2025 Audi A8

The US 2025 A8 is sold in one configuration — the long-wheelbase A8 L 55 TFSI quattro with a 3.0L turbo V6 and 48V mild-hybrid assist rated at 335 hp. That is modest for a full-size luxury sedan: a Genesis G90 3.5T starts at 375 hp and the S8 above it makes 563 hp, so the volume A8 sits low in its own showroom as well as its segment.

369 lb-ft on a broad low-rpm plateau is the A8's stronger half of the output pair — it carries a 4,773 lb sedan without strain in normal driving even though the horsepower figure is unremarkable.

5.6 seconds is the North American figure for the 55 TFSI — brisk but not quick by 2025 full-size luxury standards, where an EV rival like the Model S or Lucid Air is in the low-3s and the Genesis G90 3.5T undercuts it. Instrumented tests of this powertrain have run a few tenths quicker than the rated figure.

The 3.0 TFSI is smooth, quiet and effectively lag-free in normal use, and the 48V mild-hybrid system makes stop/start and coasting transitions close to imperceptible — the refinement a flagship sedan is bought for. It loses points for delivery that reviewers describe as adequate rather than effortless: the engine is asked to move nearly 4,800 lb and reviewers consistently note the A8 could use more power.

The 8-speed Tiptronic torque-converter automatic shifts smoothly and unobtrusively at a cruise, which suits the car, but it is not decisive when asked for a sudden pass. Edmunds' testing specifically faults it for slow downshifts, which keeps it out of the top band.

quattro permanent all-wheel drive is standard on every 2025 A8 and S8 — there is no front- or rear-drive version — and it is the sophisticated version of the system, with a self-locking center differential, torque vectoring and available sport differential and all-wheel steering. It falls just short of a perfect score only because a low-range transfer case and terrain modes are irrelevant to and absent from a luxury sedan.

Two gasoline powertrains remain for 2025 — the 3.0T V6 mild hybrid in the A8 and the 4.0T V8 in the S8 — with no plug-in hybrid or EV option, since the A8 60 TFSI e PHEV and the W12 were dropped from the US lineup after 2022. That is adequate coverage of mainstream needs but conspicuously narrow in a segment where the Model S, Lucid Air and the plug-in versions of the S-Class and 7 Series all offer electrified choice.

22 MPG combined on premium fuel is poor even measured against other gas sedans: a 4,773 lb aluminum-and-steel flagship with standard all-wheel drive and a turbo V6 gets no help from the 48V mild-hybrid system beyond stop/start and coasting. Hybrid full-size rivals and every EV in the class are far ahead.

20 MPG in town is where the A8's mass and permanent quattro cost the most; the mild-hybrid system's stop/start and engine-off coasting recover only a little of it.

26 MPG highway is the A8's best figure but still sits near the bottom of the sedan band, which runs to 45 MPG — the car cruises quietly rather than efficiently. It is the number that most limits the A8's long-distance running cost, since this is the use case a big luxury sedan is actually bought for.

The A8's saving grace on this category: a large 21.7-gallon tank converts mediocre economy into a genuinely useful ~477-mile range, mid-pack for a sedan and better than most EVs in the segment. The cost is $110 to fill it, per EPA at current premium prices.

$3,450 a year is the worst fuel bill of any 2025 sedan scored so far — above even the segment band's $3,200 ceiling — because 22 MPG combined and a premium-fuel requirement compound each other. EPA reckons it costs $6,250 more to fuel over five years than the average new vehicle.

The 3.0 TFSI is specified for 91-octane premium, so every gallon carries the premium price penalty and there is no regular-fuel fallback trim — the same position as the 2025 A4 and BMW 330i, which score alongside it. Scored in the low band because the requirement is costly and unavoidable, not merely a recommendation the owner can ignore without consequence.

NHTSA's SafetyRatings API returns zero results for the Audi A8 in every model year of the current D5 generation, including 2025 — the flagship has never been NCAP-tested in the US, as is typical for low-volume full-size luxury sedans. A 4.5-star inferred value matches how the catalog treats other untested flagships (BMW 7 Series, Genesis G90).

The 2025 A8 has no published crashworthiness results from any program — IIHS has never rated the D5 A8 (no small-overlap, moderate-overlap or side results), it is absent from the 2025 Top Safety Pick/TSP+ list on which seven other Audis appear, and Euro NCAP has never tested the A8 either. That is a total data void rather than a bad result: the aluminium-intensive ASF body and Audi's strong showing across the tested range (most TSP+ awards of any luxury brand for 2025) argue against known concerns, so it sits mid-band rather than in the failing band, but a buyer gets no verified crash performance for $93k.

The single 2025 A8 L 55 TFSI trim ($93,295) comes standard with Audi pre sense front (AEB with pedestrian detection), lane departure warning/active lane assist, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go, a 360-degree top-view camera, front and rear parking sensors, traffic-sign recognition, auto high beams and driver-attention monitoring. But blind-spot monitoring (Audi side assist), rear cross-traffic/pre sense rear, intersection assist and lane centering are all locked inside the $4,450 Executive Package — on a nine-figure-badge flagship, BSM as a paid option puts this squarely in the 'core features standard, key items optional' band.

Audi pre sense front is standard and fuses radar with the front camera for vehicle and pedestrian detection with autonomous braking; intersection/turn assist for oncoming traffic requires the Executive Package. IIHS has published no front-crash-prevention result for the A8 — neither vehicle-to-vehicle nor day/night pedestrian — so the hardware looks current-generation but the performance is unverified, which caps this below the tested-Superior peers.

Audi side assist (mirror-mounted blind-spot alert) and pre sense rear/rear cross-traffic are optional on the 2025 A8 — they arrive only with the $4,450 Executive Package, so a base-spec car has none of it. When fitted the coverage is competent but alert-only (no active steering intervention), with exit warning for opening doors into cyclists as part of the bundle.

Lane departure warning with active lane assist (corrective nudge) is standard, but true lane centering — adaptive cruise assist with lane guidance — is Executive Package-only. Reviewers rate Audi's centering as smooth and among the better hands-on systems when equipped, though it hands back on faded markings and lacks the assisted lane-change of BMW's Driving Assistant Professional.

Adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go is standard and well-calibrated for a big luxury sedan, but the integrated highway-assist layer (adaptive cruise assist, with predictive nav-linked speed adaptation and lane guidance) again requires the Executive Package. Fully optioned the system is one of the smoother tier-2 assists in the segment; as delivered on a base car it is capable ACC without the combined highway function.

No hands-free highway driving is offered on the 2025 A8 in the US — there is no counterpart to BMW Highway Assistant, GM Super Cruise, Ford BlueCruise or Tesla FSD Supervised. The D5 A8's much-publicised Level 3 Traffic Jam Pilot was never activated for any market, and every ADAS function on the car remains hands-on and driver-monitored.

The base 2025 A8 L runs conventional LED headlights with standard high-beam assist; HD Matrix-design LED headlights (glare-free adaptive high beam, plus headlight washers) were newly folded into the Executive Package for 2025 rather than made standard. IIHS has published no headlight rating for the A8, so the strong Matrix hardware is optional and unverified — good lighting on the upper spec, ordinary on the volume configuration.

Reviewers single out the A8's large glass area and comparatively slim roof pillars as a strength, and the standard 360-degree top-view camera with front and rear parking sensors covers the blind zones created by 209 inches of length. The rising beltline and long-wheelbase rear deck still limit over-shoulder judgement when parking, and remote park assist is optional.

The A8 L carries two complete LATCH sets in the outboard rear positions plus a top-tether anchor for the centre seat, and 44.3 inches of rear legroom with tall, wide-opening rear doors makes rear-facing installation unusually easy for a sedan. Points come off for lower anchors buried behind soft leather seat trim and for the reclining/massaging rear seats on optioned cars, which complicate a secure install.

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.

The cooled glovebox, wireless charging pad and door pockets make for competitive storage, but the second touchscreen takes up space a console tray might have had, and nothing about it stands out.

Standard 22-way heated and ventilated front seats, plus a sprawling rear bench (optional massaging and reclining rear seats), make long stints easy.

The standard adaptive air suspension is plush most of the time, but the standard 20-inch wheels (new for 2025) let sharp impacts through.

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

Four-zone climate, ventilated front seats, a newly standard heated steering wheel and a panoramic roof come on every car; heated rear seats need the Executive package.

The 2025 A8 is sold in the US in exactly one configuration — the long-wheelbase A8 L 55 TFSI quattro — so the base price and the only price are the same number. At $93,295 delivered it sits far above the $22,000–$55,000 sedan normalization band, which is why the spec scores at the floor.

There is only one A8 trim, so the volume configuration is the base car plus the package buyers actually take — the $4,450 Executive package, which for 2025 carries HD Matrix-design LED headlights, a head-up display, heated rear seats and upgraded leather. Reviewers treat it as the minimum sensible spec on a flagship, and stacking Luxury ($2,800), Black Optic ($2,600) or the 5-Passenger Comfort Rear Seat package ($3,100) pushes a car past $105,000.

CarEdge projects $3,536 in maintenance and repairs across the first five years, which is the low end because four of those years fall under warranty; RepairPal's transaction data for the A8 quattro is far harsher, at $1,298 a year in average repair cost with unscheduled shop visits 1.1×/yr versus 0.8 for the class. A ≈$5,200 five-year figure splits the two — cheap while covered, expensive the moment coverage lapses — and no complimentary maintenance offsets any of it on a 2025 car.

The A8 is one of the harder-depreciating cars on the US market: iSeeCars measures 62.6% loss over five years on the A8 L, worse than the 60.1% luxury-large-car average, and KBB's five-year depreciation projection for the current A8 is about $63,000. CarEdge's more optimistic 49% loss is an outlier, and the $12,500 customer bonus Audi is putting on 2025 A8 stock argues for the pessimistic reading — money off the hood now is residual value gone later.

Audi's 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty is standard German-luxury practice and a year longer than the mainstream 3/36, but it is beaten outright in this segment by Genesis (5 yr/60,000 mi) — and the 50,000-mile cap is tight for a car whose owners cover ground.

Audi is one of the few brands with no extended powertrain warranty at all: the engine, transmission and quattro hardware expire with the bumper-to-bumper coverage at 4 years/50,000 miles. Against a 5-year/60,000-mile German norm and Genesis's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain term, that is the weakest coverage in the full-size luxury class, and on a supercharged-complexity flagship with a 1.5/5 RepairPal reliability rating the exposure is real rather than theoretical.

A 2025 Audi comes with no included scheduled maintenance whatsoever — Audi Care remains a prepaid plan the buyer purchases, covering the 10,000–40,000-mile services. That changed the very next model year: Audi Signature Care (3 yr / 30,000 mi of complimentary service) is standard only on MY2026 and newer, so the 2025 A8 is the last A8 to miss it. What is complimentary is real but thin — 4 years of 24-hour roadside assistance and, new for 2025, an extended three-year navigation/connect subscription — which keeps this just off the floor rather than in the mid-band a short included-maintenance program would earn.

$97,745 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (37% retained, or about $36,166) leaves about $61,579 in depreciation. Add the projected $5,200 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $66,779 in total.

Consumer Reports predicts about-average reliability for the 2025 A8, but that prediction is extrapolated from Audi brand data rather than a robust A8 sample, and Audi's brand-level J.D. Power results for 2025 are poor. Mixed signals put it in the lower half of the average band.

Audi ranked near the bottom of the 2025 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study and dead last in the 2025 Initial Quality Study, well behind BMW and Mercedes-Benz. That is a bottom-third standing in the current cycle.

The 2025 model year carries a single NHTSA campaign, a fleet-wide rearview-camera software fix. The D5 generation's recall count (~16 campaigns) is concentrated in 2017–2021 builds and is mostly electrical/software, with nothing systemic in the powertrain or fire categories for late-build cars.

The volume A8 55 TFSI uses the mature EA839 3.0L turbo V6 with an 8-speed Tiptronic (ZF 8HP family), both widely deployed with solid track records. The 48-volt mild-hybrid layer (belt starter-generator, 48V battery) has drawn owner complaints across Audi's MLB-evo models, holding it below the proven-family tier.

Reviewers rank the A8 cabin among the best in the full-size luxury class: Valcona leather, real wood and aluminum trim, dense soft-touch coverage and precise switchgear, though the haptic touchscreens trade tactile feel for glass.

Neckarsulm-built aluminum-intensive body is assembled tightly and reviewers rarely report rattles or panel issues on the A8. Audi's last-place 2025 IQS finish (driven largely by infotainment/electronics complaints) tempers an otherwise top-tier build.

Audi has roughly 290–300 US dealers — adequate national coverage but thinner than Mercedes-Benz or Lexus outside metro areas. Service satisfaction sits mid-pack among luxury brands.

Out-of-warranty repairs on the A8 are expensive: air suspension, MMI displays, matrix/digital lighting and driver-assist sensors are dealer-sourced parts with high labor time, and the low-volume flagship has thin aftermarket support.

The dual-screen MMI's main display is modest by 2025 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 $4,450 Executive package, which is unusual at this price point.

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 $4,450 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.

It is smooth and quiet in traffic with standard adaptive cruise, but Edmunds found the brakes jumpy in stop-and-go traffic and the transmission slow to downshift.

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.

The A8 L 55 TFSI is genuinely well equipped at base — standard adaptive air suspension, quattro AWD (the only car in the class with AWD standard), dual-screen MMI touch response, Audi virtual cockpit, soft-close doors, four-zone climate, and for 2025 a newly standard heated steering wheel and 20-inch alloys. What holds the score under the top band is what a $93,000 flagship still charges for: HD Matrix-design LED headlights and a head-up display live in the $4,450 Executive package, and a Genesis G90 at similar money includes considerably more.

At $93,295 the A8 undercuts an S-Class 500 by roughly $25,000 and a 740i by a few thousand while matching them on ride quality, so the sticker itself is not the problem. The problem is what you get for flagship money: 335 hp from a V6 in a 4,700-lb car, and a cabin and tech stack shared with the far cheaper A6, which reviewers read as a flagship that doesn't feel like one. Real-world transaction value is better than the MSRP suggests once Audi's large incentives are applied, but that is a discount story rather than a content-per-dollar story.

One trim, one wheelbase, one engine: the 2025 US A8 is the long-wheelbase 55 TFSI quattro and nothing else — no short-wheelbase car, no 60 TFSI e plug-in hybrid, no W12, with only the S8 sitting above it. Four substantial option packages (Executive, Luxury, Black Optic, 5-Passenger Comfort Rear Seat) give a buyer somewhere to spend money, which is what keeps this mid-band rather than a take-it-or-leave-it score, but there is no way to configure a cheaper A8.

The A8 is the slowest seller in its segment and the trajectory is downward, not flat: 1,628 US units in 2024 was a 28% collapse from 2023, and 2025 ran at roughly 1,100 through three quarters. The BMW 7 Series moved about 11,400 units in the same market — seven times the volume — so this is not a niche flagship holding steady but a nameplate the US market has effectively stopped buying, with press coverage openly asking whether it is being discontinued.

Audi is a solidly aspirational premium brand with a loyal following and strong design credibility, and that halo carries the A8's cabin and technology perception. It stops short of the top band because in the flagship-limousine conversation specifically, the S-Class is the reference point and the 7 Series the statement — the A8 has always been the discreet third choice, and the brand's flagship equity is measurably thinner than Mercedes' here.

For a buyer, the 2025 A8 is one of the best-supported cars on a lot: a $12,500 customer bonus on 2025 55 TFSI quattro stock, 3.99% APR for 72 months, and financing bonuses advertised up to $22,000 across the 2025–2027 range. That is a very large fraction of a $93,000 sticker handed back. Scored on buyer benefit as the item directs, this is near the top of the range; it is also, of course, exactly the symptom of the sales collapse in 10.2.1 and it feeds the depreciation in cat5.

2025 is the seventh model year of the D5 A8 (revealed 2017, US launch as a 2019 model) and the fourth since the MY2022 facelift, so the platform and its MMI-generation electronics are visibly behind the S-Class and the current 7 Series. The 2025 changes are content, not engineering — a new standard wheel, a heated steering wheel, a paint colour, and package reshuffles — and end-of-life reporting on the nameplate is active, which is exactly the redesign/discontinuation risk this item asks about.

Reviewers respect the A8 without recommending it first: Consumer Reports calls it one of the most impressive cars it has tested and singles out a ride "among the best offered by any modern production car," while The Car Connection rates it 6.4/10 and KBB ranks it seventh among luxury full-size cars. Edmunds' flagship criticism is the recurring verdict. Well-reviewed, never the pick of the class, and with no 10Best, NACTOY or comparison-test wins to its name in this generation's late years.