Talk me out of an A8 55 TFSI

[3xAAA]

I’ve always wanted a luxury barge and while I have driven a few (Panamera, Cayenne, X5, Phaeton) I have never owned one.

I’m now at the point in life where I want to try one, and a 2022-2023 A8 55 TFSI for about £50k really takes my fancy. However, I have some doubts.

My main concern is I don’t do that many miles, maybe 8000 a year, and most of them are around town. It’s normally just me in the car as well, as I don’t have passengers too often. Is this type of car going to be wasted on me?

Next, I’ve got some reservations over the size of the thing. I love large cars and I’ve driven a few, even some 17-seater Transits and never had any issues, but there’s a difference between having a Panamera as a rental car for a week and living with it day in day out. I think I’d struggle with some multi-storey car parks, and quite a few drive thrus (to my shame).

And lastly, a lot of the reviews seem hit or miss. Some are very complimentary while others say they drive badly, and the 55 TFSI drive train is last generation and not fit for purpose. I don’t want to spend that amount of money on a new car with an old engine and gearbox, but my knowledge of Audis is minimal so it’s hard to use my own judgement.

So I’m a bit confused, because when I sit in one I rate it very highly, and it seems like a hell of a lot of car for £50k, but I don’t want to ignore the wisdom of people more experienced than me.

[Quattr04.]

A huge car in town soon becomes a pain, not just parking it and not being able to open the door, but width restrictors etc are a massive pain too

The whole point of a A8 is to be driven in it IMO

It may be a big powerful engine but in a big car it’s still going to handle like a boat.

Maybe something like a RS3 saloon is better suited to your needs, although again do you really need a powerful car when you’re not going over 30mph a great deal? Even a A7 might suit your needs better

[3xAAA]

Quattr04. said:

A huge car in town soon becomes a pain, not just parking it and not being able to open the door, but width restrictors etc are a massive pain too

The whole point of a A8 is to be driven in it IMO

It may be a big powerful engine but in a big car it’s still going to handle like a boat.

Maybe something like a RS3 saloon is better suited to your needs, although again do you really need a powerful car when you’re not going over 30mph a great deal? Even a A7 might suit your needs better

Thanks for the input.

An RS3 or hatchback really isn't my cup of tea, however, an alternative to the A8 would be a 2022 A4 Allroad.

I don't have much of a need for "rough road" capability, but the roads are so bad these days that the long-stroke dampers and large tyre sidewall would be very welcome. On the flip side, I really dislike the four-cylinder E888 engine in the A4, so there's that.

[Dr G]

Had you considered spending an awful lot less on something that you could shift after 6 months without too much financial pain? Treat it as "beta testing" what you can live with.

If you hate it there's then no huge loss or stress. If that shows it's viable you'll be able to buy what you really fancy without worrying you won't like it.

[JohnnyUK]

You should try an RS4 B8 - fast and quiet V8. Stick it in Comfort for the Limo experience, or a one of the other Drive Select options for the twisties.

I've had my 2015 from new and love it.

[3xAAA]

Dr G said:

Had you considered spending an awful lot less on something that you could shift after 6 months without too much financial pain? Treat it as "beta testing" what you can live with.

If you hate it there's then no huge loss or stress. If that shows it's viable you'll be able to buy what you really fancy without worrying you won't like it.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Did you have any particular make or model in mind?

Edited to add, in your experience will this be a difficult car to sell privately? I've never part-ex'd a car and have always sold private.

JohnnyUK said:

You should try an RS4 B8 - fast and quiet V8. Stick it in Comfort for the Limo experience, or a one of the other Drive Select options for the twisties.

I've had my 2015 from new and love it.

Thanks, although not quite my cup of tea in terms of age, performance (probably too much), RS tax and stealability.

Edited by 3xAAA on Monday 24th February 20:47

[vaud]

A4 3.0tdi? Quite quick and discrete.

[Dr G]

3xAAA said:

Thanks for the suggestion.

Did you have any particular make or model in mind?

Edited to add, in your experience will this be a difficult car to sell privately? I've never part-ex'd a car and have always sold private.

Any A8 can be difficult to sell. In very simple terms they're cheap because (almost) nobody wants them.

Buy something Euro 6 with good colour/spec/history then part exchange it if you choose to buy your "perfect" A8. Assuming you like the "starter" A8 enough to want an expensive one you're also then in the nice position of being able to wait for exactly what you want to come to market.

[Huzzah]

Ultimately all cars are disapointing, that's why we have terminal car changers looking for their nirvana.


The only way to avoid this is to buy a car you have no expectations of.