Audi S8

[jbo]

Anyone else driven the new S8. I thought i would have a quick test drive as i am thinking of maybe changing the CL55.
Initial impressions were nice car, well built, outstanding interior / cabin & equipment levels.
Engine note from the V10 sounded great but..... i was left feeling a bit deflated regarding the performance. Not sure if its me and i am just so used to the "kick in the back" performance of the CL's supercharger???

Anyone else have any feedback about the S8??

 

[mapleleaf]

try a pm to craigyb I am sure he has the S8

 

[craigyb]

No I drive the closest thing to it, an A8 W12 6 litre.

Virtually the same performance, but without the price tag.

Did you drive it in sport mode? as I have found that most of the Audi's I have drive have been quite tame in "Drive", but come alive in "Sport" mode.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

No I drive the closest thing to it, an A8 W12 6 litre.

Fantastic!! A gorgeous car!!

After my wife watched the film Transporter II - where the star has a black A8 W12 she's wanted one - me too actually!!

Do you have any experience of driving the Phaeton W12 by any chance? I would be interested to know how the A8 and Phaeton compare - and the Bentley given the commanlity of drivetrain!!

The Phaeton W12 seems to be a lot cheaper (used), but Mrs D thinks it looks like a "fat Passat"!! I can sort of see her point, it's not as handsome as the A8, but if the performance and refinement is on par then it seems good value!!

 

[craigyb]

Can't comment on the Phaeton, but my understanding is VW can't sell them, very low residuals and not the prestige of the A8. You can pick up the Phaetons for next to nothing, but be prepared to sell it for a lot less.

The W12 is a very smooth engine, it just glides along the road, but it can be a tiger as well if you just nudge the lever into Sport. With 450 PS under the bonnet, it's no slouch.

Plus you have all the toys with the A8, Radio, DAB, DVB-T, CD chnager, Ipod interface, Rear fridge, multi media, optical parking sensors, rear view camera, bluetooth telephone.

5 years servicing and maintenance to boot, so no running costs besides fuel and tyres for the next 3 years for me.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Thanks for that.

It's the rapid depreciation of the Phaeton that caught my eye!! Although it's first owner will have taken the biggest hit, I guess the second owner will take a bit of a wallop too!!

Your A8 sounds like a beauty!!

 

[jbo]

Test drove the car in two modes. Comfort mode which i was disappointed with and Dynamic/sport mode which i thought was a small improvement. Leaving the car in sport mode when driving into and around a town or city centre from the outskirts meant driving away from junctions or traffic lights was a jerky and uncomfortable affair at best. (acceleration is all or nothing and not progressive) This would mean that you would have to keep switching modes throughout a long journey which is not as easy as pressing a button on and off as you would have to access the MMI unit each time and scroll through the options. Maybe the 6.0 W12 is a smoother beast altogether !?!?!

 

[nickg]

Can't comment on the Phaeton, but my understanding is VW can't sell them, very low residuals and not the prestige of the A8. You can pick up the Phaetons for next to nothing, but be prepared to sell it for a lot less.

The W12 is a very smooth engine, it just glides along the road, but it can be a tiger as well if you just nudge the lever into Sport. With 450 PS under the bonnet, it's no slouch.

Plus you have all the toys with the A8, Radio, DAB, DVB-T, CD chnager, Ipod interface, Rear fridge, multi media, optical parking sensors, rear view camera, bluetooth telephone.

5 years servicing and maintenance to boot, so no running costs besides fuel and tyres for the next 3 years for me.

Wow!!

Was dvb-t factory-fitted?
I've just got a Touareg V10 (2005) and want to retro-fit dvb-t to the comms head unit - any info you could give me? And is the tv reception any good when stationary, or moving??

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I was looking at Phaeton's again last night.

Found an 04 W12 with 46k miles (ish) at a VW dealer for £26k (ish). That's a lot of car for the money. The rear 1/3 of the car just doesn't look quite right though - that said, that probably helps make it more affordable and less conscpicuous!!

 

[SilverSaloon]

I have DVB-T in my 7 series.

The picture is excellent more or less all the time when stationary, but when you are driving it breaks up a lot. I get a good picture until around 40mph in the edinburgh area of scotland. It was a bit better in newcastle when i was last there, but i think the problem is mainly all over the UK....:

Problem is, with analogue TV, when the reception gets weak, the signal still is good enough to hear the sounds etc. With DVB-T, when the signal gets too weak the sound just goes off for a second or so until it gains the signal again.

Also the digital TV signal reception in the Uk is very poor until they switch off analogue in 2012. This is because its transmitted weaker so it doesnt interfere with the analogue signals. Once 2012 comes, it should get a lot better.

it can also vary station to station..... some channels hardly work at all when moving, but a few dont break up even at speeds around 80mph.

i get all the freeview channels listed and they all work stationary. This is on an OEM BMW Hybrid (digital & analogue) TV model

I would say, get it if you plan on watching it stationary - be wary if u plan on watching on the move.