2024 Audi A8

For 2024 the US A8 is offered in a single long-wheelbase trim, the A8 L 55 TFSI quattro, using the 3.0L turbo V6 with 48V mild-hybrid assist at 335 hp @ 5,000 rpm — unchanged from the 2022 facelift.

The 3.0L TFSI V6 with 48V MHEV delivers 369 lb-ft from just 1,370 rpm, a strong flat curve that carries the 4,762-lb long-wheelbase body without strain.

Audi's claimed 0–60 for the North American long-wheelbase A8 L 55 TFSI quattro is 5.6 seconds; independent instrumented tests land at 5.4–5.5 s, so the manufacturer figure is the conservative end of a tight cluster.

The 3.0 TFSI's defining trait is hush: the 48V belt-alternator-starter makes stop/start and low-speed creep nearly imperceptible and reviewers single out the engine's smoothness, but there is no urgency reserve above the mid-range — it is refined rather than muscular for a flagship.

The ZF-derived 8-speed tiptronic is imperceptible in cruising and part-throttle use, but reviewers consistently flag lazy kickdown when a quick pass is asked for — enough to keep it below the class benchmark despite otherwise polished calibration.

quattro all-wheel drive is standard — the only 2024 A8 configuration sold in the US is the L 55 TFSI quattro — backed by torque vectoring, and the range's S8 adds a sport rear differential. There is no FWD or RWD A8 to dilute the rating.

The 2024 US A8 is a one-engine proposition — the 335-hp 3.0T V6 mild hybrid in a single L trim — with the 563-hp S8 as the family's only alternative. The V8-powered A8 60 TFSI and the A8 L 60 TFSI e plug-in hybrid were both dropped from the US lineup after 2021, and no EV A8 exists; the e-tron GT covers Audi's luxury electric sedan slot separately.

EPA combined rating for the 2024 A8 quattro, the model's only US configuration — 22 MPG from a 4,762-lb full-size luxury sedan with a 3.0L turbo V6 and 48V mild hybrid.

EPA city rating of 19 MPG sits below the gas-sedan normalization floor; the 48V mild hybrid smooths stop/start but cannot move the car on electricity alone.

EPA highway rating of 28 MPG — the A8's strongest economy figure, helped by tall 8th-gear cruising and cylinder-on-demand, though still near the bottom of the gas-sedan band.

A large 21.7-gallon tank offsets the modest economy, giving roughly 477 miles between fills — mid-pack for the segment and comfortably enough for a long touring leg.

EPA's annual fuel cost estimate at 15,000 mi/yr — 22 MPG combined on required premium is an expensive combination, landing below the bottom of the gas-sedan cost band.

The turbocharged 3.0 TFSI takes premium unleaded — EPA classifies the car's fuel as 'Premium' and Audi specifies a 91 AKI minimum for rated output. There is no flex-fuel, diesel or plug-in variant in the 2024 US lineup, so no cheaper energy path exists.

NHTSA lists the 2024 A8 LWB in its database but has never crash-tested it: every frontal, side, pole and rollover sub-rating returns "Not Rated". Per the framework definition of this item, 0 is the value for a vehicle never rated by NHTSA — it is a sentinel for absent data, not a zero-star crash result. Large German luxury flagships routinely go untested, and the same is true of the 7 Series and S-Class.

IIHS has never published a single crashworthiness result for the D5 A8 — no small overlap, moderate overlap, side, roof strength or head restraint rating exists, and the A8 appears on no Top Safety Pick list in any year of the generation. There are no adverse findings either, so this is an absence of verification rather than evidence of weakness, but a buyer gets zero independent crashworthiness data on a $90k car.

Standard equipment covers the passive-warning half of the suite — Audi pre sense AEB with forward collision warning, lane departure warning, automatic high beams, surround-view camera and front/rear parking sensors — but adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring and lane centering are all locked inside the $3,650 Executive Package. That is squarely the "key items (BSM, ACC) optional" band, and it is worse than it looks on a car sold in a single trim: there is no higher trim that includes them, so every buyer who wants ACC or BSM pays the option price on a $89,995 flagship.

Audi pre sense front — radar-and-camera AEB with pedestrian detection — is standard, and the same generation of the system earned IIHS Superior for daytime pedestrian front crash prevention when tested on other Audi models. But IIHS has never run front crash prevention on the A8 itself, so nothing about this car's braking is independently verified, and neither the nighttime pedestrian nor the updated vehicle-to-vehicle evaluation exists for it. Scored on adequate-but-unverified rather than on a documented Superior result.

Audi side assist is alert-only — a mirror-mounted LED with no steering intervention — and on the 2024 A8 it is not standard at any price point: it comes only with the $3,650 Executive Package, which does at least bundle genuinely active reverse automatic braking alongside front cross-traffic alert. Coverage is therefore decent when optioned and absent when not, on a car with no trim ladder to climb.

Lane departure warning is standard, but true lane centering arrives only as part of adaptive cruise assist inside the Executive Package. When fitted, Audi active lane assist is a polished hands-on system that reviewers rate as smooth on well-marked highways, though a step behind BMW's centering confidence and prone to handing back control on faded markings. Held mid-band because the capable half of the feature is optional.

The system itself is among the better hands-on highway assists in the segment: adaptive cruise assist combines full-speed-range stop-and-go ACC with lane centering and predictive, navigation-linked speed adaptation for curves and posted limits, and reviewers consistently praise the calibration's smoothness. It sits just below the top band because it is an extra-cost option rather than fitted equipment, so the refined behavior described is not what a base 2024 A8 actually does.

There is no hands-free highway driving on the 2024 A8 at any price — no counterpart to BMW Highway Assistant, GM Super Cruise, Ford BlueCruise, Mercedes Drive Pilot or Tesla FSD Supervised. Every A8 driver-assistance feature is a hands-on, driver-monitored assist. The Level 3 Traffic Jam Pilot Audi originally developed on this very D5 platform was abandoned before activation and never reached customers in any market.

The hardware is Audi's HD Matrix-design LED, but the adaptive driving beam that makes it special is not enabled on North American cars — US A8s ship with the matrix functions disabled, leaving conventional LED low/high beams plus simple on-off automatic high-beam assist. Audi's ADB does not reach the US until the 2027 Q9. Combined with the absence of any IIHS headlight rating for the A8, there is neither the feature nor the verification to justify a high score, though the base LED lighting is competent and auto high beams are standard.

Natural sightlines are ordinary for a long-wheelbase full-size sedan — a high rising beltline, thick C/D-pillars and a shallow backlight pinch the over-shoulder and rearward view, and the car's length makes placement harder in tight spaces. Electronic compensation is the saving grace and is unusually complete for a base configuration: the surround-view 360° camera and front-and-rear parking sensors are standard rather than optional, which is where most of this score comes from.

Space is the A8 L's strength here — 44.3 inches of rear legroom and wide long-wheelbase rear door openings make a rear-facing seat easy to load and leave room behind it for a tall driver, well beyond what a mid-size sedan offers. What holds it below the top band is hardware and configuration rather than room: LATCH is limited to the two outboard positions with anchors buried in the leather seat bight, IIHS has published no LATCH ease-of-use rating for the A8, and the optional rear-seat comfort configuration deletes the center seat entirely for a console, dropping the car to two rear positions.

The five-seat A8 L is the only US body; the rear-seat comfort packages cut it to four.

Front headroom is middling for a full-size sedan because the panoramic sunroof comes standard.

Front legroom is surprisingly ordinary for a flagship.

Rear headroom is generous thanks to the long-wheelbase roofline.

The 123-in-wheelbase L gives limousine-grade rear legroom.

The trunk is small for the class, partly because the 48V mild-hybrid hardware eats into it.

A cooled glovebox, wireless charging and decent door pockets give competitive storage, but the 8.6-in lower MMI screen takes the console space a tray might have had, and nothing stands out.

Standard 22-way heated and ventilated front seats and a sprawling rear bench make long stints easy; massage and rear reclining/footrest seating are optional.

The standard adaptive air suspension on 19-inch wheels is plush and controlled; the optional 20s and 21s bring some impact harshness.

Acoustic glass and a very well isolated body make it one of the quietest cars Audi builds.

Four-zone climate, ventilated front seats and a panoramic roof are standard, but the heated steering wheel needs the $3,650 Executive package and heated rear seats need the $4,100 Comfort Plus package.

The 2024 A8 was sold in a single US configuration — A8 L 55 TFSI quattro — so base and entry trim are the same car; Audi raised the sticker from $88,900 to $90,900 during the model year, so the as-new figure most commonly quoted is $91,995 with destination. Far above the $55,000 sedan band ceiling, hence a floor score.

With only one trim, the representative build is the A8 L 55 TFSI plus the Executive Package, which is effectively mandatory because it is the only way to get adaptive cruise with lane centering and blind-spot monitoring. Well above the $58,000 sedan band ceiling.

Edmunds publishes a model-year-specific 5-year projection for this exact configuration, and maintenance plus repairs together land above the $9,000 sedan band ceiling — air suspension, all-wheel steering and dense electronics are expensive once the 4-year/50,000-mile warranty lapses at roughly year four of the five.

Two independent sources converge near 37%: iSeeCars measures 62.6% five-year depreciation on the A8 L, and Edmunds' 2024-specific projection leaves a residual of roughly $33,700 against a $91,995 MSRP (≈36.6%). Near the floor of the 35–65% sedan band, and worse than the luxury-large-car average.

Standard Audi New Vehicle Limited Warranty — level with BMW and Mercedes-Benz but well short of Genesis' 5-yr/60,000-mi coverage in the same segment.

Unlike most of the industry, Audi publishes no dedicated longer powertrain warranty; the 3.0T V6 and quattro drivetrain are covered for the same 4 years/50,000 miles as the rest of the car, below the 5-year floor of the sedan band.

No included scheduled maintenance at all — Audi Care is a prepaid add-on capped at 5 years/57,000 miles — so a $92,000 flagship's owner pays for every service from the first one. The perk stack is 4 years of 24-Hour Roadside Assistance plus, new for 2024, only a 6-month Audi connect PLUS trial (streaming, advanced navigation, remote), shorter than the multi-year trials rivals bundle.

$95,645 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (37% retained, or about $35,389) leaves about $60,256 in depreciation. Add the projected $9,620 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $69,876 in total.

Consumer Reports' 2024 A8 rating is an about-average prediction built from Audi brand data, not from a large A8 sample. J.D. Power's 2024 studies put Audi near the bottom. Together these mixed signals land in the lower half of the average band.

Audi finished second to last in the 2024 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study, behind even Land Rover. It also sits in the lower-middle of Consumer Reports' brand ranking. That is a bottom-third standing in the dependability studies.

Two NHTSA campaigns cover MY2024. One is a front-passenger occupant-classification sensor fault, a safety-system issue that can affect airbag deployment. The other is a fleet-wide rearview-camera software fix. D5-generation recalls (16 in total) cluster in the 2017–2021 builds and are mostly electrical or software, with no powertrain or fire campaigns.

The volume A8 55 TFSI quattro uses the mature EA839 3.0L turbo V6 and the 8-speed Tiptronic (ZF 8HP family). Both are widely deployed and have solid track records. Owner complaints about the 48-volt mild-hybrid system on Audi's MLB-evo models keep it below the proven-family tier.

Reviewers rank the A8 cabin among the best in the full-size luxury class. It has Valcona leather, real wood and aluminum trim, extensive soft-touch surfaces and precise switchgear. The haptic touchscreens give up some tactile feel.

The aluminum-intensive body built at Neckarsulm is tightly assembled, and reviewers rarely report rattles or panel problems. Audi's weak brand-level quality results, driven largely by electronics complaints, pull the score down from the top tier.

Audi has roughly 290–300 US dealers. That covers the country adequately but is thinner than Mercedes-Benz or Lexus outside metro areas, and service satisfaction is mid-pack among luxury brands.

Out-of-warranty A8 repairs are expensive. Air suspension, MMI displays, matrix lighting and driver-assist sensors are dealer-sourced and take many labor hours. Being a low-volume flagship, it also has little aftermarket support.

The dual-screen MMI's main display is modest by flagship standards.

The haptic dual screens look slick and respond quickly, but putting climate controls on a touchscreen and demanding eyes-off-road taps draw criticism, and the interface is showing its 2018 roots.

Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on the car's only trim.

MMI navigation plus with natural-language voice and online search is standard and competent, though it trails Mercedes MBUX.

A 17-speaker Bang & Olufsen 3D system is standard and the 23-speaker B&O Advanced system is optional, so the audio is excellent at either level.

The 12.3-inch Virtual Cockpit Plus is standard, crisp and highly configurable.

The MLB-evo/MIB3 A8 gets map and some infotainment updates over the air, but not the feature-adding whole-vehicle OTA of newer E3 Audis.

The myAudi app handles lock/unlock, locate and status, but remote functions depend on an Audi connect subscription after the trial.

Wireless charging and four USB ports (USB-C) are standard; there is no household AC outlet.

Advanced key (proximity entry and push-button start) and a power trunk are standard; there is no phone-as-key for the D5.

A 360-degree camera and parking sensors are standard; the Executive package adds automated parking with remote activation from outside the car.

A HUD is available, but only in the $4,100 Comfort Plus package, which itself requires the $3,650 Executive package — unusual at this price.

The long rear doors, 44.3 inches of rear legroom and two full LATCH sets make car seats easy, but the small trunk and fixed rear seatback cramp stroller-and-gear logistics.

Automatic emergency braking and a 360-degree camera are standard, but there are no NHTSA or IIHS ratings, and blind-spot and cross-traffic alerts cost $3,650 extra.

Four-zone climate, a limousine-grade back seat, air suspension and a quiet cabin make long trips easy, but the 12.5 cu ft trunk limits a family of four's luggage, and heated rear seats are optional.

It is smooth and quiet in traffic, but the brakes are grabby in stop-and-go, the transmission is slow to downshift, and adaptive cruise is an option.

At 22 MPG combined on premium fuel, it is expensive to commute in even for the class.

At 208.7 inches long with a roughly 42-foot turning circle, it is unwieldy in cities; the standard 360-degree camera and optional remote parking help.

There is no US tow rating, the trunk is small and the rear seat does not fold; it is not a work vehicle.

The luxury cabin and costly air suspension are poorly suited to hard use.

There are no work provisions: no hitch, no AC outlet, no roof-rack points from the factory.

It is a superb highway cruiser with about 477 miles of range, but lane-centering adaptive cruise is in an option package and there is no hands-free mode.

Standard quattro AWD and a raisable air suspension handle gravel and snow, but with no tow rating and no roof rails it is pavement-oriented.

The 12.5 cu ft trunk has only a ski pass-through, with no folding rear seat, roof rails or hitch.

It is secure with quattro AWD and air suspension, but Edmunds calls it 'a bit numb and clumsy' where you wouldn't expect it; composed rather than engaging.

The steering is light but precise, with little feedback.

The A8 stops well in panic tests, but the pedal is grabby in traffic.

The 48V mild-hybrid V6 is silky and responsive, but the 8-speed is slow to kick down.

The V6 is hushed and vibration-free in normal driving.

The long-wheelbase body gives it a big turning circle; all-wheel steering cuts it by about 1 m on cars equipped with it.

22-way seats and a good view out give an excellent driving position; touch-only climate controls are the main ergonomic demerit.

It is effortless and quick, but tuned for isolation; the S8 is the driver's A8.

Comfort content at base is genuinely lavish — adaptive air suspension, 22-way heated and ventilated front seats, quad-zone climate, panoramic moonroof, leather, 17-speaker Bang & Olufsen, dual-touchscreen MMI and Virtual Cockpit. The gap is driver assistance: adaptive cruise with lane centering, blind-spot monitoring, front cross-traffic alert, reverse automatic braking and traffic-sign recognition all require the $3,650 Executive Package, which on a ~$92,000 flagship is a real omission when S-Class and 7 Series include most of it and a Genesis G90 bundles far more for less money.

At $91,995 to start and $95,000–$105,000 as people actually buy them, the A8 L is fair value rather than a bargain: a fully loaded Genesis G90 undercuts it with more standard content, and the 335-hp V6 delivers modest performance-per-dollar for the segment (5.6 sec to 60 mph) alongside subpar economy for a luxury large sedan. The craftsmanship and refinement are worth real money, but nothing here is a value standout.

One trim, one body, one powertrain: the A8 L 55 TFSI quattro in long wheelbase only. The 4.0T V8 (60 TFSI) is gone from the A8 for 2024, leaving it to the separately-sold S8, and there is no short-wheelbase car, no TFSI e plug-in hybrid and no diesel in the US. Configuration choice is reduced to four wheel designs and four packages — thinner than an S-Class (ICE, PHEV, Maybach, AMG) or a 7 Series with its i7 EV sibling.

Calendar 2024 was the A8's collapse in the US — 1,628 units, down 28% year over year, in a segment where the BMW 7 Series took 10,714 and the S-Class 8,809 even while itself falling 25%. Being outsold five to one by the S-Class and six to one by the 7 Series puts the A8 at the bottom of an already-shrinking segment.

Audi is a strong, design-led premium brand in the US with real tech and quattro equity, and the A8 is its halo sedan. But in the flagship conversation specifically it lacks the outright status signal of an S-Class or the presence of the current 7 Series, and by 2024 the A8's low visibility on the road blunts the halo.

For a buyer, this is the A8's strongest card: slow-moving inventory produced some of Audi's largest discounts of the year, with documented $10,000–$15,000 lease credits on the 2024 A8 L 55 alongside subvented Audi Financial APRs. Heavy money on the hood signals weak demand, but the item scores the buyer benefit, and it is substantial.

Squarely mid-cycle: the D5 generation launched for MY2019 in the US and took its facelift for MY2022, so 2024 is two years past the refresh on a five-year-old platform. Replacement risk is unusually low for a car this far along — the electric Grandsphere-based successor slipped from 2024 to 2027 or later and Audi committed to a second A8 facelift instead — but the cabin tech generation (dual-touchscreen MMI) already trailed MBUX and iDrive 8.

Reviewers respect it without picking it: US News ranks the 2024 A8 sixth among luxury large cars at 8.5/10, The Car Connection gives 6.6/10, and Consumer Reports calls it one of the most impressive cars it has tested — yet Edmunds' summary that the A8 "winds up feeling only like a bigger Audi instead of a special one" is the recurring verdict, and it took no 10Best, NACTOY or Wards Interiors recognition for 2024 (the 2024 Wards 10 Best Interiors list contained no cars at all).