New Audi Q8 Now Available in the Middle East

The Audi Q8 combines the elegance of a four-door luxury coupe and the convenience of a large SUV with its spacious interior, top notch operating and suspension technologies and intelligent assistance systems. The Audi Q8 is made at the brand’s Bratislava plant and will be available at all Middle East dealers from the beginning of October.

The Audi Q8 more than any other Audi model, has a sporty and upscale appearance. It is 4.99 meters long, 2.00 meters wide and 1.71 meters tall, and hence is wider, shorter and lower than the Q7. The interior is highly spacious with a wheelbase of almost 3.00 meters. The vehicle has a three-seat system with seats that can be adjusted. When the seats in the rear are folded down, the luggage compartment under the power rear hatch can hold up to 1,755 liters.

New presence for the Q family: the exterior design
With its Singleframe in octagonal design, the Audi Q8 is the new face of the Q range. The most notable characteristics of the exterior which enhance the A8’s strong look are its strong radiator grille, the spoiler that has been drawn toward the front and the air inlets which are large and highly contoured. The roofline has an elegant slope and the wheel arches house up to 22-inch wheels. The off-road look is enhanced with the use of strong contours, tight surfaces and contrasting colors for the spoiler, wheel arch trims, door trim strips and diffuser.

The model has standard LED headlights with HD Matrix LED lights available as an option. As in the original Audi quattro, a black surface underlays a light strip connecting the daytime running lights and the taillights in the rear.

Suspension and drive

On a standard basis, the mechanical center differential transfers the forces to the front axle and rear axle at a ratio of 40:60 while it can transfer the majority to the axle with the better traction when needed. This feature as well as the high ground clearance of 254 millimeters, short overhangs and hill descent control make the Q8 great for going offroad. The suspension comes with damper control as standard while adaptive air suspension with controlled damping offering comfort or sports mode is optional. This feature means that the ride height can be adjusted by as much as 90 mm based on the driving scenario and the preference of the driver.

In addition to the standard progressive steering, the steering ratio becomes increasingly direct the more the steering wheel is turned. Buyers can also choose the all-wheel steering option for better stability and agility and this is particularly efficient thanks to the new mild hybrid technology (MHEV). The 48-volt primary electrical system comes with two key components: a lithium-ion battery and a belt alternator starter. Upto 12 kW of power can be recovered during braking and fed back into the battery. The MHEV technology facilitates long coasting phases with the engine turned off and a start-stop range that begins at 22 km/h.

Interiors
The most notable characteristic of the interior is the top MMI touch response display with easy-to-understand symbols. All the elements of the display are easily understandable and refer logically to one another, from the flat air vent strip to the wide console on the center tunnel which sports the tiptronic selector lever. The optional contour light highlights the distinctive design of the interior and serves as backlight for the three-dimensionally lasered quattro badge above the glove compartment, highlighting Audi’s love of detail. While the four-zone automatic air conditioning is a standard feature, customized contour seats with massage function and ventilation or the air quality package are available as options.

Controls and displays
Thanks to the MMI touch response operating concept in the Q8, it is possible to access almost all functions through two large displays. The infotainment and the navigation system can be controlled through the upper 10.1-inch display while the 8.6-inch display can be used for accessing the heating and air conditioning, convenience functions and text input. A tactile and acoustic click confirms activation of each function thus making operation of the controls easy. The natural language voice controls are another bonus with voice control having the ability to understand sentences like “I am hungry” to come up with suggestions for restaurants nearby.

The Audi virtual cockpit displays all the instruments and motorists can switch between two views on the high-resolution 12.3-inch display through the multifunction steering wheel. The optional plus version includes a third, particularly sporty view. The head-up display also projects important information onto the windshield, including detailed lane guidance for navigation.