10 Feb 04
Audi says that it already has ten orders for the ultimate A8, and that all of them are for cars optioned up beyond £100,000. In fact, the company is positively proud that an A8 can now cost more than a Bentley Continental. They reckon that such a phenomenon means that Audi has joined the elite rank of marques with customers for whom money really is no object. One Audi spokesman commented that some customers don't even know or care what the options cost, just that they want them. That said, in my very limited experience, hyper-rich folk know exactly what everything costs. And they care a lot.
So how do you spend an extra £40,000 on an A8? Apart from the Massage and Ventilation option already mentioned, you can specify a rear seat television entertainment package (£5450), 'Audi Exclusive' seatbelts (£1100), the 'Audi Exclusive' coolbox with bar compartment (£1450) and 'Audi Exclusive' carpet with contrasting leather piping for £1600. The options list goes on (and on) in that vein, culminating with something called Perforated Valcona Leather. Which costs £11,500.
Audi doesn't expect to sell more than a handful of high-spec A8s in the UK. And it's just as well that these buyers aren't too bothered about cost, as I imagine depreciation will be pretty dramatic on a £100K-plus Audi.
So it's tempting to buy Audi's line about this A8 being for those for whom money is no object. Mainly because this isn't a purchase that makes much economic sense, and also because I can envision these buyers having a garage full of motors to suit every occasion. They don't have to choose between the A8 and a Bentley - they can have both.
And if you do have to justify the price of full-house A8 L 6.0 quattro, just think of it as a half-price Maybach...
