Audi's 2010 A8 Gets Caught Undergoing Testing

from the looks of the pictures it looks like its just facelifted....but i guess i will have to see it w/o the camo.

i love the current A8 but i don't see anything that's going to make this more sporty (like audi said it would be). anyway, i'm sure it will look fine, i just hope it will look S Class fine and nothing like the 7 series.

Exactly,
the S-class is beautiful and the 7 series is...not so much...alright it's fugly.

Here goes another Hater how is it fugly, that car is pretty as well as the Sclass. the Sclass is pretty BECAUSE of the Maybach thats where it got all of its styling. The new 7 series wasnt based on the Phantom or an exotic car it was designed and built from the ground up. If you look back at all the 7 series they were designed pretty much the same and it always sold no matter what.

7 Series is having problems with the old S class, so the new A8 will put the sales of the 7 in the basement...

i don't think its competitors will lose too much sleep because of this car. yes it will steal sales away from the s class and the 7 series. but if history repeats itself, this new a8 will look every bit as boring as current audi designs and will flop just as hard as the last a8 model.

the 7 series and s class will continue to outsell the a8 almost 2 to 1 globally. in some markets (such as the US), the 7 series outsold the a8 4 to 1 (2007), or even 5 to 1 (2008). i don't even have to look up numbers for 2009.

and to think this is audi's flagship, the best that audi can offer.... and this is an extended a4 platform? audi has just proven how far recycling platforms can go.

based on a stretched A4?

Even here in car crazy Southern California, A8's are practically an exotic car. A very rare sight to see.

Gotta love 'em though!

validus00: Validate your information.
You have to be engineer to understand that using the same chasis does not means that it will be just a elongated metal. there a procedure for that. and again at least audi have a Chasis....rise a bimmer and see how they attach the powertrain and you'll understand why the car is so light and unsecure comparard with Audi......and I am not a fan of Audi...and compared with the S class, the 7 is always behind in sales.

in the US market in 2007, bmw sold 14,773 7-series, whereas audi sold 3826 a8 (3.9x). in 2008, bmw sold 12,276, and audi only sold 2825 (4.3x). in 2009 as of june, bmw sold 3,197, but audi sold 615 (5.2x). yes i know audi is fading out a8 production this year.

seeing how the US market accounts for ~1/6 of bmw global sales and 1/11 of audi's global sales, we shouldn't expect a8's sales, on a global level, to escape similar fate.

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS171307+05-Jan-2009+PRN20090105
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS158279+05-Jan-2009+PRN20090105
http://news.prnewswire.com/ViewContent.aspx?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/07-01-2009/0005053781&EDATE=
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS195067+01-Jul-2009+PRN20090701

i'm not an engineer but i've seen enough vw/audi platforms recycled enough times to understand how it works.

the weight of the car doesn't automatically dictates how stiff a car is, and the torsional stiffness of a car isn't something you can just look up and find out. comparing the chassis feel and performance of bmw against its rivals usually is a good indicator how stiff bmw's chassis are. and audi cars would only be heavier than bmw's counterpart if comparing awd trim to rwd trim.

Do you realy think that all is resumed in Stiffnes: Elasticity is a must if you are looking for durability bro....Fly in any Boeing or Airbus in any window near to the main wings...is amazing When the some parts are to stiff they will break...elasticity avoids that. Now if you put dampers over plates, must of the time those will break the sorrunding structures if they are attached to a chassis. I like BMW and thanks to their efforts to become the ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE, we are getting better cars everywhere. If I am looking track performance, BMW will be my choice, but in the road MB....I like Audi too but the "why" I won't chose one yet is cause the new engine coming from BMW (4.8 Twin turbo), looks like the Mr Hide that we are looking for with great economy. The will say who's right...for now Respect to AUDI..they are doing great and seems to me that they are in better position than BMW & MB right now, and without the help of Dady (VW).

"without the help of daddy."

i'm not sure that with all the transfer of technology and IP from vw to audi, that audi can be considered an independent entity on its own.

the company is kinda like a 50 year old with a stable job but still suckling milk from her mom.

Errate: if you put dampers over plates, must of the time those will break the sorrunding structures if they are attached to a Monocoque.

Check the link below from the Autospies article, which clearly shows that Audi will not be using the same cookie-cutter, box, design for its new A8:

http://www.autospies.com/news/First-Look-2010-Audi-A8-Evolutionary-Design-Revealed-46743/

Furthermore, Audi CEO, Rupert Stadler, said the following about the new 2010 Audi A8:

The redesign will make the A8 "the sportiest luxury sedan in its class," said Rupert Stadler, chairman of the board of management of Audi AG, on Wednesday in a speech to the 120th annual meeting of Audi AG. He added: "[It will] set new standards with regard to interiors. And we will unveil it to the world in a remarkable fashion in late November."

I belive in those statements....and I know a lot of bimmer fans will hate me but, for the current 7 series....the new A8 will be a killer car when it is compared to the 7 series.....They will have to return to the drawing board as soon as posible if they do not want to lose ground against Audi. The new A8 will pick some customers from S but most of the will be from 7. Most of the MB buyers are very loyal to the brand..something that you cant say about the bimmers fans cause several of them buy 7 cause they are not willing to pay for S (or can not afford it). What is really hard is to stole buyers from M3...but 7..thats another story...But lets see what the time say to avoid speculation.

Yonder7,
i'm not sure the "bimmers fans" in their 40s or 50s are buying the 7 series because they can't afford the s-class. pricing isn't as much of an issue when it comes to $80,000 flagships from these premium brands. the 7 series sales have been trailing s-class sales since the dawn of time simply because each iteration of s-class is more desirable.

if by your logic, pricing was an issue, we would have expected a surge in a8 sales as 7-series sales decline, and yet we have witnessed decreasing demand for the a8 over the years. remember, flagships such as ls460 undercut the 7-series by $16,000 and the a8 (at least in america) undercuts the base 7-series by $6000.

in these days, loyalties to specific brands don't mean much. that's how bmw overtook mercedes-benz in the 90s to become the premier luxury brand. loyal mercedes customers? pleeeeease. when competing brands offer products attractive enough to buy, so called "fanboys" switch over. that's why we've seen an audi fan buying a x5, and seen mb or bmw fan buying an audi on these forums before.

I love the 2003-2005 A8 design (without Single frame Grille). I still think it is one of the most beautiful sedan. I hope new A8 gets small grille even the current one would be ok but should not grow but i think that won't be the case. Also would like to see Audi's response to the BMW's TT V8.

JUGNU

validus00: Last month 7 series sold more than 700 cars.. S class sold more than 1100 of the old S class.....regaridng pricing...well I think is not completely right..there is a lot of people concerned about price, specialy if that means 10k to 20K which is very common bettewen 7 an S, that's another car for a lot of people. Loyalty is what makes you buy a a car that the only atribute is that is good for the track.....even if you do not know how to handle it on tha track and even when everybody knows that in the road any AMG and other more will wipeout the road with them. Loyalty is what makes me buy a Cadillac and Mercedes...and finaly people is smart , so to say this alone "simply because each iteration of s-class is more desirable" is not the whole true. Why you prefer a an M3 over a C63? cause M3 drives better. People that buys buy expensive cars they are looking for the best and if they have the money they will get it. That is what MB ofers....7 series is good but that is not enough for them. Audi will rise the price, and at that point, will win the one that customer see as the best....for now I think that main issue for Audi is not design, (even the Jaguar looks better than the 7 series), The problem will be the BMW 4.8 TT and the new V12, If they are able to put good engines on those A8, 7 series will have a lot more problems a mean more than the S class... and FYI I still a fan of BMW M division.....but Just for tracks...

Yonder - How many times do we have to go thru this in regards to sales of the 7-series compared to the Mercedes S Class? do you even compare the numbers or just see what you want to see?

BMW 7-series - 750i & 750LI
Mercedes S-Class = S400 hybrid, S550, S550 4 matic, S600, S63, S65

*** That is 6 models being sold to just 2 for the BMW. BMW has the 750ix, 750Lix & 760Li just starting to arrive at dealerships. Having AWD in a 7-series is a big deal for dealers in snow belt states. Wait til the end of November & you will see that the 7-series reigns supremem.

You bring up Audi, they only sell 100 cars a month of their current version. How is that really going to change that much, since VW thei parent group is going to re-introduce the FAILED Phaeton again? I mean, wtf is going on with that group? Doesnt Vw realize that they already make a Premium Sedan? idiots ...