhanced assistance systems like adaptive cruise control with Stop&Go function, an improved Audi pre-sense basic safety system and Audi side assist. The Audi lane assist makes minor steering corrections if need be and the Audi park assist provides a 360-degree view of the car. The night vision system now detects small animals too.
The current lineup of powertrains are retained but the performance and fuel economy are improved. The emissions have also reduced.
The entry level price of the 2014 Audi A8 starts at 74,500 Euros (around Rs. 63.34 lakhs) in Germany.
Head to page 2 for image gallery and press release.
2014 Audi A8 Image Gallery
2014 Audi A8 Press Release
[Can't view the document? Head to Scribd]
