Test drive Audi A8 D3 2003 - 2005 Sedan
Prestige of aluminum
In its characteristics and behavior, the new Audi limousine continues to be a strong competitor in his poor class rivals. Stylish, but discreet, he will not give a secret about the size of your bank account. But the A8L will never make its owner blush when the conversation comes to the quality of the interior, running properties or fashionable electronic toys in the cabin. Audi. Famous Mark. High -quality cars. Anyone knows about her. But what does anyone think about her? Sometimes I want to go to a busy street and ask the first person oncoming: what do you think about Audi? And I know that I will not do my job at all, that they pay a rather big marketing department in Ingolstadt for this, but I need to know this. What for? In order to better understand the situation and make accurate forecasts only people who have visited the forefront are capable of it. Yes, and I already know everything else: I know the story of the brand, I remember about Quattro all -wheel drive and success in the rally. I talked with engineers and delved into the essence of the technologies used on brand cars for a long time. I followed the movements in the leadership, caught all the rumors and even read annual reports. And recently I skated a new eight in a long version, Audi A8L. And then many questions began to climb into my head ...
Heads or tails? The large sedan was brought to the market more than ever by the way, for example, in America, where such cars are sold with a bang, in 2003, sales of one of the main competitors of the BMW 7-Series fell by 10% due to the ambiguous design and complex IDRive interface system. This was not slow to use the closest competitors from Mercedes-Benz: sales of the S-Class model rose about the same figure. The A8 model’s income has also increased, but so far they are not even nearby with competitors: Audi sells about six times less than its flagships in the States than the rest of the Germans from the Big Three. And this despite the considerable advantage in price: the A8L costs $ 68,500 in the states than the long seven 745LI ($ 72,500) and S500L ($ 81,000), and both competitors have only rear -wheel drive, and the full of Mercedes S430 in $ 75 500. What is the matter? Maybe in the absence of a hype around? And indeed, when the last time you saw this brand on the movie screen, when the tabloids shouted about the latest acquisition of A8L with some sports star, when a celebrity in a car with four rings on the radiator grate left the night party in an emitivine chronicle? Never. Or very rarely and purely by accident. The newspapers are silent. Directors take off the grated sides of the ES classes and seeds. Secular chroniclers peep on what sins are being done behind the tinted glasses of SUVs. And only skiers under the hooting of fans glide along steep slopes in the ammunition with an advertisement for a Quattro all -wheel drive. But even if all professional skiers of the world buy themselves on A8, the company cannot overtake competitors. She needs a dozen John Frankenheimers, each of whom will remove the dynamic pursuit of Audi, where she will go beautifully at the end, and competitors will remain with nothing. But the problem is that there is no more than Frankenheimer in the world, and any European teenager knows that Peugeot in the Marseille Taxi variant is probably going much faster than the A8L with a 4.2 -liter engine, and the combination of the nitrogen injection system works better than turbocharged and all -wheel drive. Just no one has convinced him of the opposite yet.
You may notice that adolescents are not the audience that interests the company. But questions may arise to the very necessary audience. For example, is it necessary to buy a representative sedan that is positioned as the most dynamic in the class? After all, everyone imagines the life in the cabin of a long version of the sedan not a chase for every second and an extra dollar (which is rather characteristic of the stage of the initial accumulation of capital), but with a peaceful movement with a more sedate attitude to the fleeting of being. The class of personal drivers of such cars is rather not the ability to pass turns in a controlled skid, but the ability to smoothly, comfortably and, if possible, quickly deliver the passenger to the final point of the route. This in many ways levels the great advantage of the all -wheel drive, because the vast majority of the population of these cars live not in the mountains and not in the conditions of extreme winter, but in weather conditions more acceptable for business activity. But, perhaps, we are not talking about the ostentatious establishment of a big business, maybe we are dealing with a machine for young professionals who have not yet disappeared from their heads to manage actively? But even in this case, it seems quite strange that such businessmen have money for uncompromising cars, ready to give a real feeling from driving at the limit, which is simply not available to a limousine five meters of one hundred and eighty -two centimeters, equipped with a mass of limiting electronic systems ...
Or take, for example, design. In the era of widespread differentiation, Audi with an iron hand imposes a corporate identity in the main dimensional classes, making A8 in some angles too similar to A6, and the latter, in turn, to A4. And disputes causes not the quality of the design, which is on top, but the complete lack of desire to add to different cars of the model range of individuality, which is present in both S-Class and the new seven. But each medal always has two sides, and having learned how the first looks like, we cannot help but look at the turnover. And then the imaginary shortcomings of the car begin to play her benefit. The absence of an established image is only an occasion to instill it, and in this case you do not need too gangster, snobberry or blue car at all. And Audi has not yet become either one or the other. Not too emotional design? But if you do not need to scream about yourself on every corner, this car will help create an attractive image of a person for whom it is more important to be, not seem. And the lower price of the car, as well as its ability to active driving with all -wheel drive, will only help supplement the image with a couple of important strokes. But the image, price and crank about the design are only half the case. At that moment, when I got into the car, he slammed the door and started the engine, all the alloy faded into the background.
Log!
The A8L interior does not cease to surprise even experienced journalists with the quality of elaboration of every little thing: it is unlikely to find at least a small, insignificant detail, such as a crooked corner or a defect in a sequel that you can complain about. This, by the way, can more than compensate for the conservative of design decisions. A classic four -spoke steering wheel, classic beautiful devices in wells, a classic tree if you do not take into account the extending panel of the navigation system, outwardly here almost nothing reminds of the occurreed 21st century. Such an interior, like an expensive chronograph with a leather strap, is always out of time and fashion. But everything says about the era of comfort here: an excellent driver's seat with a mass of adjustments (their number reaches 16), including the femoral, lumbar and shoulder underpants, pleasant lighting lamps wherever it is necessary, as well as the quality of the Bose audio system similar pleasure in Our days can be obtained, perhaps, only in the Philharmonic. True, not in any Philharmonic will be of such convenient seats that are in A8L, and there are plenty of place here. After one of my colleagues sat back with a ninety meter, I was not too lazy to measure the distance from his knees to my driver's seat there, there were another 15 centimeters left there. By the way, the new A8L is 63.5 mm longer than the last long eight.
The machine is fully equipped with the fruits of technological progress: the equipment list has a Navigation system based on DVD, four-zone climate control functions, heat, heating and ventilation for front seats, and solar batteries in the roof accumulate energy for the operation of electric systems even when the ignition is turned off. The role of the main system management center is assigned to the MMI (Multi Media Interface) unit, it materializes on the central tunnel in the form of a large rotating handle and eight additional buttons (Radio, CD/TV, Net, Nav, Info, Car, Setup). They are responsible for all the settings in the car, from the choice of the radio station to the installation of the stiffness of the air suspension. And all disputes about whether this system is complex or easy, it is better or worse than a backwowed idrive, leave it personally to journalists that if a person has the mind to earn money for a car of this class, he is able to deal with any control electronics, be it then the menu of the DVD player, cell phone or MMI system. But the most interesting thing is that the abundance of electronic and safe systems (in particular, the presence of 10 airbags) has practically nullified the advantages of light aluminum spatial frame and winged metal body panels. Having a mass of 1990 kg, A8L weighs more than seven 745LI (1910 kg) and S-Class 500L (1805 kg). Of the advantages that remain, we can note the high hardness of the body (in particular, this frame is 60% tougher than its predecessor). It is worthwhile to carefully study these facts before the start of the test, and much will be cleared already during the trip. In particular, thanks to the rigidity of its structure, the car actually behaves on both the best and on secondary roads. Pneumoballons in the suspension qualitatively damped road irregularities, not allowing you to name the ride in sporting uncomfortable even in Dynamic mode (although the need for this regime on the limousine raises questions), and the Comfort mode does not relax the car too much. Anticipating its transformation into a semblance of jelly on the dish, I was disappointed: the reactions remained quite sharp, and the move became smoother and the rolls increased slightly. In Automatic mode, the suspension itself adapts to the driver’s driving and road conditions, and the choice of the Lift mode increases the road clearance by 25 mm (usually it is 120 mm). A multi -link suspension in front and behind, coupled with sharp steering control and a Quattro all -wheel drive system, this is perhaps the optimal set of components that will allow you to stay in a speedy turn. In it, at first you will probably feel a little insufficient rotation, which a small gas discharge usually helps to cope with, but if you intentionally begin to deceive the laws of physics, then the ESP, ABS system, the EBD brake force and the electronic blocking of the Edl differential, will help you stay on the road.
A processed V-shaped eight with a volume of 4.2 liters added 20 hp. Compared to the previous version, and now the power of the motor is 330 hp. But the greatest emotions are caused not so much by the ability of the engine to shoot an almost two -ton car up to hundreds in 6.3 seconds, but the quality of the new six -speed transmission with the Tiptronic control module: switching is carried out almost without joints and delays, as when driving with a cuneiform variator. It is interesting to note that the American version of the car has a forced restriction at the mark of 210 km/h European drivers more fortunate.
Returning to his circles
What is the end? In its characteristics and behavior, the new Audi limousine continues to be a strong competitor in his poor class rivals. But what place he occupies there, everyone decides for himself. Stylish, but discreet, he will not give a secret about the size of your bank account. But the A8L will never make its owner blush when the conversation comes to the quality of the interior, running properties or fashionable electronic toys in the cabin. And the standard all -wheel drive will probably also gain additional points. Nevertheless, this car would not hurt that more about it was talked about. Hey marketers, how about the new movie with Audi S8 in the title role?
Text: Barry Hatevei
Photo: author
Source: Wheel magazine [No. 78/2004]
