The New Face of the Q Family The Audi Q8

The Audi Q8 brings together the best of both worlds – the elegance of a four-door luxury coupé and the practical talents of a large SUV.

The generously dimensioned interior with variable luggage compartment, state-of-the-art operating and suspension technologies as well as intelligent driver assistance systems make the Q8 a composed companion for business and leisure. Positioned as the halo vehicle to Audi’s Q range, the Q8 has officially retailed in South Africa since May.

Versatile, Sporty, Elegant

The Q8 exudes sporty dynamics and upscale prestige like no other SUV from the brand with the four rings. At 4,99 metres long, two metres wide and 1,71 metres tall, the SUV coupé is wider, shorter and lower than its Q7 sister model. With a wheelbase of nearly three metres, it offers a spacious interior that beats that of its direct competitors in most relevant dimensions, including interior length and headroom. The three-seat system in the rear can be moved forward and backward as desired. With the seat backrests folded down, the luggage compartment under the power rear hatch holds up to 1 755 litres.

All Brawn

The Q8 is an impressive representative of the progressive design language that Audi first brought onto the road with the new A8 and will follow into all new future Audi models. With the imposing single-frame in octagonal design, the Q8 is the new face of the Q family.

The brawny radiator grille stands upright and, together with the spoiler that has been drawn toward the front and the large, highly contoured air inlets, emphasizes the self-confident look. A wide mask optionally finished in a contrasting colour connects the single-frame to the distinctive headlights. The elegantly sloping roofline terminates in gently inclined D-pillars and rests against the quattro blisters above the wheel arches, which house up to 22-inch wheels.

Numerous details echo the design of the Ur-quattro. A narrow, high-gloss black element with an integrated light strip extends between the rear lights. This is a feature of top Audi models, accentuating the width of the Q8. It creates an independent light signature day or night, just like on the Ur-quattro back in the day. Strong contours and athletically tight surfaces convey a feeling of power, sophistication and the special dynamics of permanent all-wheel drive.

The Q8 is available in a choice of 12 colours: Two solid paint finishes and 10 metallic or pearl effect shades. The new colour dragon orange, which is exclusive to the Q8, dramatically underscores the sporty design.

Standard HD matrix LED headlights illuminate the road. Here both the three-dimensional signature of the daytime running lights and the taillights have a digital character.

Clarity is the New Premium

The interior of the Q8 is a luxury lounge. Easy-to-understand symbols stand for the digital precision from Audi and for the high level of integration of architecture and operation. The central element is the top multimedia interface touch response display. With its black-panel look, it almost dissolves into a large, black surface when switched off. All elements refer logically to one another, from the flat air vent strip to the wide console on the centre tunnel bearing the tiptronic selector lever.

In the dark, the contour light traces the distinctive design lines of the interior and provides backlight for the three-dimensionally lasered quattro badge above the glove compartment – an example for the love of detail at Audi. The brand offers the contour/ambient lighting package as standard in the new Q8. This lighting package attractively showcases the interior. In the indirect ambient lighting radiated from a surface source, the instrument panel, door linings and centre tunnel seem to float, while the precise contour lighting traces the distinctive design lines

Sensitive, Concise

With the MMI touch response operating concept of the new Q8, nearly every function can be accessed via two large displays. The upper 10,1-inch display is used for controlling the infotainment and the navigation system. The driver uses the 8,6-inch display below that for heating and air conditioning, convenience functions and text input, the latter with his or her wrist resting comfortably and ergonomically on the selector lever.

Operation is swift and simple: A tactile and acoustic click confirms when a finger activates a function. In addition to all this, the natural language voice control turns the Q8 into an intelligent dialogue partner. Drivers can word their commands freely. The voice control can, for example, understand the sentence “I am hungry” and in response suggests restaurants close by.

The instruments are shown in the fully digital virtual cockpit which is standard on the vehicle. Its high-resolution 12,3-inch display can be switched between two views via the multifunction steering wheel. The head-up display also projects important information onto the windshield, including detailed lane guidance for navigation.

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