Some initial impressions
11-03-2018, 02:41 PM
#11
AudiWorld Super User
Picking up my Q8 tomorrow. Took it for an extended drive today. A few observations on the new tech...
1) Apple Car Play is wireless - worked like a charm and a much more pleasant experience with a touch screen
2) The nav system has some subtle but noteworthy updates...exit numbers are shown on the screen. Street name is shown in the HUD (when navigating)
3) Sound system is very good - at least to my ear
4) Compared with my S5 and Q7, it will take some getting used to having the main MMI screen located in the middle of the dash. Not a problem, but just instinctively looking elsewhere for a moment.
5) There's a section in the lower center screen for favourites. Was very happy to see that if you had the favourites tab open, then when you leave the car and return, the favourites tab persists - it doesn't need to reopened each time.
6) The heated steering wheel is now activated via the MMI screens vs. a button on the steering wheel.
7) The new touch screen works nicely. Requires a firm touch. Haptic feedback is what you would expect.
8) The electric rear sunshades are quite nice. Will need to teach the kids how to operate. Not sure if they can be activated from the front seat - will find out tomorrow.
9) Fit and finish is outstanding - the stitching on the seats and the dash give it a nice contrast.
10) The voice response system seems much better. No more waiting for the annoying prompt that would cut you off mid-request, then have the car attempt to decipher half a request for 20 seconds, to then have to start all over. I was able to speak fairly immediately and have the system operate as expected (similar to Google Home or Amazon Echo).
11) Ride on the 21" wheels was good. Car feels very powerful. Quieter than my S5, but to be expected. I don't feel any loss in power/acceleration compared with the S5 (in sport mode) but I know the numbers would tell me otherwise. Real feel impressions are that it's very good.
More to come...the tech and menus although familiar do take some getting used to.
1) Apple Car Play is wireless - worked like a charm and a much more pleasant experience with a touch screen
2) The nav system has some subtle but noteworthy updates...exit numbers are shown on the screen. Street name is shown in the HUD (when navigating)
3) Sound system is very good - at least to my ear
4) Compared with my S5 and Q7, it will take some getting used to having the main MMI screen located in the middle of the dash. Not a problem, but just instinctively looking elsewhere for a moment.
5) There's a section in the lower center screen for favourites. Was very happy to see that if you had the favourites tab open, then when you leave the car and return, the favourites tab persists - it doesn't need to reopened each time.
6) The heated steering wheel is now activated via the MMI screens vs. a button on the steering wheel.
7) The new touch screen works nicely. Requires a firm touch. Haptic feedback is what you would expect.
8) The electric rear sunshades are quite nice. Will need to teach the kids how to operate. Not sure if they can be activated from the front seat - will find out tomorrow.
9) Fit and finish is outstanding - the stitching on the seats and the dash give it a nice contrast.
10) The voice response system seems much better. No more waiting for the annoying prompt that would cut you off mid-request, then have the car attempt to decipher half a request for 20 seconds, to then have to start all over. I was able to speak fairly immediately and have the system operate as expected (similar to Google Home or Amazon Echo).
11) Ride on the 21" wheels was good. Car feels very powerful. Quieter than my S5, but to be expected. I don't feel any loss in power/acceleration compared with the S5 (in sport mode) but I know the numbers would tell me otherwise. Real feel impressions are that it's very good.
More to come...the tech and menus although familiar do take some getting used to.
11-05-2018, 05:09 AM
#13
Picking up my Q8 tomorrow. Took it for an extended drive today. A few observations on the new tech...
1) Apple Car Play is wireless - worked like a charm and a much more pleasant experience with a touch screen
2) The nav system has some subtle but noteworthy updates...exit numbers are shown on the screen. Street name is shown in the HUD (when navigating)
3) Sound system is very good - at least to my ear
4) Compared with my S5 and Q7, it will take some getting used to having the main MMI screen located in the middle of the dash. Not a problem, but just instinctively looking elsewhere for a moment.
5) There's a section in the lower center screen for favourites. Was very happy to see that if you had the favourites tab open, then when you leave the car and return, the favourites tab persists - it doesn't need to reopened each time.
6) The heated steering wheel is now activated via the MMI screens vs. a button on the steering wheel.
7) The new touch screen works nicely. Requires a firm touch. Haptic feedback is what you would expect.
8) The electric rear sunshades are quite nice. Will need to teach the kids how to operate. Not sure if they can be activated from the front seat - will find out tomorrow.
9) Fit and finish is outstanding - the stitching on the seats and the dash give it a nice contrast.
10) The voice response system seems much better. No more waiting for the annoying prompt that would cut you off mid-request, then have the car attempt to decipher half a request for 20 seconds, to then have to start all over. I was able to speak fairly immediately and have the system operate as expected (similar to Google Home or Amazon Echo).
11) Ride on the 21" wheels was good. Car feels very powerful. Quieter than my S5, but to be expected. I don't feel any loss in power/acceleration compared with the S5 (in sport mode) but I know the numbers would tell me otherwise. Real feel impressions are that it's very good.
More to come...the tech and menus although familiar do take some getting used to.
1) Apple Car Play is wireless - worked like a charm and a much more pleasant experience with a touch screen
2) The nav system has some subtle but noteworthy updates...exit numbers are shown on the screen. Street name is shown in the HUD (when navigating)
3) Sound system is very good - at least to my ear
4) Compared with my S5 and Q7, it will take some getting used to having the main MMI screen located in the middle of the dash. Not a problem, but just instinctively looking elsewhere for a moment.
5) There's a section in the lower center screen for favourites. Was very happy to see that if you had the favourites tab open, then when you leave the car and return, the favourites tab persists - it doesn't need to reopened each time.
6) The heated steering wheel is now activated via the MMI screens vs. a button on the steering wheel.
7) The new touch screen works nicely. Requires a firm touch. Haptic feedback is what you would expect.
8) The electric rear sunshades are quite nice. Will need to teach the kids how to operate. Not sure if they can be activated from the front seat - will find out tomorrow.
9) Fit and finish is outstanding - the stitching on the seats and the dash give it a nice contrast.
10) The voice response system seems much better. No more waiting for the annoying prompt that would cut you off mid-request, then have the car attempt to decipher half a request for 20 seconds, to then have to start all over. I was able to speak fairly immediately and have the system operate as expected (similar to Google Home or Amazon Echo).
11) Ride on the 21" wheels was good. Car feels very powerful. Quieter than my S5, but to be expected. I don't feel any loss in power/acceleration compared with the S5 (in sport mode) but I know the numbers would tell me otherwise. Real feel impressions are that it's very good.
More to come...the tech and menus although familiar do take some getting used to.
11-05-2018, 05:11 AM
#14
How are you finding the Q8 lane centering driver assistance feature. I just read that it doesn't work very well in a review, but they didn't explain why.
Last edited by rjabend; 11-05-2018 at 02:58 PM.
11-09-2018, 05:13 AM
#17
Yes. And, I drove the Q8 on the Interstate with some curves and it tracked better than my 2018 S4. It is as if the sensors and software are a notch better in terms of their actions and reactions -- much smoother.
11-09-2018, 05:19 AM
#18
Thanks. I have come to learn that lane centering is more precise without wandering on black roads with bright white lane markings. I believe you are correct on the improvement though over past modules.
11-11-2018, 02:38 PM
#19
Audiworld Junior Member
Join Date: Sep 2018
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I was finally able to drive a Q8 this week and came away very impressed! Still need to drive a G05 X5 with the air suspension and the upcoming GLE450 before making up my mind.
11-11-2018, 04:54 PM
#20
AudiWorld Member
Thread Starter
A couple of more observations after 11 days with the car...
1) Looks like you can pause and pick up where you left off on SiriusXM radio. Similar to a DVR. Haven't seen this on other Audi's...it could be there, but I couldn't find it on my Q7.
2) One thing I'm still getting used to - when you lock/unlock the car, there's no sound of the doors locking/unlocking (you can still get the beep). But it was a bit disconcerting being unsure as to whether the car is locked or not. It is but you don't hear the "thump" of the locks engaging or disengaging.
3) Not sure how I feel about wireless Apple CarPlay. On the one hand, it's very convenient...on the other hand, when I've set a radio station and then music from my phone starts playing after a short delay, it can be a bit of a pain. The other thing it does is disable any phone shortcuts you may have set in the favorites screen. I'm not a full time CarPlay person, especially with the 6 month Audi Connect trial.
4) There's a screen cleaning selection within the MMI settings which is useful to turn off the screen to keep it clean (and it will get dirty, quickly). The car came with a nice cleaning cloth, which does a good job on its own (no spray needed) wiping down fingerprints.
1) Looks like you can pause and pick up where you left off on SiriusXM radio. Similar to a DVR. Haven't seen this on other Audi's...it could be there, but I couldn't find it on my Q7.
2) One thing I'm still getting used to - when you lock/unlock the car, there's no sound of the doors locking/unlocking (you can still get the beep). But it was a bit disconcerting being unsure as to whether the car is locked or not. It is but you don't hear the "thump" of the locks engaging or disengaging.
3) Not sure how I feel about wireless Apple CarPlay. On the one hand, it's very convenient...on the other hand, when I've set a radio station and then music from my phone starts playing after a short delay, it can be a bit of a pain. The other thing it does is disable any phone shortcuts you may have set in the favorites screen. I'm not a full time CarPlay person, especially with the 6 month Audi Connect trial.
4) There's a screen cleaning selection within the MMI settings which is useful to turn off the screen to keep it clean (and it will get dirty, quickly). The car came with a nice cleaning cloth, which does a good job on its own (no spray needed) wiping down fingerprints.