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The 1997 Audi A8 4.2 rides and handles like a charm, offers full-time all-wheel-drive for security and stability and comes with lightweight aluminum frame and body panels to keep poundage down while offering rust-free peace of mind. The 4.2-liter, 32-valve V-8 is teamed with a 5-speed automatic and delivers zero-to-60-m.p.h. response in less than six seconds–quietly.

OK, the mechanical stuff out of the way, let’s talk about what makes the A8 so pleasurable.

The one thing we didn’t find in this luxury sedan is a kitchen sink. That’s not to say it might not be there, just that we’ll have to search a little harder for it.

What we did find was a host of “tremendous trifles” (a term coined by former colleague and friend Tom Kleene, when he was at the Detroit Free Press).

The A8 comes with headrests that raise or lower at the press of a button, heated front and rear seats, heater that circulates warm air through the cabin after you’ve turned the key off, solar glass roof panel that collects the sun’s energy to cool the cabin on a warm day, heated steering wheel, push-button power shade for the rear window and pull-down shades for the side windows.

Also, so-called pinchless power windows retract when they meet an object such as a child’s hand when motoring up, and infrared light-reflecting metal is sandwiched between layers of safety glass in the windshield to block out radiation and filter out noise.

There’s also six air bags, two frontal and two side bags for front-seat occupants and two side bags for rear-seat occupants. The bags are in the sides of the seat backs for protection no matter where you position your seat.

And there’s dual power mirrors that automatically defog, power push-button height adjusters for front- and rear-seat shoulder belts, headlight washers with heated nozzles, key activated window/sunroof opening/closing from outside thecar (when key is inserted in door lock), radio controls in the steering wheel, dual cupholders front and rear, first-aid kit in the rear-seat center armrest and four-wheel ABS.

Should you be involved in a fender bender that damages aluminum body panels or a severe accident that damages aluminum frame, Audi will send a flatbed truck, pick the car up and send it to one of 22 authorized aluminum body shops or one of four aluminum frame-repair shops and leave you with an A6 to get home or continue your trip. How’s that for roadside assistance?

Despite the niceties, there’s one glaring problem: the key fob with the push-button door lock/unlock, decklid open, panic alarm controls. The fob and the control symbols are black and the symbols too small to see, making it easy to strike the wrong one.

The 1997A8 4.2 rounds out the Audi A trio. In ’95 the A6 replaced the Audi 100, in ’96 the A4 replaced the Audi 90. The A8 replaces nothing but gives Audi its fir st premium luxury sedan.

The A8 is offered as the 4.2 or 3.7 to designate the 4.2-liter, 300-h.p., 32-valve, V-8 or the 3.7-liter, 230-h.p., 32-valve, V-8. The 4.2 is a quattro, or all-wheel-drive model; the 3.7 is front-wheel-drive with traction control. The 3.7 starts at $56,900; the 4.2 at $64,500.

Audi, you may recall, nearly went out of business in the ’80s after charges of sudden acceleration surfaced. Though a government investigation concluded that rather than applying the brake pedal, folks hit the accelerator by mistake, Audi floundered.

With the introduction of the A line of sedans, the sudden acceleration at Audi has been in sales, as evidenced by a 60 percent gain in the calendar year. It probably will finish the year at about 26,000 units. The forecast is for 20 percent growth each year for the next three years, aided by the addition of the Audi TT performance coupe and TTS performance roadster, both coming in the 1999 model year.

1997 Audi A8 4.2 Wheelbase: 113 inches Length: 198.2 inches Engine: 4.2-liter, 300-h.p., 32-valve, V-8 Transmission: 5-speed automatic EPA mileage: 17 m.p.g. city/25 m.p.g. highway Base price: $64,500 Price as tested: $68,200. Includes $1,700 for convenience/cold weather package with radio controls on the steering wheel, ski storage rack from rear seat to trunk, rear seat power headrests and power lumbar support, heated seats and steering wheel; and $2,000 for power rear window shade, manual side window shades, solar sunroof with automatic cabin cooling, insulated glass. Freight runs $500. Pluses: This isn’t a car, it’s an adventure with goodies galore. Minuses: Couldn’t find the kitchen sink. >>