By Otsile Kadiege

Audi’s potent and luxurious S8 TFSI quattro sedan has officially gone on sale in South Africa. The updated S8 sports minor cosmetic updates, new lighting technologies, a revised suspension and many standard new gizmos as well as convenience features.

Updated exterior styling and lighting technology

The updated S8 sports a sharpened design giving the luxury sedan a confident and athletic look. Up front, the base of the single frame grille is now wider and chrome angles that increase in size from bottom to top adorn its grid. The side air intakes are more upright and just as freshly styled as the headlights, whose lower edge on the outside creates a distinctive contour.

As standard, the S8 is equipped with Digital Matrix LED headlights which use DMD (digital micromirror device) technology. Each headlight has approximately 1.3 million micromirrors that break down the light into tiny pixels. At the rear, the updated S8 sports newly designed taillights with OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) technology.

More standard interior equipment

Inside, the updated S8 features a similar design and styling as before. Highlights include the Audi Virtual Cockpit with head-up display as standard and two MMI (10.1- and 8.6-inch) displays and standard MMI Navigation plus to list a few.

Optional equipment are the rear seat package which delivers a three-seat system with two electrically adjustable individual seats. These include electrical adjustment of the longitudinal seat position, backrest angle and backrest head adjustment. It is also equipped with pneumatic 4-way lumbar support, a memory function and side airbags.

Infotainment is also available for rear seat passengers with two 10.1 inch displays at full HD resolution attached to the backs of the front seats. They display content from passengers’ devices and can receive numerous audio and video streams via casting.

Local standard equipment highlights

The Audi S8 quattro comes highly equipped with specifications and features which proudly showcase its performance, digital and design points. The following standard equipment highlights are worth mentioning: quattro with sports differential, dynamic all-wheel steering, adaptive cruise control, Audi connect2X and infotainment services, predictive active suspension, Valcona leather upholstery with diamond stitching, seat ventilation and massage function, Bang & Olufsen Premium Sound with 3D, Audi virtual cockpit Plus and head-up display to name a few.

S8 TFSI quattro performance

The S8’s biturbo V8 generates 420 kW of power and 800 Nm of torque from 2,050 to 4,500 rpm. Audi claims it sprints in 3.8 seconds and the Cylinder on Demand system is said to increases efficiency in the S8. The engine is connected to an eight-step tiptronic gearbox. Thanks to an electric oil pump, the automatic transmission can change gears even when the combustion engine is not running.

As standard, the S8’s all-wheel drive quattro is fitted with a self-locking sport differential which actively distributes torque between the rear wheels during fast cornering. One of the technological highlights of the enhanced S8 is the predictive active suspension. It can load or unload each wheel with additional power individually via an electric motor and thereby actively regulate the position of the chassis in any driving situation.

Pricing and warranty

Local market introduction of the updated S8 takes place today with prices starting at R2,759,000 (inclusive of 5yr/100 000km Audi Freeway Plan).