Audi has taken the wraps off a unique A8 L that was further stretched and has gained 2 extra doors.
Meet the Audi A8 L extended, a stately limousine with an overall length of 20.9 ft. (6.36 meters) and a huge distance spanning at 13.8 ft. (4.22 meters). It’s described as an “exceptionally long luxury sedan” and needed almost one year of development to get everything right. The six-door, six-seat A8 L extended wears a moonlight blue metallic paint on its body that had to be modified from the A-pillar back for this new application.
The built-to-order version comes with extruded aluminum sections for the extended side sills and center tunnel whereas a double rear bulkhead was enforced to separate the passenger area from the trunk compartment. To make sure a torsional and flexural rigidity nearly on par with the A8 L, there are additional aluminum profiled tubes and cross-braces within the elongated roof that hosts a 7.9-ft. (2.4-meter) glass panel. As needed by the law for vehicles of this length, the Audi A8 L extended comes with small facet marker lights incorporated within the headlight and taillight clusters.
Stepping within the cabin, all of the seats face the direction of travel and every row comes with sun blinds. The seats are covered in “extra-supple” Valcona leather featuring a velvet beige color whereas those on the rows 2 and 3 are individual and benefit from electrical adjustment. The seats on the third row are separated by a full-length center console that includes a screen and a cool box.
Audi has fitted the XXL sedan with a turbocharged 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine producing 310 HP (228 kilowatts) and a maximum torque of 324.5 pound-feet (440-newton meters). Not like it matters a lot with these limousines, however, performance is more than tight, with the 0-62 mph (0-100 kph) taking simply 7.1 seconds before striking an electronically-capped 155 mph (250 kph).
Tipping the scales at 5,330 pounds (2,418 kilograms), the Audi A8 L extended rides on 19-inch wheels that include a 15-spoke design and backed by a braking system sourced from the S8. As you’d expect from such a vehicle, the extra-long automobile has an all-wheel-drive Quattro system receiving the engine’s power through an eight-speed Tiptronic transmission.
Although Audi isn’t revealing the identity of the customer, an article revealed by autofil.no in January revealed the Norwegian royal family commissioned a six-door, further stretched A8 L for King Harald’s 25th anniversary as monarch. There are some pictures on that website with the car and it seems to be the same.
