Yahoo Autos 2011 Audi A8
Luxury barges tend to make operating power seats a pain, often using arcane and electronics-intensive ways to make sure you have no idea how to slide the seat forward, much less turn off the massage function. Audi has found a seemingly simple answer for this A8, leaving the traditional functions (fore-and-aft movement, seatback angle, seat height) on the side of the front seats, as they are in basically every other car. The best part, though, is that there’s no longer a different toggle switch for the auxiliary seat functions, which come as part of an optional seating package. Thigh support, shoulder articulation, four-way lumbar support, and bolster adjustments are controlled by a simple dial next to the main seat controls; it’s way more logical than the COMAND-based setup in the Mercedes S-class. Start twisting the dial, and a pop-up menu appears on the infotainment screen, letting driver and passenger know what they are adjusting.
Touch Pad and Google What?
Speaking of infotainment, the Audi Multi Media Interface has undergone a sizable revamp for its appearance here. There is still a spinning knob surrounded by four buttons that vary in command depending on what screen is displayed, and the few fixed buttons to jump to navigation or radio screens survive, too. But there’s now a touch pad located directly to the knob’s left, and it’s why the new system is now known as MMI Touch. The touch pad is mainly for entering addresses or points of interest into the navigation system, by writing naturally with your fingertip. It also acts as the map’s scrolling device and can control six preset buttons when the screen is showing the radio. The shifter acts as a wrist rest while you “write.” It works surprisingly well. Bad handwriting or folks using their nondominant hand don’t mess it up-it still understands the desired letter or number. Pro tip: If the system ends up reading a “2” when you wanted to enter a “Z,” just spin the control knob for the correct character.
A Google search function and a Google Earth overlay for the navigation map add extra cutting-edge spice. The search engine is supremely handy. Let’s say you’re in Dayton, Ohio, and want to visit the Wright-Patterson Air Force museum. Finding it on a preloaded navigation menu can be difficult. We’ve tried doing just that in other cars, and you wouldn’t believe how many buildings are listed on the Wright-Patterson base. Besides, the official name is the “National Museum of the U.S. Air Force”; like we’re supposed to know that. But pepper the Google search with whatever stuff you do know, and just as when searching on your PC, the desired destination will likely be in the results. Powering the search is a 3G data connection, and the car will come with six to 12 months of prepaid service from a yet-to-be-determined cellular carrier. After that, the owner will have to pay a monthly fee. As a bonus, having the data plan turns the car into a rolling Wi-Fi hotspot, so passengers can surf the web on their phone, netbook, or whatever.
The high-tech hullabaloo doesn’t stop at the main info screen. The Audi pre-sense system, part of a $3000 Technology package, can sense an imminent collision and lower impact speeds by as much as 25 mph, according to the company. The car uses radar-based cruise control and lane-departure warning systems, both included in the Tech package, to predict possible collisions. If the system thinks a collision is coming from the rear, the seatbelts tighten, and the headrests are raised to mitigate possible whiplash. If the system predicts a frontal collision, the seatbelts again tighten, and full braking is applied automatically. A user-friendlier version of automatic cruise control, one of our least-favorite pieces of tech, comes with the package. The system can “see” cars approximately 660 feet away in front and 260 feet to the rear. If the car is set to cruise at 75 mph and is approaching a car doing 65, it will not slow down to maintain the preset minimum distance if the system knows the A8 can safely change lanes. We’re still not big fans of these systems, but this one looks as though it would at least keep aggravation to a minimum.
An available thermal-based night-vision camera is conspicuously hidden in the right-most ring of the grille’s four-ring badge; its functions include pedestrian detection. When activated, the night-vision display shows up between the speedometer and tachometer.
Alloy All the Time
Since the first A8 was launched in 1994, the model has used the all-aluminum Audi Space Frame and aluminum body panels. The newest space frame incorporates 13 different alloys; older versions used three to five. The B-pillars are now made of steel for better side-impact protection. The 509-pound structure is made of extrusions, stampings, and castings held together by glue and self-tapping screws in place of previous versions’ rivets. The space frame is predictably pricey to produce and costly to repair (check out the long-term wrap of our Audi S8 for more details on the repair part), but it makes the A8 the lightest four-wheel-drive car in the class. The A8 is even lighter than some rear-drive competitors. The 2011 A8 has grown in every dimension, yet curb weight will remain about the same as that of the outgoing car, about 4400 pounds.
The back seats are of course roomy and are as luxurious as the fronts, qualities sure to be even more abundant in the forthcoming long-wheelbase A8L. Of note is the fact that the long-wheelbase car will no longer be just an A8 with more rear-seat space; it will have some unique sheetmetal, although Audi didn’t reveal much beyond saying that the C-pillar will be different. Chinese dignitaries and titans of industry, who love to be chauffeured, are sure to flock to Audi dealerships in Shanghai and Beijing. The A8L will arrive in the U.S. at basically the same time as the regular-length car.
Expect a comparison test involving the 2011 A8 as soon as we can arrange it. After all, we have to find out which captain is steering the ship, right?
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