Autoweek has a first drive review of the new Audi A8 4.2. As you might have guessed, it looks to continue the A8′s track record of stacking up very nicely against the BMW 7, Mercedes S Class, and Lexus LS. The Audi used to be the automatic choice for those that wanted all wheel drive to deal with snow belt low traction conditions. Mercedes for a long time has offered their 4matic awd system here and there, and very recently BMW and Lexus have added all wheel drive options to the 7 and LS. Despite this apparent parity Audi does retain a trump card: The A8′s aluminum construction counters the additional weight and resulting loss of performance and decrease in gas mileage associated with adding a transfer case and a driven front axle. Rather impressively, the all new A8 has a curb weight of only 4045 pounds. It’s one reason we expect the factory reported 0-60 time of 5.7 seconds is the Audi boys sandbagging by at least a few tenths. And it lets the A8 hit a combined EPA 25 mpg, stellar for such a large all wheel drive vehicle.
Via Autoweek
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I love that 4045lbs. is considered a small weight. I know that it is a low’ish weight for this class of car, but I would imagine that we will steadily see the weights of these (and other) vehicles slowly go down due to the new CAFE requirements and such.
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I disagree in part – while we will see the weights of other vehicles go down, these large luxury liners are already pretty trim. There isn’t a tremendous amount of weight reduction to be had in something like the XJ or the A8 that are already using an unconventional material [aluminum] to achieve their current weight. Remember that this is a very large car, it would take a 225 inch long 96 Cadillac Fleetwood or a Rolls Royce Phantom to cast a longer shadow.
I think what you will see is advanced weight saving construction techniques, like the aluminium pioneered in the A8 and XJ (and the Acura NSX, and a few others) trickle down below the luxury flagship class. The trick will be doing it in such a way that the cost of those vehicles doesn’t rise to an objectionable level.
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I disagree in part——
The large vehicles are pretty trim at this point, but that doesn’t mean they can’t get trimmer. And no, I don’t mean that BMW will come out with a 7 series that weighs 3,000lbs in response to the Audi’s 4,000lbs. The reductions will be incremental.
Really there are a whole lot of variables to all this, but the two big things I am assuming to be true that will force weight innovation are:
1 – The new CAFE rules
2 – Customer’s unrelenting demand for faster, bigger, more luxurious, all around greater vehicles.
Basically I am saying that the horsepower war that we have had for the last decade or so (or really forever) will continue but will morph into a weight war (or maybe a hybrid technology way….i.e. KERS?). Those who can innovate will win.
Manufacturers will have to beat there competitors and the most likely way for them to do that will be weight. I.E. – if demand requires you to make a car 5% faster than a competitors model you can achieve that either through increased power (which I am saying will be partially outlawed by CAFE) or decreased weight.
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