PHS Automotive Malaysia (PHSAM)/Audi Malaysia, which took over the Audi distributorship in July this year, has added the Audi RS Q8 to its range of offerings. A fairly recent model in Audi’s SUV range, the Q8 made its global debut in 2018, with the performance-enhanced RS version coming the following year.
The Q8’s coupe SUV design was Audi’s response to the appearance of the new generation of coupe crossovers from BMW (X6) and Mercedes-Benz (GLE-Class) which had been enjoying good sales. It thus introduced new design language for the brand, created by Marc Lichte. The design also has some elements from the original Audi Quattro rallycar of the 1980s.
The Audi A8 is one of the German carmaker’s older models with a history going back to 1994. Asa a flagship model, it typically introduced pioneering technology and the first A8 was built with a significant innovation – an aluminium monocoque structure called the Audi Space Frame (ASF) which brought weight down without losing structural strength. The weight savings were of great value to a large limousine like the A8.
Since then, the model has had four generations, the current one having been introduced in 2017. An update has therefore been due and the enhanced A8 makes it debut this week. Noticeable exterior changes are the new advanced headlights and taillights, new elements which give a sharper design, while also adding presence and authority.
Advanced headlight systems
Comparable with video projectors, the Digital Matrix LED headlights use DMD (digital micromirror device) technology. Each headlight has approximately 1.3 million micromirrors, which disperse the light in tiny pixels and precisely control them.
One new function is lane and orientation lights for highways. The new A8 comes with Digital OLED rear lights (OLED = organic light emitting diode) as a standard feature. When ordering the car, there are two rear light signatures to choose from – three with the S8. In conjunction with the assistance systems, the digital OLED rear lights have a proximity indication feature.
Beyond the basic exterior, Audi is offering its customers a chrome exterior package and, for the first time in the A8, the new S line exterior package. The look is even more defined with the additional black appearance package.
Reduction as a design medium
The architecture of the interior is strictly horizontally oriented to emphasize the car’s width. In the dark, the ambient light package plus stages the interior and the reading lights in the rear use Matrix LED technology.
The range of seats and seat equipment is varied;– especially for the back seats, many options are available. The relaxation seat in the A8 L is the most luxurious with numerous adjustment options and a footrest on the back of the passenger seat. Passengers can use it to have the bottoms of their feet warmed and massaged to various degrees.
Navigation and Audi connect
MMI Navigation plus is standard and supported by the third generation modular infotainment toolkit (MIB 3). The likewise standard online and Car-2-X services from Audi connect augment the navigation system. They are divided into two packages: Audi connect Navigation & Infotainment and Audi connect Safety & Service with Audi connect Remote & Control.
Customers can also choose various infotainment hardware. The new screens in the back are tailored to the usage needs of today’s rear-seat passengers. That means two 10.1-inch displays with full HD resolution and full connectivity options.
Three different driver assistance systems
There are about 40 driver assistance systems available for the enhanced Audi A8. Some of them – including the Audi pre sense basic and Audi pre sense front safety systems – are standard. The options are clustered into the ‘Park’, ‘City’, and ‘Tour’ packages. The assistance package plus consolidates the packages. Features like the night vision assistant and surround view cameras are available separately.
Engine range
For this generation, there are three powertrain options. Apart from the 3.0 TFSI as a V6 engine, the 4.0 TFSI, which is available for the A8 and the S8 in various output levels, distributes its 4 litres of displacement to 8 cylinders with cylinder on demand technology. The A8 is also available with a turbodiesel engine and a plug-in hybrid model will follow.
All engines use an 8-step Tiptronic and with an electric oil pump, the automatic transmission can change gears even when the combustion engine is not running. The constant all-wheel drive quattro with the self-locking centre differential is also standard, and can be optionally supplemented with the sport differential (standard in the S8 ). It actively distributes torque between the rear wheels during fast cornering and thereby makes the handling even sportier and more stable. The adaptive air suspension with controlled damping is standard. Progressive steering is another standard feature but dynamic all-wheel steering is an option.
As for the S8 S8 TSFI quattro – the sporty top version of the flagship family – the biturbo V8 generates 571 ps/800 Nm and has mild hybrid technology. This uses the A8’s 48-volt main electrical system. Only in the S8 comes with predictive active suspension, sport differential, and dynamic all-wheel steering built.
A8 L Horch for China
Exclusively for the Chinese market is the A8 L Horch. This is 5.45 metres long, which is 13 cm longer than the standard A8 L. Inside, the expanded diamond quilting, logo embossing in the cushions, and deep-pile floor mats in the back emphasize the exclusivity of this version for the largest car market in the world. On the exterior, there is a specially designed Singleframe with vertical braces as well as the Horch badge and the ‘H’ crown. For the first time in the D segment, customers in China will be able to order their car with a 2-color finish.
An all-new Audi A3 will make its world debut at next month’s Geneva Motor Show and to give selected media a preview of its dynamic capabilities, the carmaker held a test-drive in the Azores islands in the Atlantic Ocean. It’s a place where volcanoes once created a whole chain of islands and where there is a high level of volcanic activity,
Although the island location presents less of a challenge to keeping the new model out of general public view before the unveiling, Audi nevertheless had it camouflaged. The tight winding roads and varied mountain and valley stretches around the island were perfect for showing off the highlight of the new A3 and core of Audi’s DNA: quattro drive.
The all-wheel drive system fittingly makes its first appearance in one of the most emotive versions of the fourth generation A3, and represents the latest stage in the evolution of this successful technology, which in Audi models with transverse engine installations is based around an electro-hydraulic multi‑plate clutch.
Intelligent regulation
Managed by precisely tuned software and supported by the adaptive suspension and the progressive steering, the system not only maximises stability, grip, and driving pleasure, but is also extremely efficient. The clutch is located at the end of the propshaft, in front of the rear axle differential – a position that benefits the axle load distribution in particular. Inside is a package of plates that operate in an oil bath. Its metal friction rings are arranged behind one another in pairs – one ring of each pair is rigidly meshed with the clutch housing, which rotates with the prop shaft; the other ring is meshed with the short output shaft to the rear axle differential.
Tailored electronic torque distribution
Audi tailored the electronic torque distribution control specifically to suit the new A3 and integrated it in the Audi drive select dynamic handling system. It takes the data of the suspension sensors into account and detects not only the driving conditions and road properties but also the driving style. The control unit uses this data as a basis to calculate a torque distribution that provides optimum efficiency and passes the value on to the clutch.
The all-wheel drive distributes the torque with full variability between the front and rear axles. During normal driving operation, most of the engine’s power is transmitted to the front wheels. When driving off or when the front axle has little traction, the clutch diverts the torque at lightning speed. In this case, an electric axial-piston pump is activated, which applies up to 44 bar of hydraulic pressure to the clutch plates. The more the clutch plates are pressed together by this pump, the more drive torque is transmitted to the rear axle – the maximum is 100%.
The clutch can already transmit part of the torque to the rear axle when the driver begins to make quicker turns of the steering wheel during more challenging driving. As soon as the driver accelerates, the torque presses the A3 into the corner. During load changes, the distribution of torque allows precise turning into the bend, which further increases driving dynamics.
Full control ESC
The wheel-selective torque control, a software function of the Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC), perfectly complements the latest quattro system. When the new A3 negotiates a corner at high speed, the program applies the brakes slightly to the two wheels on the inside of the bend. The difference in drive forces on both axles turns the car into the bend, allowing it to follow the steering angle precisely. This makes the handling even more agile, fluid, and safe.
New damper technology
Comfortably soft or sporty and taut? Both are possible with the suspension with adaptive damper control which will be available for selected models in the new A3. Three damper settings ensure that the driver can experience the spread of the driving characteristics and enjoy particularly agile handling. Sensors measure the vertical acceleration of the body structure and the relative movement of the individual wheels in relation to it.
The dampers include electromagnetically actuated valves that can be regulated extremely quickly and in a highly energy-efficient way. Depending on their position, they allow the hydraulic fluid to flow faster or slower, which changes the characteristics of the dampers between a soft setting for long distance ride pliancy and a firmer footing for faster A and B-road driving.
If you’re looking for something super classy but at the same time, produces muscle car-like power and torque, then the new 2020 Audi S8 might just be the perfect candidate for you. The latest generation S8 promises a combination of ‘progressive luxury with dynamic athleticism’. (more…)
