It wasn’t that long ago that the highlight of Audi’s flagship A8 sedan was its massive W12 engine. Now, though, it’s all about electrification, and the 2020 Audi A8 enters the scene with a battery pack complimenting a smaller 3.0-liter V-6 engine.
Mind you, the A8 will still have a V-8 model, as will the S8, but the “TFSI e” plug-in hybrid variant comes out swinging with 17 miles of all-electric range and an EPA rating of 54 MPGe. Sitting under the trunk, a 14.1 kWh battery pack stores energy in eight modules, using 104 pouch cells to make short-range driving possible without leaning on the V-6 engine.
Setting the 2020 Audi A8 TFSI e further apart is a unique light signature in the front bumper, and electric-specific driving screens through the car’s MMI infotainment interface. Thanks to the extra shove from an electric motor integrated into the eight-speed automatic transmission, it can also hit 60 mph nearly a second faster than the standard V-6 model. Audi claims a time of around 4.9 seconds — not too bad for the brand’s large, luxurious limo.
Here, the 2020 Audi A8 TFSI e manages 443 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque from its hybrid powertrain. Drivers can toggle different driving modes using paddle shifters. Flick one of the paddles, and you can swap from normal hybrid mode to pure electric mode and a hold mode to retain the EV charge for later zero-emissions driving.
2020 Audi A8 plug-in hybrid pricing
The standard 2020 Audi A8 55 TFSI starts at $86,195 — a price hike totaling about $1,400 from the 2019 model year. The A8 60 TFSI e plug-in hybrid, on the other hand, starts at $94,995. Despite the higher barrier to entry, the plug-in variant is eligible for a federal EV tax credit up to $6,795 as well as state incentives depending on where you live.
Find out more about the redesigned Audi A8 below:
