Extra tech and cosmetic surgery will see this car through.

AUDI’S path to full electrification is under way and all its cars are signed up – including a new flagship to replace the A8, already previewed a couple of months back as the Grandsphere concept.

However, that changeover is still a couple of years away, so in the meantime the current (fourth) generation of its largest and most luxed sedan has just been shown off in a heavily updated version, which the make describes as a ‘mid-life improvement’, that could well deliver as the see-me-out edition of a car that hit the road in 2017.

Audi says that the aim of an update some say is the last before it retires - probably in 2024 - was to refresh the styling, without losing the car's 'carefully-crafted' look.

Unsurprisingly, the most visually-obvious change to a car that will continue in standard and long-wheelbase forms is that it has a bigger, deeper grille that reaches almost all the way to the bottom of the front bumper. It's inspired by the original 'Prologue' concept.

It has new LED headlights, with a segmented light signature, and the option of digital Matrix LED technology.

 These use DMD, Digital Micromirror Device, tech that not only allows active high-beam control, but can also dynamically project the beam for the driver’s benefit. The light units contain 1.3 million micromirrors, which the brand says can adjust the beam pattern with millimetric precision to help illuminate dark patches in the road and improve the driver’s visibility.

It also has high-tech OLED brake lights that allow a driver to alter the light signature at the rear of the car to taste. They also light up brighter if a following car is considered to be too close. 

This A8 will be offered as an S line model designed to be sportier looking with a blacked-out grille and more open front air intakes.

The S line will also get optional 21-inch wheels and a darker finish to the OLED rear lights. The interior is also tweaked, with special sports seats and carbon fibre as an optional trim for the dashboard.

Audi has also increased the options for seat design and upholstery, including a four-seat layout for the long-wheelbase model, which includes reclining seats in the back and a footrest integrated into the rear of the front passenger seats.

As before, the infotainment system comprises two displays, a 10.1-inch screen for media functions and an 8.6-inch unit purely for the climate controls. The 12.3-inch digital dash is retained. An option is a pair of 10.1 inch screens for rear-seat passengers. These can be linked to the occupants’ smartphones to receive content from video and audio streaming services.

China, where almost 60 percent of current A8 sales go, achieves an  exclusive version that revives the classic Horch name (Horch was one of the brands that came together to form the original, pre-World War II Auto Union). This is 130mm longer than even the long-wheelbase A8, and features a bespoke grille and light treatment, as well as unique leather finishes, and embossed logos on the seats.

All the current engine choices continue; so V6 diesel and petrol, V8 petrol and V6 plug-in hybrid, with a bigger battery than before to enhance electric-only range. The performance V8-engined S8 model (the blue car) will remain in production, but that’ll be the hotshot: No RS 8 is considered. Nor will there be a full electric. That’s the Grandsphere’s thing.