An eagle-eyed Audi fan spotted this Audi A8 prototype out testing with little more than a few patches of black tape masking the lights and logos and managed to grab some quick cellphone shots.
We’ve seen various previews of the upcoming A8 (and A9) in the Prologue series, and it’s been spied on the Nurburgring and testing in the snow, but we’ve yet to see it so exposed.
The Audi A8, redesigned under the mandate of new Audi design boss Marc Lichte, will make its official debut this summer, then go on sale late this year or early next year as a 2018 model. The proportions and size don’t stray far from the current A8, but we can now clearly see the wider single frame grille up front, giving the luxury sedan a wider, lower, more purposeful appearance.
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This generation of Audi’s flagship sedan moves to the MLB Evo platform that debuted with the Q7 SUV, utilizing steel, aluminum, magnesium and carbon-fiber in an advanced hybrid structure. However, it may not see the same weight savings as that model, and according to Audi the new body will weigh about 110 lb (50 kg) more than the outgoing body. The reward is a frame that is about 24 percent stiffer than the outgoing model.
The engine lineup will likely follow the same path as much of Audi’s range meaning a range of gas and diesel engines (for Europe, mainly), with a plug-in hybrid version to follow soon after the initial debut.
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