2007 Audi S8
If you think there's no point spending almost $100,000 for something with a 450-horsepower Lamborghini-sourced V-10 engine no one notices, then read no further. Audi's new S8 isn't for you. But if you like the idea of a big, fast, elegantly tailored limousine that slips effortlessly--and rapidly--under the radar, you'll love this car. In an era when AMG Benzes are getting bolder and brassier with every model and BMW's M cars are heading for techno-overkill, the subtle new S8 is the stealth-fighter of sport sedans. In our week with this black-over-gray, German-plated S8 tester, nary a single car-savvy Angeleno's head was turned. And, quite frankly, that's just the way we liked it.
You see, the S8 is a selfish pleasure. Nail the gas and that direct-injection, 5.2-liter V-10 emits a deep, velvety growl--a smooth-jazz remix of the Lamborghini Gallardo's mighty bellow--and gives a satisfying shove between the shoulder blades. You can fan the Tiptronic paddles on the six-speedautomatic if you like, but it's better to let the computer do the thinking and allow the tach needle to kiss 7100 rpm on the upshifts, the engine clearing its throat with a soft whump! between each ratio.
Keep your right foot buried, and you'll hit 60 mph in 4.9 seconds and 100 mph in 12.0 and nail the standing quarter mile in 13.4 seconds at 105.6 mph. No, it isn't nosebleed-quick like an S65 Benz (for the record, AMG's ueber-limo nails 60 mph in just 4.2 seconds, 100 in 9.3, and the standing quarter in 12.4 seconds at 116.5 mph, blowing the doors off a Porsche 911 Carrera S in the process). But there's a crispness and flair to the big Audi's power delivery that betrays the Italian soul buried deep in the machine.
That is the engine, of course. The basic architecture is shared with Lamborghini's513-horsepower, 5.0-liter Gallardo V-10, but the bores have been enlarged to boost capacity. Forged connecting rods allow a 7200-prm redline, and offset crankpins permit an even 72-degree firing cadence, smoothed further by a balance shaft located in the center of the block. The engine uses Audi's FSI direct-injection system, which pumps fuel directly into each combustion chamber at high pressure, allowing a compression ratio of 12.5:1 and more efficient combustion. The result is not only a healthy 450 horsepower at 7000 rpm, but also, thanks to the variable intake manifold, a useful 398 pound-feet of torque at 3500 rpm.
Why a V-10? Audi claims it's the perfect compromise between a V-12, which would need a longer block and suffer from more internal friction from the additionalcylinders, valves, etc., and a V-8, which would be more compact, but would have larger, heavier pistons and wouldn't rev as freely as a result. Offset bores mean the engine is just 26.9 inches long, with all ancillaries attached. Just as well, because most of it is hanging out ahead of the front axle.
Audi's trademark vehicle architecture--longitudinal engines mounted ahead of the front-axle centerline--is as stubbornly iconoclastic as a Porsche 911's. The scales tell the story: 59 percent of the S8's mass is carried by the front wheels. You don't have to be Isaac Newton to figure out this thing's going to understeer. Mind you, Audi'sengineers have tried hard to prove ol' Isaac wrong. The V-10 engine weighs just 485 pounds fully dressed, and the default torque split of the all-wheel-drive system sends 60 percent of the grunt to the rear wheels. The suspension features similar adaptive air springs and shocks as in the A8, though the S8's baseline setting is equivalent to the regular car's sport settings and the S8's sport setting is one stage firmer again. Stiffer bushes reduce unwanted axlecompliance, and the variable-ratio rack-and-pinion steering has been sharpened up by about 10 percent around on-center.
Audi's agility through the slalom: Its 67.3-mph average speed was only 0.2 mph slower than that of the two-sizes-smaller RS4 we tested a few months back. Chirico was further impressed by the stopping power of the ceramic brakes (likely to be a $10,000 option if they're made available in the U.S., though Audi says they'll last four times as long as conventional steel units). With 15.0-inch vented rotors up front (and six--count 'em--piston calipers) and 14.0-inch vented rotors at the rear, this4366-pound car stopped from 60 mph in just 108 feet and took only 301 feet to come to rest from 100. That's better than a Corvette Z06, though we'd like just a bit more feel through the pedal.
Once you start pushing the S8, there's no escaping the fact it starts pushing, too. On winding blacktop, the S8 is quick and tidy up to about eight- or nine-tenths, especially if you left-foot brake and use the Tiptronic paddleshifter to keep the engine right in the torque band. Try harder, however, and the S8 stops flowing down the road; the best technique then is to storm up to a corner, stand on those amazing brakes at the last minute, then aim for the apex of the turn and feed in the gas. It's brutish, though relatively effective, marred only by the lack of feel from Audi's typically video-game steering (another artifact of the S8's all-wheel-drive layout).
The S8 might make sport-sedan moves on the two-lanes, but it's more than happy schmoozing around town in typical lux-car mode. The ride feels arthritic at times, as with all air-suspended VW Group vehicles, but it's not much different from the regular A8's, and you certainly don't feel like you're rolling on ultra-low-profile 20-inch tires. The six-speed auto shifts seamlessly between ratios, and the fat torque curve means the V-10 feels punchier than either the 4.2-liter V-8 or the 6.0-liter W-12 offered in the regular A8.
The S8's interior is as coolly restrained as an Armani suit. Beautifully finishedcarbon-fiber inserts--the weave covered by a deep, lustrous clear-coat finish--replace wood and are perfectly complemented by the soft-sheen aluminum brightwork. Everything else in our tester's interior was finished in a perfectly matched warm gray that looked classy in a way GM and Toyota can only dream about. Audi's instrumentation is a paragon of simplicity and clarity, and while the MMI computer control system isn't as clever as BMW's much-maligned iDrive, it's more intuitive to use at first. The optional Bang & Olufsen 1000-watt sound system delivers crisp, bright audio. At about $6300, it would want to.
Only dedicated Audiphiles will note the S8's unique 20-inch alloys, quad exhaust (somewhat more tastefully executed than the bazookas you find peeking out from under the rear bumper of an AMG Benz), and trademark alloy-finish exterior mirrors. The discreet S8 moniker on the trunk and V-10 badges on each flank don't exactly scream for attention. But that's what makes this car so appealing. The S8 is for the driver who doesn't have to show off--and knows it.
