It was not long ago when Audi's flagship sedan took the centre stage at the 2017 Frankfurt Auto Show. If you remember, the 2018 Audi A8 broke cover at the Audi Summit back in July and now it has been spotted testing in Mumbai earlier this week. The car from the German carmaker could go on sale by the first half of 2018 and you may soon spot an Audi A8 L running on Indian roads.

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Team-BHP reader Harshil Shah spotted the all-new A8 and brought its presence into the limelight.

The design of the new Audi A8 is an evolution of the Prologue concept (concept car) series, a design study, which has inspired the next-gen Audi A6 and A8. It is bigger, plusher and quite futuristic. Although it has two wheelbase (distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels) versions, one standard and one extended, India may get it only in the long-wheelbase (extended) version.

Compared to the previous generation model, the Audi A8 L is 37 mm longer, 4 mm narrower and 17 mm higher. The fifth-gen model car Audi A8 L's structure consists of aluminum, hot-stamped steel, carbon-fiber, and magnesium.

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One of the main highlights of Audi A8's is its autonomous driving capabilities. Did you know it is the world's first series-production car to offer Level 3 autonomous driving? It can drive itself on highways at speeds up to 60 km/h and in case of slow-moving traffic, the driver can handover the accelerating, steering, and braking to Audi AI traffic jam pilot. Cool right? Also, there is the Audi AI remote parking pilot and the Audi AI remote garage pilot, which will enable autonomous steering of the car into and out of a parking space or a garage.

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Other noticeable features include:

- HD Matrix LED headlights with Audi laser light

- OLED rear lights, 21-inch broad wheels

- 12.3-inch Audi virtual cockpit,

- 10.1-inch infotainment system display,

- 8.6-inch display for AC and comfort controls and Bang & Olufsen 3D sound system featuring 19 loudspeakers. It includes a subwoofer and centre loudspeaker and a 16-channel amplifier with a total output of 755 watts.

With so many features and tech, it does feel like a concept car. Doesn't it?

If we talk about the engine, the all-new automotive beauty Audi A8 sports is extensively re-engineered and more powerful with V6 bi-turbo engines: 340 hp 3.0-litre TFSI petrol and 286 hp 3.0-litre TDI diesel. Apart from the two mentioned engine options, three more engine variants will follow. 

You can watch the video here