Audi Press Release
- Countdown to 82nd running of Le Mans 24 Hours is underway
- Prof. Dr. Hackenberg: “Le Mans is a unique test laboratory for new technologies”
Ingolstadt, January 13, 2014 – For 15 years, Audi has been
demonstrating ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ in the world’s toughest endurance race.
With the latest generation of the R18 e-tron quattro hybrid race car Audi
continues its string of technical innovations at the Le Mans 24 Hours.
In 152 days from now, on June 14, the 82nd running of the French
endurance classic will start at 3 p.m. Interest in the event is already
exceptionally high. For the first time, Audi and Porsche, the race’s two most
successful brands, will be pitted against each other. Toyota, after suffering
two defeats against Audi, is aiming to break the four rings’ string of victory
at Le Mans. Plus, for the first time, new regulations with a main focus on
energy efficiency will be in effect – for Audi, the inventor of the TDI, this
will provide an opportunity to again prove its great technical expertise not
only on the road but on the race track.
Be it with the engine, hybrid drive, lightweight design, or by setting
standards in active and passive safety: Audi’s Le Mans prototypes are front
runners in terms of sporting performance as well as technology. “Le Mans is a
unique test laboratory for our technologies,” says Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg,
who is responsible for Technical Development on the Board of Management of AUDI
AG. “The comprehensive range of new technical developments of our current Le
Mans race car includes the headlights with laser light. They illuminate the
track for a distance of up to 800 meters. In a planned derivation for
production vehicles, they achieve up to 500 meters, which is twice the range of
LED headlights. With that, Audi is making an important contribution to safety
on the track and in road traffic.”
Advanced engine technologies for maximum efficiency
In 2001, an innovative V8 engine powered the Audi R8. TFSI gasoline
direct injection metered the fuel in a way that reduced the consumption of the
V8 turbo power-plant, improved responsiveness and, due to the engine’s ability
to immediately start again, shortened the stopping times in the pits while
making more power output available. Just shortly following the first Le Mans
success, Audi’s customers were able to order the first production models
featuring gasoline direct injection. This fuel induction principle soon evolved
into the standard in large-volume production series. Today, TFSI engines
contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions in millions of cars.
Five years after this debut, Audi showed another pioneering
achievement. In the 2006 season, the Audi R10 TDI powered by a direct-injection
diesel engine won the endurance classic at La Sarthe right on its first run.
Winning Le Mans with a diesel-powered race car had been considered wishful
thinking until then – today, it is regular reality. To date, Audi has won the
race seven times on TDI power, with learning effects continually being fed into
the design of crankcases, pistons, fuel injectors and other assemblies in
production development.
e-tron quattro hybrid drive takes Le Mans victory
Audi was the first Le Mans participant to win with a hybrid drive
system and therefore again made motorsport history. 2012 saw the first victory
of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro, a sports prototype with a rear axle being
powered by a TDI internal combustion engine and a front axle driven by electric
power. A fully electronic control strategy was the only connection between the
two drive systems. In parallel, Audi also expanded its product range by hybrid
models.
The next generation is now ready for launch. In 2014, Audi starts
delivering the A3 Sportback e-tron, a latest-generation plug-in hybrid. In
racing, the new 2014-specification R18 e-tron quattro is pointing the way to
the future. The Audi engineers have fundamentally redesigned it, as the race
car has to manage both, running on a limited amount of energy and achieving the
best lap times.
Highly sophisticated detailed solutions for higher safety and lower
weight
In addition to the pioneering powertrain solutions, Audi has been
setting standards in other areas as well. Perfect lightweight design combined
with maximum passive safety is manifested in the safety cell of the sports
cars. The monocoque made of carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) in 2013
weighed only half as much as the one used in Audi’s first LMP race car in 1999
– despite greater restrictions specified by the regulations. This material has
long made its way into production vehicles, for instance in body components of
the R8, the R8 Spyder and the RS 3. Active safety has been significantly
improved by Audi with ever new lighting technologies. The LED daytime running
light in the Audi R10 TDI (2006–2008) was followed by full LED headlights in
the R18 TDI (2011), matrix LED technology in the R18 e-tron quattro (2012–2013)
and the innovative laser light in the next R18 e-tron quattro (from 2014). The
digital rear-view mirror with a camera projecting the action at the rear on an
innovative AMOLED display in the cockpit, which has been used since the 2012
season, reflects another future trend.
“The general public and the motorsport audience have come to expect
Audi to play this part of a trendsetter,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Dr.
Wolfgang Ullrich. “We are proud to be at the very front with these innovations
in our motorsport commitment, while benefiting from Audi Sport being a part of
the Technical Development of AUDI AG on a daily basis. We aim to continue to
prove the Audi-typical ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ in tough racing conditions
with our Le Mans prototypes in the future – even though in 2014 we’re no doubt
facing the greatest challenge ever at Le Mans.”
Photo credit: Audi Sport Communication / Media
