Photo: Audi
After Audi lost its World Endurance Championship crown to Porsche this year and the bulk of the Volkswagen Group was caught red-handed, the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer has decided that the time is right to reveal the Audi R18 e-tron quattro Le Mans Prototype at an event in Munich. The hybrid diesel-powered racer couldn’t have come at a worse time for the four-ringed automaker.
Despite it and the brand being against all odds, Audi described the redesigned R18 as being the “most powerful and efficient race car Audi has ever built.” This suggests that the carmaker is serious about reclaiming its crown from Porsche in the 2016 World Endurance Championship. How will the Audi Sport Team do that?
In order to be competitive in the LMP1 class, a race car has to be three things: reliable, powerful, and aerodynamic. In motorsport, reliability is relative because it depends on unquantifiable aspects. In terms of power, the lithium-ion battery-powered hybrid system has been modified while the 4.0-liter V6 turbo diesel lump has been modified to be more efficient.
Another sketchy detail Audi tells about the R18 e-tron quattro is that it features “innovative aerodynamics.” It’s not like we haven’t got eyes to observe the visual changes it has brought to the car. “With our new Audi R18, we're setting a clear signal: Audi continues to put the pedal to the metal in motorsport, deliberately relying on TDI - the world's most successful automotive efficiency technology - at Le Mans,” declared Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, the head honcho over at Audi Motorsport.
Dear Wolfgang, this is not the best time to make a case for TDI engines. Signed, everyone.
“In the interest of maximum cost efficiency,” the Audi Sport Team Joest and the Porsche Team made a gentlemen’s agreement that they would field two cars instead of three in the 2016 World Endurance Championship. The explanation for this might have something to do with the cost-cutting initiatives following the Dieselgate blunder.
In order to be competitive in the LMP1 class, a race car has to be three things: reliable, powerful, and aerodynamic. In motorsport, reliability is relative because it depends on unquantifiable aspects. In terms of power, the lithium-ion battery-powered hybrid system has been modified while the 4.0-liter V6 turbo diesel lump has been modified to be more efficient.
Another sketchy detail Audi tells about the R18 e-tron quattro is that it features “innovative aerodynamics.” It’s not like we haven’t got eyes to observe the visual changes it has brought to the car. “With our new Audi R18, we're setting a clear signal: Audi continues to put the pedal to the metal in motorsport, deliberately relying on TDI - the world's most successful automotive efficiency technology - at Le Mans,” declared Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, the head honcho over at Audi Motorsport.
Dear Wolfgang, this is not the best time to make a case for TDI engines. Signed, everyone.
“In the interest of maximum cost efficiency,” the Audi Sport Team Joest and the Porsche Team made a gentlemen’s agreement that they would field two cars instead of three in the 2016 World Endurance Championship. The explanation for this might have something to do with the cost-cutting initiatives following the Dieselgate blunder.
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