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2018 Audi A8 First Reviews: It's a Techfest

2018 Audi A8 Reviews: It's a Techfest 1 photo
Photo: YouTube screenshot
It's not the car Iron Man drives; it's the luxury limousine used by his chauffeur and bodyguard in Spider-Man Homecoming. But in a grownup world, that makes the 2018 Audi A8 pure gold.
There's no denying that the flagship Audi struggles a little regarding design, but it's not a car you buy to look at... or drive, probably. It's a techfest that's as much an automobile as the latest Apple smartphone is a phone. Don't tell me you don't reject calls when playing a good game!

Mat Watson from Carwow starts his initial review of the A8 with a quick look at the design. Neither the oversized grille nor the "slab-like" side impresses him, but connected headlights are just the ticket. However, fake exhaust has found its way onto this car, just like the Q5 and Q7.

The pieces of chrome you see are just decorative trim, as the real mufflers just point down at the ground and are hidden away from view.

Like any new piece of tech, it takes a while for you to master all the unique features. The interior of the A8 features an overwhelming number of screens, including a multimedia system in the rear on this long-wheelbase model.

We're told that the lovely screens are a smudge fest, just like your favorite glass phones. However, we also get to see how the air vents are uncovered when you start the car or how the air flow is controlled by a touch-sensitive button instead of a dial.

The self-parking system seems to be much better than the one BMW has since you don't need a special fog. Also, the adaptive air suspension can predict oncoming bumps and compensate. How? Well, it lifts and lowers the suspension, so the car stays relatively flat, a bit like tank suspension.

But the craziest test that Audi prepared mimics being T-boned in a crash. The A8 sees that it's about to happen and lifts itself on that side, so the impact takes place at the much sturdier sill and not the door. Crazy!

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About the author: Mihnea Radu
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Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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