Apart from the luxurious limousine, Audi provided also an S-treatment for its flagship sedan model. The carmaker aimed it directly at the Mercedes-AMG S-Class.

The A8 is the top model of Audi's luxury sedans and one of the most appreciated luxury limousines all over the world. It's a luxury limousine perfect for those who want the finest comfort and a powerful car. But the S8 is even better, the quickest version of Audi's A8 limo. The S8 is one of the best alternatives and one of the main rivals of the BMW 750Li.

The horsepower war in Europe made Audi create the S8 in 1996 and surprised its main competitors, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, with a limousine that provided sports car performance.

While the Mercedes-Benz had the AMG division that took care of its performance S-Class models, Audi offered the S models for its vehicles. The 2012 Audi S8 was the fastest A8 in the range.

Audi didn't rush with the second generation of the S8 nameplate and unveiled it only in late 2005 as a 2006 model year, but the wait was worth it.

Up until the Audi S8, there was no such a thing as performance limousines. Sure, BMW and Mercedes-Benz already had powerful versions for the 7 Series and the S-Class, respectively, but not as sport-oriented as the S8 in 1996. But just three years later, Audi improved the performance of its flagship model.

Audi already stepped up its game and challenged BWM and Mercedes-Benz in all segments but dared even more than its competitors when it introduced the S8.