Oh joy, a chance to ponder fast Audis again. They're a funny bunch, aren't they? While fast TTs and A3s could be chastised for a general lack of involvement and overly light controls, as you move up the range those attributes become less of a concern. Who really cares about the last modicum of steering feel in a two-tonne luxobarge? Exactly. Arguably this is where the fast Audi formula really excels.
The view in other people's wing mirrors
Take one fairly ordinary looking saloon, keep it looking fairly ordinary, then stuff it full of enough power to escape the four horsemen; that's been the recipe for a while and it continues to produce some quite desirable cars. See the
latest S8 Plus
, a saloon capable of 190mph while looking like one of those premier taxi service 3.0 TDIs.
Beyond the speed and the looks of a big fast Audi though, it's the ferocious way they depreciate that makes them so enticing. One of the current generation twin-turbo V8 S8s could be yours for £46,995 at just two years old with 19,000 miles.
Here we're focusing on the previous generation D3 S8, simply because it has a V10. That's nothing against the current car - it's a superb engine in fact - but V10s are rare and therefore quite interesting. This isn't some wild, shrieking V10, or a direct Lamborghini transplant as some like to think, yet it's not without considerable appeal.
In this car, it makes 450hp at a glorious 7,000rpm and 398lb ft at 3,500rpm. Perhaps not as low as you might have expected. Moreover, a decade later with everything turbocharged it's a really intriguing engine. There won't be another one like it, will there?
It's still a very smart looking car, with an interior not a million miles from the latest techno wonder Audis. It's in black with black leather and has a full service history to back up its 70,000 miles. It's for sale at just £15K. Nobody mention running costs now. Long live the horrific depreciation of big, powerful saloons!
Of course the S8 isn't the only one so afflicted. There are Jaguar XJs and AMG S-Classes at similar money, plus of course the original D2 S8 if you want to act out some Ronin fantasies on holiday in the south of France. None will have a V10 though; unless it's an M5 of course...
AUDI S8 (D3)
Engine: 5,204cc V10
Transmission: 6-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 450@7,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 398@3,500rpm
MPG: 20.9 (NEDC combined)
CO2: 321g/km
First registered: 2007
Recorded mileage: 72,000
Price new: £70,825
Yours for: £15,930
See the original advert here.