Audi S8 Final Edition (D2) | Spotted

The V8-powered D2 was Audi's original heavy-hitter. It still looks the part nearly 20 years on...

The original Audi A8 launched to quite the fanfare. After more than a decade in development the D2 was born using an all-aluminium platform – a first for a mass-produced car in 1994 – and the sort of proportions you could legitimately call timeless. It was an engineering marvel. So much so that when Audi decided to uprate the output of its V8 by 40hp and create the S8, it helped forge the thrusting, autobahn-crushing image the manufacturer trades on today.

The 1996 S8 used Audi’s 4.2-litre motor to the tune of 340hp, enough to give the quattro-driven saloon the legs to hit 62mph in under seven seconds. And that’s with Audi’s steady Tiptronic hardware; in gear, the S8 was more athletic than the stats suggest. And it got quicker still with the facelift, which received a new 40v head to lift power to 360hp. On a damp road, the S8 was genuinely capable of giving supercars – such as the Ferrari F355 – a real run for their money. It wasn’t all because of that power, either.

Years of costly R&D – signed off in the early eighties by Ferdinand Piëch, no less – resulted in the production of the Audi Space Frame. It meant the plush four-door was more structurally rigid than alternatives like the Mercedes S-Class, which did wonders for the A8’s handling. Using 20 per cent stiffer springs and 40 per cent firmer dampers, the S8 was noticeably harder riding than its sibling, but thanks to the platform's stiffness and the squidginess of the cabin’s leather seats, it was never too much so.

Instead, the S8 arguably set a new benchmark for handling in the class, with (for the day) little body roll and enormous mechanical grip levels. It’s true that the steering lacked feel and the auto ‘box, even back in the pre-dual clutch days of the nineties, never felt completely matched to an engine producing its peak output at 7,000rpm. But the way it did strenuous things without breaking a sweat was astounding.

Moreover it would do this while carrying up to five passengers, who’d be presented with sat nav, dual-zone climate control and a TV, should all options boxes have been ticked. Thanks to its aluminium architecture the S8 would tip the scales at 1,750kg - not a featherweight, obviously, but its present-day successor, a car which has its own weight saving innovations to brag about, is half a tonne heavier.

As a 2002 Final Edition, this is a very late D2 with all the trimmings and 64,000 miles on the clock, which ought to have been walk in the park for a car as well put together as the S8. It’s said to be as technically healthy as its spotless panels, interior and engine bay suggest. It’s true that a £15,995 asking price is a fair jump on the £5k S8s have been known to go for in recent years - and it was too much to squeeze it into Six of the Best this week - but we like to think there's someone out there happy to cherish Audi's original big shot in its twilight years...

SPECIFICATION | AUDI S8 (D2)
Engine: 4,172cc V8 petrol
Transmission: 5-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 360@7,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 317@3,400rpm
MPG: 20.3
CO2: 334g/km
First registered: 2002
Recorded mileage: 64,000
Price new: £54,760 (2002)
Yours for: £15,995