finally all the 8's are in house

[Ti-Mike]

Finally i had some time to make some pic's of all the other Audi which end with and 8.
Wifeys new all day ride ( Audi A8 4.2 TDi ) just arrived last week.

Next to it my S8 , is already several month in the house and the R8 is already know in the forum.

The S8 has all the extras you can imagine including leather dashboard, Alcantara sealing, ceramic disks, B&O, just everything........even custom safety belts, active advanced cruise control bla bla bla

Wifeys model has quite some good extras as well like the side and lane assistant works great.

[Ti-Mike]

and some more

[utah]

Nice pics Ti-Mike. Your house is an Audi house. I have a similar story but with Mercedes, I own many of them now. The R8 is the first Audi I have ever owned. If you have ever driven an E or S class Mercedes I would be interested in how you think Audi compares in terms of interior fit & finish, ride comfort and quietness. I would imagine handling would be more nimble because Mercedes never cares about shaving weight. I'm looking for an honest assessment not testosterone because I get cars rather frequently (probably too frequently) and maybe Audi sedans deserve a look.

[Ti-Mike]

Yes , well not really, the MB guys have given us the new S65 AMG to test for 3 days and we have driven it quite some km's ( wife and myself ) we have tested it in the same areas where we do our daily driving etc.

First of all for switzerland even if i live in the southern Mediterranean clima influenced part of the country i have to consider driving up through the apls to the north from time to time and if this happens in the winter 4x4 is needed.
No S65 AMG with 4x4

I thing also that a heavy car like this should have a good stopping power
No Ceramic breaks on the S 65 AMG

and it feels and only fels a little lees sportive to drive and on the inside.....but the car is fantastic very good quality etc and it drives very smooth and no doubt on the power

[Rob A]

Nice pics Ti-Mike. Your house is an Audi house. I have a similar story but with Mercedes, I own many of them now. The R8 is the first Audi I have ever owned. If you have ever driven an E or S class Mercedes I would be interested in how you think Audi compares in terms of interior fit & finish, ride comfort and quietness. I would imagine handling would be more nimble because Mercedes never cares about shaving weight. I'm looking for an honest assessment not testosterone because I get cars rather frequently (probably too frequently) and maybe Audi sedans deserve a look.

My future wife and I just test-drove a new MB 320TDI and ended up buying an '04 A8 4.0TDI in new condition.

My better half has been driving S class MBs for the past 10 years or so, but agreed that the A8 is far superior. Frankly I could only describe the MB as a well-built and perfectly adequate appliance,whereas the A8 is an exciting car. Surely a MB with a more powerful engine would be more fun, but it would still not feel anything like an A8.

To answer your specific questions (i) interior fit & finish is perfect (ii) ride comfort is excellent -a little firmer than a MB, but the A8 therefore feels more controlled and nimble- and (iii) I was unable to detect a difference in quietness.

I will be selling my '97 A8 4.2 within the next weeks (it's registered in the Netherlands. Should anyone be interested please pm me), and with over 250,000 km it still looks and drives like a 3 year-old car, so they're definitely well built.

[gR8Audi]

Great looking stable! I am trying to get to the same place.
While I have an R8 (V10) on order, I would love to have an A8 TDI. I currently drive a 2005 A6 and just love the car. It is the 3.2 V6, so fuel economy is pretty good.
If you don't mind me asking, what did the 04' A8 TDI cost?
Unfortunately, I can't even order this car in the states! I have been thinking of importing a used one from Europe. I have a VW TDI, but it is tough to stuff the kids in it. My 15 y/o son is 6'3" and growing, and my daughter is 6'1"!
An A8L TDI would be great!

[Rob A]

EUR 26,000 (USD 41,000) before taxes with a 1 year bumber-to-bumper warrantee from the (German) dealer from whom I bought my R8. The car has pretty much every possible option, a mileage of 91,000 km (about 56,000 miles) and is absolutely immaculate.

It looks stunning in Oyster grey with a light grey interior, so I just couldn't find a reason to order essentially the same car new for around EUR 80,000 + taxes.

That said there's nothing wrong with the gasoline engines that are being sold in the US. In Europe diesel in readily available and cheaper than gasoline, which is not the case in North America.

[utah]

Ti-Mike, I lalso live in a mountain area with snow in winter so AWD is a good thing. MB's are heavy - true enough but very well made and nice refined interior and ride comfort.

RobA - interesting comments. In the U.S., Audi doesn't have the same status level or perception of luxury quality as MB. I can easily get over that if the Audi A8 actually has high caliber fit/finish and better handling.

I'll check out the A8.

Thanks.

[gR8Audi]

That said there's nothing wrong with the gasoline engines that are being sold in the US. In Europe diesel in readily available and cheaper than gasoline, which is not the case in North America.

While all of what you state is true, the gasoline engines require premium which is very close in price to diesel. The diesel is cheaper to maintain and provides better fuel economy. I also wanted to try converting it over to run SVO, which is much cheaper than diesel.
I have the 3.2 FSI engine in the A6 and it is wonderful, but I know they put a diesel in it in Europe as often as a gasoline engine. Every other vehicle I own is diesel and I do like them. I wish they were making the V12 TDI available in the R8.

[800]

A8's are great but for a large sedan, I would have got the MB. It's more refine and ride is better. S8 vs S65 is a different story, the MB is too heavy.