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I picked up my A8L in Scottsdale, AZ early last month and after spending a week in the desert had the pleasure of driving my new car to my home in the San Francisco Bay Area. I have now been back in California for a few weeks and must tell everyone that this is by and far the most incredible car I have ever owned! My two previous cars were a 2005 Mercedes S500 as well as a 2002 Mercedes S500 and they too were great cars but nothing like this special vehicle.

We purchased for my wife in January of this year a 2011 Audi A6 and after driving that car decided that it was time to replace my S500 as the technology in her car made the Mercedes look obsolete and even though I did consider a new Mercedes S550 which out of fairness was also quite superior technology-wise to my 2005 S500 but lacked the uniqueness of the Audi A8L and my gut told me it was time for a change! I did not realize at the time (this was in late January) how difficult it was going to be to find an A8L equipped the way I wanted it equipped and after an exhaustive search finally found a car headed for an Arizona dealer that had everything I wanted and more and thus the reason for purchasing the car in Scottsdale. My car is Phantom Black Pearl Effect with a black interior and has the following options:

1: Bang & Olufsen
2: Night Vision Assistant
3: Alcantara Package and Black Headliner
4: 20" 10-Parallel-Spoke Wheels with Summer Tires
5: LED Headlights W/O Range Adjustment
6: Dual-Paned Security Glass
7: Rear Seat Comfort Package
8: Premium Package
9: Driver Assist Package

My personal observations about each of the options are as follows:

* I absolutely love the Bang & Olufsen sound system and even though I realize that it has very little value for resale would not buy the car without it! My wife's car has the Bose system which is very nice but this system literally blows it away in sound quality. I have imported about 1,500 songs into the jukebox and cannot believe how great they sound in the car. $6,300.00 is a lot to spend but if you like your music you will kick yourself down the road if you pass on this upgrade.

* The night vision assistant is not an option I would have purchased had it not already been on the car and to this point have not used it. I suppose if and when I have the need for it I will be glad I have it but to this point it simply has been a reduction of $2,300.00 in my pocket.

* The Alcantara Package and Black Headliner was not on my must have list but again was on the car so I had no choice but to purchase it and I have to admit it looks great and does enhance the interior of the car quite nicely especially when I compare it to my wife's A6 which does not have it. If I was to order a car knowing what I know now would definitely purchase this option.

* The 20" 10-Parallel-Spoke Wheels with Summer Tires was again an option that I would not have ordered but must admit the wheels look great and the car ride is still quite smooth. I think when the time comes to replace the tires I will buy all weather tires rather than summer tires as I think they will be smoother than the summer tires and also handle better in the snow which I rarely drive in anyway. I am neutral on this option, happy that I have it but probably would not purchase it if I was ordering the car.

* The LED Headlights W/O Range Adjustment was an option that was on my must have list not because I thought they would provide better lighting than that of the standard headlights but because I thought they significantly enhanced the look of the car which in my opinion, they do! As my son said when he saw the car, the lights give the drivers in front of me the "get out of my way, here I come" message. I am not unhappy with this option and would definitely buy them again.

* The Dual-Paned Security Glass was already on the car and since I cannot compare it to a car without it cannot comment one way or another. The car is quite quiet inside so perhaps it does help and for those outside of the car it probably also makes a difference as I blast my music! I don’t know what I would do regarding this option if I was to order the car but it was only a $600.00 option so not a deal breaker either way. It would be interesting to drive an A8L without it and then my car just to see if indeed there is a noticeable difference.

* The Rear Seat Comfort Package is again not something I was going to buy as $3,200.00 seemed high for an option I would never enjoy virtually always being in the drivers’ seat. Now that I have it I would not go without it. Like the LED headlights that enhance the look of the exterior, this feature most definitely enhances the look of the interior and every single person who has ridden in the back seat has commented how comfortable they are using the reclining seats and have told me they feel like they are in a limo! Like I mentioned, I would most definitely now buy this option.

* The Premium Package appears to be on every A8L I looked at so in reality I don't think it is an option but simply a way to charge $2,000.00 more for the car. Nevertheless the 22 way seats are quite comfortable and the massage feature is quite nice. Come to think of it my back is a little sore right now so after I finish my one month review I think I will go sit in the car for a massage. I would buy this feature without question as it does make the driving experience quite nice along with the passenger in the front seat also being able to enjoy the same feature.

* The Driver Assist Package was on my must have list and will always be. This is the most incredible feature and one I use every single day. The adaptive cruise control practically allows one to drive the car itself and the lane assist and side warning systems work flawlessly. It is so nice to be able to have the side mirror light up when someone is in your blind spot and in addition to making the car much safer, it makes it much easier to drive knowing that you are not going to inadvertently cut someone off. I strongly recommend this option and would obviously buy it again.

* As you can probably tell by reading this post assuming you have read to this point, I love this car and am so happy with my decision. I never considered the A8 as I wanted the longer car and like the other options I outlined would not pass on this one either. Perhaps my only complaint about the vehicle is that the trunk is on the smaller side some 2 cubic feet smaller than my wife's A6 but my golf clubs do fit in the trunk which is my number one piece of cargo.

Hope my comments help those of you who are considering the car. I am now off for a ride in the car and that massage I referenced above!

pk2200

Thanks for posting this! I'm close to pulling the trigger on an A8, and really appreciate hearing from current owners.

B6S4

Congrats and good choice on the A8 as the S550 will be replaced next year by an all new model. Hope your wife is happy with the A6 as the all-new 2012s have just arrived, and they are a big improvement! Just don't tell the wife...

scottphillip

Great review of the options. Hope you are still enjoying the car.

GR8-LIFE

Nice review. Trunk space wouldnt bother me. D-assist I would also do without for the money. When I had my a4 prestige, I had the d-assist and I really didnt think it was worth it but it came with the Prestige model. The B/O sound system is amust have. I had it the A4, now the S4 and I heard its even 10 times better in the A8. I am a huge audio buff. Its a must have.

LED lights are the signature of AUDI, another must have. Rear comfort pkg I would have to think about. I think it may atleast make the car look that much sweeter if its the pkg I am thinking of

As far as other cars go, I will say that even todays merc S550 isnt all that great of a car. It weighs a ton and nose dives like it. In fact, I just drove a 2009 AMG and although I would take the S63 over the S550 in a heratbeat, the S63 still lacks personality compared to the A8 and the S63 AMG is a huge gas guzzler as well

I own a 2009 Lexus LS460 and a 2011 S4. I have been driving a few different cars lately because my feeling is that although I love the quality and reliability of my Lexus (my 3rd one) the fact is Lexus has also fallen off the map regarding interior design. And we know they are not performance cars. At one point, Lexus was light years on design - ahead. WTF has happened to them?

I'm not necessarily looking at great performance in a Lux car but the A8's inner styling is exquisite and it just so happens that I will get performance too. But I admit, I am concerned about reliability. Nobody beats Lexus. That's just the way it is

Aside from German reliability concerns, my other concern is jumping on an A8 now when the S8 is around the corner with a Twin Turbo engine. The S8 would perform like the S63 AMG, get much better gas mileage and would have the A8 interior,

I was given an amazing price well below invoice on an A8. I cant help think that there is a very good reason for such a price cut on an A8, with the S8 being one reason and the possibility that the future A8 will get the same S8 engine, an FI direction that AUDI has been going with all their models for the past 2 years.
Only the R8 I think will have an N/A engine. So although the offer on an A8 is a stunning one, there is too much going on and I think I need to wait