Come on, even Chrysler minivans have auto closing/opening hatches as well as sliding doors. Nothing new.

even a Lincoln Town Car has that feature.

Oh yes. Auto, Motor und Sport seems to have the best drivers in Germany when it comes to their TV show. Most "journalist" couldn't even come close to that level of driving skill on roads like those.

M

Im looking forward to read following test - The ultimate V10 battle, Audi S8 vs Lamborghini Gallardo vs BMW M5 vs Viper SRT-10

Maybe I'm missing something here, but I don't think the point about the trunk hinges was about how they function, whether the lid is automatic or not, but how the hinges themselves are built compared to other cars. They are exquisite in detail and overbuilt to make a quality/craftsmanship statement. None of the other vehicles being mentioned here even come close in regarding the construction of their trunk hinges. I know who cares long as they get the job done, but still.

Anyway, after watching that S8 video (and not understanding much of it past "Gallardo") I'm impressed. The car behaves (or was driven like) the RS4, and even sounded like an RS4 too. I'm convinced that Audi A8/S8 is Audi's best car and if it isn't the best car in the segment, it surely frames the argument as they say. The interior detail is stunning, again only matched by other VW empire members like Bentley.

M

Chances are the hinge is not even made by Audi, but rather an outsource job. I wouldn't be that surprised. As for the S8, I think that it's definitely the most exciting car in that category right now. It's a shame that BMW doesn't do something about it, because Benz has an AMG version and Audi this. Then again, I think that the S8 is the most balanced looking car. Just kind of hoped the grill wasn't as bold as this.

Chances are the hinge is not even made by Audi, but rather an outsource job. I wouldn't be that surprised.

Oh it is. Most things are nowadays. This trunk hinge was custom designed for VW/Audi by someone, I forgot the name of the company at the moment. If I'm not mistaken it is made by a bicycle maker.

I don't think BMW's strict view of what an "Motorsport" car should be will allow them to build a "M7", but we might get a sportier version of the V12 760i one day...maybe a 760is possibly.

M

Hi warot,

it seems several people are troubled by Audi's new grill; personally, I really like it, I think it helps to give Audi a stronger identity, which is vital if they intend to take the US market by storm - just wait for the next generation A8

Ah, thanks for the info. Concerning BMW, I think that they need to make a sporty version of the 7er or else they are going to lose the battle like they did with the M5 Touring, or the lack of it until now that is. Dropping the V10 in the 7er would be a nice idea, but I have no idea how it would work out.
They did that in the S8 and the end result is amazing.

Hey Roberto. The new grill for the whole range doesn't bother me much. I think it looks ok on the A4, beautiful on the A6 and A8. I don't mind the one on the Q7 either, I think it looks extremely aggressive. On the S8 however, I think I would have prefered if they didn't chrome the vertical part of the grill.

I think it takes a bit too much attention. As for the image, I totally agree with what Audi did. Now they have an obvious signature for their car and their image has skyrocketed recently.