...buy the car and drive it at night. WOW!!! Saw a shiny new black A8L tonight sitting on 1st Avenue in Manhattan with it's lights on. Dramatically stunning and absolutely BEAUTIFUL---those rear tail lights with the tube illumination are incredible, and we already know about the front LEDs :^)

Too bad I was in a cab and couldn't stop to gawk.

Yes, like most dramatic cars, it looks good in various conditions - nighttime (with the 'ruby inside ambient lights on full); heavy snow w/ all fogs & brights - what an oncoming apparition it is; and just after sunrise 125mph on a two lane just South of the Grand Canyon North rim access (Arizona 89A)- 2 fingers on top of the wheel and not a drop of coffee spilled - these past 2 months have been nice. That showroom on Park Ave. - the Oolong L we saw in early Dec. was moving just sitting there (we are back there next week and heard they will have a newer model/different color on the floor). Update - the front seat replacement (the one hand carried by 3 techs from Ingolstadt) has now malfunctioning massage - no movement, just loud noise like a kid's radio control car bumping against the wall. I am no longer a smug 'early adopter' - like others, perhaps should have waited 2-3 production seasons for the electrical gremlins to get sorted out, e.g. radio presets on the 1-6 finger pad don't retain memory, etc. Love it otherwise.

They'll sort out the seat and pre-set memory problems. I have to believe that Audi corporate has a lot riding on the new A8, and all issues will be taken quite seriously---obviously the fact that they sent 3 techs over to replace your seat says a lot...unfortunately, however, not saying much for the interim result. "Courage La Plume!"

Anyway, glad to hear that despite these issues, you still love the car.

I agree, they'll fix the seat. I found that being calm about it and understanding (only to a point) seems to work in these situations. I really hope it's resolved soon for you.

I went to the driving event today organised by my dealer and Audi UK. They had a very tasty R8 GT, but not to drive. A bit out of my price category, but still an awesome piece of kit.

I then had a professional driver drive me around a small handling track in the 4.2 TDI. It was amazing, he put it in sport and left all the driver aids on. He was literally throwing the car left, right, up, down, I just couldn't stop laughing as it was so much fun. He pushed it to the max, the car and driver were both in control all the time.

The poor front left tyre (19 inch "Y" spoke wheels) was wrecked after an hour of him doing taxi rides :-) Even the brakes started to fade and smoke was coming out of them when he stopped.

There was also a chance to speak to someone in the know about the A7, looks like there's been discussions with Audi AG engineers and the UK will get the 3rd seat belt in the back from week 22 onwards. Hopefully, that'll mean global availability.

I did try and probe about the S8, but he said there was nothing he could say at the moment, I'll try harder next time to get an answer!

All in all, a fun afternoon out, I even had the chance to drive the 4.2 TDI LWB, one of the first few in the UK.

Hey Jet-

Now that sounded like FUN! Good thing you didn't drive the course with your own A8---wouldn't want to rely on Audi springing for a new left tire (aka tyre) for your car ;^)

BTW, I know you have the 20" rims with Summer rubber, so how did the 19" tires (all-seasons I assume)perform in comparison?

I must agree with derfA8L on this one. Although my preference still lies in the pre-facelift D3, once you see a clean D4 on the road, it changes the way you feel about the car. I can whole-heartedly say that the interior is hands-down one of the nicest I've ever seen but the exterior really does grow on you.

I'd say the 19's have a lot more give in them, that's something I didn't like when I had a demonstrator for a week. But there were also 4 people in the car, so weight played a huge part in the stability. With the pro-driver, it was a better choice, the 20's would have made the car more nervous (and a lot more fun I'd like to think).

I do admit that when I left the circuit, I did drive in a more spirited fashion, but as the roads were quite narrow, I didn't want to end up in a hedge so calmed down after a few minutes.

I'll take the spelling of tyre under advisment haha