If you haven’t heard of the A8, you’ve missed a lot. It’s handsome, high-tech, very well built and exceedingly luxurious. It’s available here with a superb V8 engine, brought to square up to the Merc S-class. The best car in the world? We find out.

“With its high-tech aluminium body and muscular V8, the A8 is a devastating performer.”

AUDI A8L 4.2 QUATTRO
List price (ex-showroom, Mumbai) Rs 70 lakh
Top speed 250kph
0-60kph 3.59sec
0-100kph 7.88sec
Kpl 6.25 (overall)

For Performance, sporty handling, build quality, overall comfort
Against Price, small dealer network

W hat a way to start an innings. In what is known in the industry as a ‘top-down’ strategy, Audi has put its best foot forward and launched its flagship model, the A8L. This takes the company within striking distance of rival Mercedes-Benz in the top end of the market, and shows Indian customers that it possesses the hardware necessary to take on even the best. It won't be easy for Audi, though. Up against the world's strongest car brand, Audi has chosen to give itself a competitive advantage by giving Indian customers a car that is one rung up on the limo ladder. The 4.2-litre V8-powered A8L will go up against the Merc S350 L, also a long-wheelbase version, but powered by a smaller V6 motor. This, Audi believes, will give customers something extra in comparison to the S-class.
Audi will import the A8L directly into India; the car won't be homologated as it comes in above the US $ 40,000 threshold. So is it good enough to take on a car that carries around the tag of ‘the best car in the world’? Is the reputation of the three-pointed star too much to go up against, especially for a company like Audi, which up until now is
little known in the Indian market? These questions can only be answered with the passage of time. But if you're interested in just how capable the A8L is,
how much luxury, performance and driving pleasure it provides, read on.