Stephen,
Could it be that we all want to be like you? Just kidding but your neighbors story is really how it works. I think there was a movie about that family that was planted in the rich neighborhood and so on.
Audi's have become cool in the culture. Say its the motorsport or the German engineering but people notice them, they are comfortable, reliable and sneaky fast even in the base models.
That being said, you still dont sell A8L's, S8's, S7's and so on to uneducated population. After riding in my RS6 over the years and years of trouble free miles and a certain R8 V10 test drive in the mountains. My wife simply stated "sell my xyz $80k pos that always sits in the shop and buy me an A8L or a sport tuned wagon" Period and end of story. That never happens if she didnt ride in my RS6 over the years and ride in the R8 V10. Never ever. So there is much to be said about Stephen and his stories.