Photo: Stefan Baldauf/SB-Medien
Audi engineers are testing the upcoming 2018 A8 on the Nurburgring. If you are an avid reader, this would not be news to you. However, we think of those who do not check our website every day, and follow up on a previous story showing an Audi A8 prototype being tested on the famous Nurburgring Nordschleife.
The prototype seen in the image gallery is a 2018 Audi A8, which will bear the “D5” internal code. Like its main rivals, Audi has to develop its flagship limousine to handle well on the Nurburgring, even if most owners will probably never go near the famous German racetrack.
Even if future Audi A8 owners will never go to the most demanding track in the world, the circuit can still be used to put any prototype through its paces.
The next generation of Audi’s flagship makes no exception, as the company must be sure it can handle even when a brisk pace is requested by the driver.
The Nurburgring track is perfect for these situations, as it can stress even the most dynamic automobiles on the market with its fast turns.
The new A8 features the MLB Evo platform, the latest solution from the German carmaker. Introduced on the second generation of the Audi Q7, the platform brought support for electrification, as well as a dramatic reduction of curb weight. Thanks to the new platform, the upcoming A8 should be more agile, and provide improved fuel efficiency.
We still believe the A8 looks a bit out of place on the Nurburgring, as the sheer size of this car is generous enough to impede swift direction changes. On a powertrain level, the next A8 is expected to come with plug-in hybrid powertrains, as well as more powerful and efficient diesel and gasoline engine options.
Audi is expected to launch the next generation of the A8 sometime next year. The luxury sedan is supposed to come to market as a 2018 model, and we should see it at the year’s Paris Motor Show, if not at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show.
Even if future Audi A8 owners will never go to the most demanding track in the world, the circuit can still be used to put any prototype through its paces.
The next generation of Audi’s flagship makes no exception, as the company must be sure it can handle even when a brisk pace is requested by the driver.
The Nurburgring track is perfect for these situations, as it can stress even the most dynamic automobiles on the market with its fast turns.
The new A8 features the MLB Evo platform, the latest solution from the German carmaker. Introduced on the second generation of the Audi Q7, the platform brought support for electrification, as well as a dramatic reduction of curb weight. Thanks to the new platform, the upcoming A8 should be more agile, and provide improved fuel efficiency.
We still believe the A8 looks a bit out of place on the Nurburgring, as the sheer size of this car is generous enough to impede swift direction changes. On a powertrain level, the next A8 is expected to come with plug-in hybrid powertrains, as well as more powerful and efficient diesel and gasoline engine options.
Audi is expected to launch the next generation of the A8 sometime next year. The luxury sedan is supposed to come to market as a 2018 model, and we should see it at the year’s Paris Motor Show, if not at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show.
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