Audi A8, the Car Body of the Year

The flagship model released by German manufacturer Audi earlier this year, the A8, has been so far at the center of several awards, but up until now, most of them have been given for the car as a whole. This time, only one part of the A8 has been recognized at the 12th International Car-Body Benchmarking Conference.

The body of the car has been handed the Euro Car Body Award after a huge panel comprising 500 experts and a jury of specialists analyzed the submissions (14 of the latest series-production vehicles).

Audi's A8 body weighs 231 kilograms (509.27 lbs), is made of aluminum (the Aluminum Space Frame technology), which gives it a weight reduced of some 40 percent compared to a steel version and offers a stiffness/weight ratio 20 percent higher than steel.

The technology has been voted this year's winner after specialists from 22 countries evaluated its characteristics, crash-test results and several other engineering and performance criteria.

The A8 offers perhaps the most comprehensive range of technologies available today. The car comes powered by four engines (4.2l FSI V8, 4.2l V8 TDI and a 3.0 V6 TDI in two power versions). The units are paired to an 8-speed tiptronic transmission.

The highlights of the technologies featured on the model include Bang & Olufsen Advanced sound system or BOSE Surround Sound, Adaptive cruise control with Stop & Go function, Night vision assistant with pedestrian detection highlighting, Audi lane assist, Audi side assist, ESP stability control with electronic all-wheel-drive torque vectoring, Audi braking guard, automatic emergency braking and reversible belt tensioners.