Insurance Group: 50
MPG: 23.7
CO2: 277
0-62 Mph: 4.7 secs
BHP: 493 BHP
Range: 469 miles
Running costs and CO2 emissions for the W12 are huge and the diesel 3.0 litre engines are much more economical choices.
PROS: A huge W12 engine offering loads of power and speed in a glamorous luxury saloon. The cabin is decked out with plenty of equipment and smart styling as standard.
CONS: Hugely expensive, especially considering the fact that the smaller engines in the A8 series are not far off in performance.
All the A8 cars are powerful saloons even with the smaller engines in the range. The car has good grip, especially with the four-wheel-drive and the adjustable air suspension where you can select the level of firmness, although it still suffers a little on uneven ground and the steering can be a bit unresponsive.
The W12 engine runs on super unleaded petrol with a fuel tank capacity of 90 litres. There is an eight-speed tiptronic automatic gearbox, which provides smooth acceleration.
The engine is refined and the saloon has hardly any road or wind noise, thanks to the acoustic wind shield.
The 6.3 W12 has a 493 bhp engine delivering 460 lb-ft of torque at 4750 rpm and reaches 0-62 mph in 4.7 seconds with a top speed of 155 mph.
The interior of the A8 is well-designed and of a high-quality, living up to the reputation of Audi as a stylish manufacturer.
The seat and steering wheel adjust comfortably and the dash is free from clutter and well organised. Rear view visibility is not great due to the high set rear.
The 6.3 W12 comes with leather seats, metallic paint, power steering, satellite navigation, cruise control, climate control, stability control, rear parking sensors, alloy wheels, Bluetooth, MP3 connectivity and stereo as standard.
The A8 also features a touchpad linked to the satellite navigation, where you can write your destination without having to look away from the road for too long.
For fuel economy, the A8 has a start/stop system and electromechanical power steering as standard, which allows for great efficiency and low CO2 emissions.
The A8 comes with all the safety equipment you would expect in a high-quality car including driver, passenger and front side airbags and an alarm and immobiliser as standard. It also has stability control to prevent accidents and anti-lock brakes. There are also front and back ISOFIX child seat mounting points and options to fit adaptive xenon headlights, lane-departure warning system, a rear-view camera and blind-sport warning systems.
Audi’s recent record in reliability has been slightly negative and they did not fare well in the 2011 JD Power survey.
The boot is fairly sizeable offering 510 litres (though not the largest in the competition) and the A8 has got plenty of room for front and back passengers in both head and leg room.
The running costs are high with the A8 due to the size of the engines. The 6.3 W12 model costs £95,110 and has a combined economy of 22.8 mpg and CO2 emission rate of 290 g/km.
The A8 is not a cheap series of cars and running costs and CO2 emissions are high. The V8 and the huge W12 offer more power, but the cheaper V6 is the best value for money as it still proves to be a very strong engine. The diesel is much more efficient than the petrol version and definitely drives fast enough.
The W12 is incredibly expensive and the fact is that a lot of the car’s attributes can be found in the smaller engines of the A8 range. Running costs and CO2 emissions for the W12 are enormous but its resale values are fairly good, which lightens the load a little.
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