While
the sporty S8 has great potential, it is not available in long-wheelbase form,
so tall rear-seat occupants struggle for space. On a good day, one may be
tempted to describe the design as classic, but when you take
off the rose-colored glasses, the aging
cookie-cutter single-frame grille is inexpressive
and ordinary. In theory, the driving dynamics should be spot-on, and yet
in real life they form an odd mix of highs and lows. Take the handling, which
ranges from defensive to indifferent, all the way from casual cornering
exercises to terminal understeer at the very edge of adhesion. Feel the
steering, which refuses to feed your palms with enough weight, self-centering action,
and grip information.
In a corner, the diff will send more
torque to the outside wheel, which will in turn tuck the nose of the S8 more
tightly into the corner.
Try
the brakes, which are very powerful and totally immune to fade but could do
with more progressive pedal action. Experience the air suspension in all three
available settings, and you will invariably wonder why not even the comfort
mode provides a satisfactory level of compliance. At the end of the third day,
the S8 was perceived by all four of our testers as a cold technocrat that takes
particular pride in keeping its driver at arm’s length. As best epitomized by
its faultless drivetrain, this car is a somewhat empty and not entirely
convincing triumph of efficiency over emotion.
Carbon-ceramic brakes are new to the
S8, as well. Choosing the driving mode is one of numerous functions controlled
through Audi’s Multi Media
Interface
(MMI).Decisions,
decisions. If you are a Bang & Olufsen type and love the clean Bauhaus
style, Germanic perfection down to the last detail, as well as special,
no-cost-spared feel-good solidity, then the S8 may be worth a second look and a
first test drive.
Namely, a special Audi S8, one from
the high tech laboratory of mtm, a stone's throw from the premium manufacturer
in Ingolstadt.
In
contrast, the XJR appeals to your inner hooligan, is the secret darling of
affluent hipsters, and can either play the prestige card or do donuts until a
neighbor calls the cops. The S63 AMG has what it takes to be the best of all
worlds, and yet it isn’t. Instead, you pay dearly for a token 0.9-second
acceleration advantage over the S550.
