The 2004 Audi A8L all-wheel-drive luxury sedan didn't quite leave me speechless, but it reduced me to a single syllable. 

The long-wheelbase sedan has refined styling and sophistication.
 
"Wow," I said, as I adjusted the 16-way power driver's seat and surveyed the limo-like chasm separating me from the back seat. "Wow," I said, as the 12-speaker Bose stereo flooded the car with John Williams' classical guitar. 

This is momentous. Audi has been nipping at Mercedes-Benz and BMW's heels for as long as I can remember, a plucky runt picking off stragglers while Germany's alpha dogs wolf down the prime beef. 

No more. The all-aluminum, 330-horsepower A8L can run with the big dogs. 
 
The A8L, the long-wheelbase version of Audi's new all-aluminum flagship model, has refined styling, extraordinary comfort, cutting-edge technical sophistication and a list of luxury features longer than the Neckar River that runs past the plant where it's built in Neckarsulm, Germany. 

The A8L I tested had a $68,500 base price and would cost $74,000 out the door, excluding destination charges, 19-inch performance tires and options including heated front and rear seats and lighted rear vanity mirrors. 

With its huge interior and many standard features, the all-wheel-drive A8L represents a very good value among Germany's full-size luxury sedans. 

BMW's long-wheelbase, rear-wheel-drive 745Li has a base price of $72,500 and a slightly larger interior and trunk. The all-wheel-drive Mercedes S430 4Matic starts at $76,500 and has less interior and luggage room than the A8L. 

The Audi's performance compares favorably to the BMW and Mercedes. It accelerates to 60 miles per hour in 6.3 seconds. The 745Li leads the trio at 5.9 seconds, while an S430 clocks in at 6.9 seconds. All three cars have electronically limited top speeds: 130 for the A8L and S430, 149 for the 745Li. 

All three sedans seat five adults in comfort. The Benz has the smallest interior, 105 cubic feet, followed by the Audi's 106.8 cubic feet and the 745Li's 111.0 cubic feet. 

The Audi's computer-controlled air suspension absorbs bumps smoothly and comfortably but holds the car steady through fast curves in quick maneuvers at highway speeds. The grippy performance tires add to the A8L's handling but also lead to noticeable road noise on rough surfaces, although they are whisper-silent on smooth roads. The sleek body minimizes wind noise at high speeds. 

Audi builds the A8L almost entirely of aluminum to save weight, but the car's 4,399-pound curb weight is nine pounds heavier than the all-wheel-drive S430 4Matic model and 35 pounds heavier than the rear-drive 745Li. 

Judged by those statistics, the A8L is a very good car, though it doesn't quite rise to the top of its class. It's not about the numbers at this price; it's about how the car feels and how it makes occupants feel. 

Problems in electronics
The A8L scores highly on both counts, though it's not without faults. 

The car I tested had two minor electronic glitches and somewhat noisy 19-inch high-performance tires. 

The ultrasonic rear-object detector, which emits a beeping sound and uses a row of unobtrusive lights to warn the driver if there's something behind when the car is in reverse, failed once, refusing to notice the BMW 3-series stationed in front of a seafood restaurant as I parallel parked in Royal Oak. The system operated well every other time I backed up. 

The driver's side rear window had a more persistent fault. It frequently refused to close fully, rolling three-quarters of the way up, then stopping and retracting slightly. 

While the in-dash video screen presents a clear legible image, I was disappointed by the navigation system's map display. The seven-inch color monitor is bright and legible, but the map omits most street names, simply showing a grid of lines with a moving triangle indicating the A8L's location and direction. I like to use navigation systems to see what's coming and to identify cross streets where I'm going to turn. 

You might as well put a dot on a piece of graph paper and label it "You are here." 

On the other hand, the controls for the navigation system, stereo, suspension setup and other functions set a new standard for sophisticated user friendliness. 

Audi calls the system MMI, or multimedia interface, and it is very intuitive, allowing me to use nearly all its functions without consulting the owner's manual. 

With well-conceived features like MMI, its overall technical sophistication and luxurious interior, the A8L gives Audi a model among the world's best luxury sedans.

