Sports cars have to conform to a pretty strict definition, but for many people, depending on their priorities or needs, it can assume a number of sizes and shapes. Weighing in north of 4,500 lb and stretching nearly 17 feet from its four-ringed grille to its four ovoid exhaust tips, the Audi S8 is not svelte. Nor will it ever leave anyone bored.
The S8’s defining feature is its new all-aluminum, twin-turbocharged, 4.0-liter V-8. In its last generation, the S8 was powered, of all things, by a 5.2-liter V-10 derived from the one in the Lamborghini Gallardo. While the S8 forfeits the Lambo engine’s spine-tingling vocal track, it crushes its predecessor’s output by 70 hp and 83 lb ft of torque at 520 hp and 481 lb ft, respectively.
With an eight-speed, paddle-shifted automatic keeping the engine always in the fat part of its powerband and Audi’s Quattro all-wheel-drive system maximizing traction at launch, this leather-lined behemoth is a slingshot. Several tests have recorded 0-to-60-mph times in the 3.5-second range and quarter-mile passes in the high 11s. That compares with Ford’s 662-hp Mustang Shelby GT500.
The S8 is well-equipped to handle those sort of speeds. Audi’s drive select system allows the driver to adjust the air suspension through four different degrees of stiffness, as well as tweak the steering, throttle and transmission settings. With everything set to a more-relaxed mode, the S8 feels like a (much-quicker) A8. Dial in dynamic, and the S8 will punish a winding road without ever beating up its occupants.
Inside, top-quality materials and high-tech detailing are shaped and finessed by one of the industry’s most-accomplished interior design teams. The Audi S8 isn’t cheap, but it will never disappoint.
THE GOODS
On sale NOW
Price: $110,000
Mpg: 15 mpg city; 19 mpg hwy
What we liked: Sheer power, and the ability to handle it
What we didn’t like: Styling is a bit solid. Sky-high price.