While it seems to be a bit odd to consider in light of the proliferation of long-wheel base versions of German luxury cars (especially in the Asian markets), for Audi with the D11 stretching the wheelbase was a complicated proposition. After all, the D11 was a complicated car, combining for the first time all-wheel drive and an automatic transmission. The V8 had already been strengthened over the standard Type 44/C3 base, but increasing the wheelbase necessitated more bracing and a longer center driveshaft to maintain the all-wheel drive system. Of course, the simple solution would just have been to produce the car in front or rear drive only, but Audi’s specialty was the unique all-wheel drive system – so that was maintained in the new Lang version to help differentiate it from the already long-wheel base versions of the S-Class and 7 series:
