Days ago, Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli was at the launch of German luxury car maker Audi’s latest car launch: the Q8 luxury crossover. At the launch, Virat Kohli revealed that his Audi Q8 was somewhere at the back and in a different colour from that of the launch vehicle. The cricketer has already taken delivery of his Audi Q8, and the following Instagram video will show Kohli driving the luxury crossover to the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai, which also happens to be a city where the cricketer has a home in.
As the video indicates, Kohli’s Audi Q8 is finished in Carrera White, and is imported into India through the completely built unit (CBU) route. The luxury crossover is priced at Rs. 1.61 crore, on-road Mumbai, and is the priciest SUV that Audi sells in the country. It sits above the Q7 in terms of pricing and positioning, and rivals the likes of the Range Rover Sport, Porsche Cayenne Coupe, BMW X6 and the Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe.
The Audi Q8 sold in India is currently offered with a single engine option: a 3 liter V6 turbocharged petrol motor that makes 340 Bhp of peak power and 500 Nm of peak torque. An 8 speed torque converter automatic gearbox transmits torque to all four wheels through a Quattro all wheel drive system. Performance figures are quite impressive for an SUV that tips scales at 2.1 tons: the 0-100 Kph sprint comes up in 5.9 seconds while top speed is rated at an electronically limited 250 Kph.
The Q8, like its cheaper sibling the Q7, can seat seven adults. This makes is quite unique among its competitors, which are all 5 seaters. Audi will be betting big on the additional practicality of 7 seats as a major selling point of this crossover. With Virat Kohli already seen in one, the Audi Q8 is already winning the battle for eyeballs.
Virat Kohli is likely to have gotten the Audi Q8 crossover without actually having to pay for it given the fact that he’s the brand ambassador for the German luxury car marque. Luxury car brands often pay celebrities a part of their endorsement deal in cash and hand over expensive cars in lieu of the other part of payment. Over the past few years, Virat Kohli has been seen in a range of Audi cars including the rare R8 LMX limited edition supercar, which is also the fastest car built by the brand.
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