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2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype Displays Massive Firepower at Nurburgring

Our spy shooters recently managed to get up close and personal with the 2018 Audi A8 and now it's time for another encounter of this kind, one that involves the mighty S8.
2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype 11 photos
Photo: CarPix
2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype2018 Audi S8 Pre-Production Prototype
The 2018 Audi S8 has showed up at the Nurburgring and while the pre-production model was photographed on the roads around the infamous German track, it all looks like an explosion waiting to happen.

No, the psychedelic wrap on the lavish go-fast sedan doesn't manage to conceal the arsenal of the S8 all that well. After all, it's enough to check out the generously-sized carbon-ceramic brakes or the quadruple layout of the exhaust to figure out this isn't your 3.0-liter V6 A8. Oh and there's also the fireproof clothing of the driver, which comes with a VW logo, but that's another story for another time.

While the current S8 already uses an architecture that relies heavily on aluminum, the sedan isn't exactly light. However, the MLB Evo platform of the upcoming model, which has already debuted on the new Q7 and A4, will help the large four-door shed some weight.

And since we're talking about a performance-orientated model, let's not forget about the increase in torsional stifness, which should work wonders once the pre-production prototype actually enters the Nordschleife.

In its present form, the S8's 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 delivers 520 hp, but there's also the S8 plus, with its monstrous 605 ponies. While Ingolstadt engineers will upgrade the V8 for the newcomer, don't expect the "standard" model to go past 550 hp (after all, the 2017 Panamera Turbo, which also uses this unit, comes with exactly 550 horses).

Sure, there's always the W12 model that shares the throne with the S8, but the reinvented 600 hp W12 engine (it now packs direct injection) that already animates Bentleys, is for the gentlemen who walk, but never run.

As for the cabin, the dashboard is still covered, but the most important change should come in the infotainment area. That's where Audi is set to introduce an interface dubbed MMI Touch Response. Having already been showcased in Las Vegas at this year's CES, the feature will replace most of the buttons with displays and we can't wait to see what performance apps the automaker has prepared for us.
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About the author: Andrei Tutu
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In his quest to bring you the most impressive automotive creations, Andrei relies on learning as a superpower. There's quite a bit of room in the garage that is this aficionado's heart, so factory-condition classics and widebody contraptions with turbos poking through the hood can peacefully coexist.
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