New A8L Delivered...Some initial impressions
11-21-2014, 01:46 PM
#1
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New A8L Delivered...Some initial impressions
Well, I said farewell to the 2011 D4 this afternoon and welcomed home the new face-lifted 4.0T. Some first blush observations and impressions...
First, a nice improvement to the MMI settings vs. my 2011--- Can now adjust the sensitivity of the Auto headlights (3 settings: early, medium, late).
I didn't take the car on the highway yet, just took back country roads home with suspension set to Comfort---the ride on the 20s was very smooth. The electronic based steering felt just fine---had it set to Dynamic (same as with my '11)--- perhaps a bit lighter than before when rolling slowly while doing a parking maneuver, but overall it felt good; we'll see how it feels when I get the car on the highway at speed on Sunday.
The 4.0 V8 felt very smooth and composed---I suspect it was likely running on 4 cylinders for a good bit of the trip home since I didn't want to get too aggressive on the throttle yet.
Cabin was very quiet---was pretty windy today and I heard no wind buffeting sounds like I did from the 2011 on the way to the dealer. The HUD is a nice feature, but it gets mostly eliminated with polarized sunglasses. I'll see how it does tonight in the dark when I pick my wife up---I'm anxious to see how the night vision warning shows on the display (well, it would be better if there is no deer warning I suppose).
The rear sports differential works great on the back twisty roads, just like it did on the previous car. The sport package wheels are great and actually look better in person than in pics for some reason.
In general, I'm liking it more than what it replaced...Good thing!!! The color, Panther Black Crystal, is unbelievable---so glad I got it.
Here are a few pics (I have to post them separately from my iPad)
First, a nice improvement to the MMI settings vs. my 2011--- Can now adjust the sensitivity of the Auto headlights (3 settings: early, medium, late).
I didn't take the car on the highway yet, just took back country roads home with suspension set to Comfort---the ride on the 20s was very smooth. The electronic based steering felt just fine---had it set to Dynamic (same as with my '11)--- perhaps a bit lighter than before when rolling slowly while doing a parking maneuver, but overall it felt good; we'll see how it feels when I get the car on the highway at speed on Sunday.
The 4.0 V8 felt very smooth and composed---I suspect it was likely running on 4 cylinders for a good bit of the trip home since I didn't want to get too aggressive on the throttle yet.
Cabin was very quiet---was pretty windy today and I heard no wind buffeting sounds like I did from the 2011 on the way to the dealer. The HUD is a nice feature, but it gets mostly eliminated with polarized sunglasses. I'll see how it does tonight in the dark when I pick my wife up---I'm anxious to see how the night vision warning shows on the display (well, it would be better if there is no deer warning I suppose).
The rear sports differential works great on the back twisty roads, just like it did on the previous car. The sport package wheels are great and actually look better in person than in pics for some reason.
In general, I'm liking it more than what it replaced...Good thing!!! The color, Panther Black Crystal, is unbelievable---so glad I got it.
Here are a few pics (I have to post them separately from my iPad)
Last edited by derfA8L; 11-24-2014 at 12:50 PM.
11-21-2014, 02:10 PM
#5
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And you may be able to see the trunk difference...
I was able to use the trunk liner from the 2011. You can see where it ends and where the 2015's trunk continues.
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11-22-2014, 04:56 AM
#8
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Derf, I followed with interest your postings when you bought your 2011 model--very informative--and I'm looking forward to getting to know the 2015. Mike
11-22-2014, 05:49 AM
#9
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This is the exact same color combination of my 2011. Black, black, and more black! Although I may have different wood... I see you have the rear passenger comfort seating package as well.
Nicely done!
Nicely done!
11-22-2014, 08:09 AM
#10
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