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Introduction
Audi A8L -- 2005 Review: No matter what your station in life, the ultra-stylish 2005 Audi A8L is the kind of car that's liable to make you feel in need of a better wardrobe.
Like a custom-made suit from one of the shops along London's Saville Row, the A8L manages to turn heads without resorting to the kind of trendy styling that inevitably winds up looking painfully dated after a few short years. And, just as with the work of a master tailor, the essence of the A8L's appeal is the way your appreciation of it continues to grow over time.
An Expanded Line-Up
Originally launched in June 2003, the Audi A8L has already done its engineers and designers proud. The über-sedan has garnered a host of awards in the 18 months since its introduction, including being named one of the "Top 10 Cars for CEOs" from the editors of Chief Executive magazine.
For 2005, the familiar long-wheelbase Audi A8L 4.2 is joined at the top of the German automaker's line-up by two new models. Its A8 little brother rides on a platform that's been shortened by just over five inches, while its uptown cousin the A8L 6.0 gets an insanely potent 450-horsepower W12 engine. After a week with a V8-powered A8L 4.2 test car, which shares much of its hardware with the two new models, we came away convinced that the original is still the best.
Classic Styling
The key to the Audi A8L's visual appeal lies with its long wheelbase and the one-third/two-thirds proportion of glass to sheet metal that combine to give the car the look of a low-key limo. Where similar attempts from other automakers have come off looking dull and slab-sided, the Audi styling team has managed to infuse the A8L's rounded form with enough significant details-including muscular fender bulges and huge optional 12-spoke 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels-to give it a dynamic profile that inevitably has passersby swiveling their heads for a second look.
If the car's styling has a weak spot, it's in the rather plain rear view. Overall, however, the body's visual strength from other perspectives makes this bland parting shot much easier to take.
Elegant Interior
That same fine balance of richness and restraint that characterizes the exterior carries over to the Audi A8L's passenger cabin. Like a four-wheeled private jet, this big sedan's blend of comfort, style, and sophistication make it the kind of car that will have driving aficionados looking for excuses to head for the horizon.
As you'd expect, most every interior surface is covered in leather or highly polished wood, with suede-like Alcantara or aluminum-look accents. Where plastics are used, they are of the highest quality and soft to the touch. The A8L's front seats provide all-day comfort and just the right amount of side bolstering. The car's standard 16-way power-adjustable front seats and tilt-telescope steering column make it easy for drivers of different sizes to get comfortable. And once you've found that personally perfect driving position, four memory presets take the aggravation out of swapping cars with family members.
The front buckets also offer plenty of head, shoulder, and legroom, even for the circumferentially-blessed or vertically-gifted. In the expansive back seat, you'll find leg room in NBA-star proportions.
Standard lighted vanity mirrors, side- and rear-window sunshades, and an optional four-zone automatic climate control system that allows each outboard occupant to set their own ideal temperature and air flow round out the major back seat amenities. If the Audi A8L weren't so pleasurable to drive, we suspect many owners would find themselves looking for opportunities to ride in back.
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