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Audi to compete with diesel sportscar at Le Mans.
Audi will become the world's first car manufacturer to fight for overall victory with a diesel-engined sportscar in the famous Le Mans 24 Hours. The Audi R10 was unveiled in Paris on 13 December with the German prestige car maker aiming for its new “open-top” sportscar to continue in the wheeltracks of its ultra-successful predecessor.
The all-new Audi R10 is powered by a totally new 5.5-litre, 12-cylinder twin-turbo TDI engine, which is extremely quiet and economical. Scheduled to make its race début in the Sebring 12 Hours (USA) next March before contesting the gruelling twice-around-the-clock Le Mans race in France (17-18 June), the Audi R10 produces over 650 hp and a colossal 1,100 Newton metres of torque.
Audi first raced at Le Mans in 1999 and has won the annual sportscar “classic” five times in the last six years with its Audi R8 sportscar which has scored 61 wins from 77 races around the world. But Audi ventures into previously unexplored diesel-engine terrain with the V12 power plant manufactured completely from aluminium.
As with the TFSI (turbo petrol direct injection) technology, which triumphed initially at Le Mans before being adopted for mass-production, Audi customers should benefit once again from the lessons learnt in motorsport.
“With the A8 4.2 TDI quattro, Audi already builds one of the most powerful diesel cars in the world,” explained Prof Dr Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, at the R10 presentation in Paris.
“The Le Mans project will help our technicians to extract even more from TDI technology. Nowadays, every second Audi is delivered with a TDI engine. We expect that the percentage of diesel engines will be even larger in the future.”
The R10 prototype's V12 power unit, which is equipped with two diesel particle filters, is hardly recognisable as a diesel thanks to the engine's smooth running. The TDI engine's specialities presented the Audi Sport engineers with many new challenges.
The injection pressure easily exceeds the 1,600 bar achieved in production cars. The usable power band lies between 3,000 and 5,000 revs per minute - an unusually low rev range for a racing engine. The driver can change gear in the R10 far less often than in the R8 because of the TDI engine's favourable torque curve.
Radical changes to the chassis were also necessary. The Audi R10 has a significantly longer wheel base than the R8. The overly wide front tyres are, up until now, unique for a Le Mans Prototype. New technologies were also implemented during the development of the carbon-fibre monocoque. Chassis, engine and gearbox form an extremely rigid, fully stressed unit.
“The R10 project is the biggest challenge ever to have been handed to Audi Sport,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr Wolfgang Ullrich. “TDI technology has not been pushed to its limits in motorsport yet. We are the first to confront the challenge. The demands of such a project are accordingly high. Long-term technology partners such as Bosch, Michelin and Shell support us in our quest. Together we have the chance to write new chapters in the history books of motorsport and diesel technology.”
The new Audi R10 successfully completed its first test at the end of November while an extensive test programme is scheduled prior to the car's race début at Sebring. The development team from Audi Sport is supported by Reinhold Joest's squad which also performed this task during the R8 project.
Audi R10 technical data
Le Mans-Version 2006 - Status: December 2005
Model :Audi R10
Vehicle :type Le Mans Prototype ("LM" P1)
Monocoque Carbon-fibre composite construction with aluminium honeycomb core.
Complies with the strict FIA crash and safety standards.
Weight / dimensions
Length: 4650 mm
Width: 2000 mm
Height: 1030 mm
Minimum weight: 925 kg
Fuel tank capacity: 90 litres
Engine
Engine : 90° V12 turbo-charged engine, 4 valves per cylinder, DOHC, 2 Garrett turbo chargers, 2 x 39.9 mm engine-air intake restrictors (defined by regulations) and maximum turbo pressure of 2.94 bar absolute, diesel direct injection TDI, stressed aluminium crankshaft case
Engine management system : Bosch MS14
Lubrication system : Dry sump, Shell oil
Cubic capacity: 5500 cc
Power: over 650 hp
Torque: over 1100 Nm
Drive / transmission system: Drive Rear wheel drive
Clutch: Ceramic clutch
Gearbox: Pneumatically-actuated sequential race gearbox, partner X-trac
Differential: Viscous-mechanical locking differential
Drive shafts: Constant velocity tripod plunge-joint driveshafts
Suspension / steering / brakes
Steering: Electronically controlled power steering (rack and pinion)
Suspension: Independent front and rear double-wishbone suspension,
pushrod-system with torsion bar and adjustable dampers
Brakes: Dual-circuit hydraulic braking system, mono-block light-alloy brake calipers, front and rear ventilated carbon fibre brake discs,
driver adjustable infinitely variable brake-balance
Wheels: O.Z. magnesium forged wheels,
Front: 13x 18 inch
Rear: 14.5 x 18 inch
Tyres: Michelin radial
Front: 33/68-18
Rear: 37/71-18
The all-new Audi R10 is powered by a totally new 5.5-litre, 12-cylinder twin-turbo TDI engine, which is extremely quiet and economical. Scheduled to make its race début in the Sebring 12 Hours (USA) next March before contesting the gruelling twice-around-the-clock Le Mans race in France (17-18 June), the Audi R10 produces over 650 hp and a colossal 1,100 Newton metres of torque.
Audi first raced at Le Mans in 1999 and has won the annual sportscar “classic” five times in the last six years with its Audi R8 sportscar which has scored 61 wins from 77 races around the world. But Audi ventures into previously unexplored diesel-engine terrain with the V12 power plant manufactured completely from aluminium.
As with the TFSI (turbo petrol direct injection) technology, which triumphed initially at Le Mans before being adopted for mass-production, Audi customers should benefit once again from the lessons learnt in motorsport.
“With the A8 4.2 TDI quattro, Audi already builds one of the most powerful diesel cars in the world,” explained Prof Dr Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, at the R10 presentation in Paris.
“The Le Mans project will help our technicians to extract even more from TDI technology. Nowadays, every second Audi is delivered with a TDI engine. We expect that the percentage of diesel engines will be even larger in the future.”
The R10 prototype's V12 power unit, which is equipped with two diesel particle filters, is hardly recognisable as a diesel thanks to the engine's smooth running. The TDI engine's specialities presented the Audi Sport engineers with many new challenges.
The injection pressure easily exceeds the 1,600 bar achieved in production cars. The usable power band lies between 3,000 and 5,000 revs per minute - an unusually low rev range for a racing engine. The driver can change gear in the R10 far less often than in the R8 because of the TDI engine's favourable torque curve.
Radical changes to the chassis were also necessary. The Audi R10 has a significantly longer wheel base than the R8. The overly wide front tyres are, up until now, unique for a Le Mans Prototype. New technologies were also implemented during the development of the carbon-fibre monocoque. Chassis, engine and gearbox form an extremely rigid, fully stressed unit.
“The R10 project is the biggest challenge ever to have been handed to Audi Sport,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr Wolfgang Ullrich. “TDI technology has not been pushed to its limits in motorsport yet. We are the first to confront the challenge. The demands of such a project are accordingly high. Long-term technology partners such as Bosch, Michelin and Shell support us in our quest. Together we have the chance to write new chapters in the history books of motorsport and diesel technology.”
The new Audi R10 successfully completed its first test at the end of November while an extensive test programme is scheduled prior to the car's race début at Sebring. The development team from Audi Sport is supported by Reinhold Joest's squad which also performed this task during the R8 project.
Audi R10 technical data
Le Mans-Version 2006 - Status: December 2005
Model :Audi R10
Vehicle :type Le Mans Prototype ("LM" P1)
Monocoque Carbon-fibre composite construction with aluminium honeycomb core.
Complies with the strict FIA crash and safety standards.
Weight / dimensions
Length: 4650 mm
Width: 2000 mm
Height: 1030 mm
Minimum weight: 925 kg
Fuel tank capacity: 90 litres
Engine
Engine : 90° V12 turbo-charged engine, 4 valves per cylinder, DOHC, 2 Garrett turbo chargers, 2 x 39.9 mm engine-air intake restrictors (defined by regulations) and maximum turbo pressure of 2.94 bar absolute, diesel direct injection TDI, stressed aluminium crankshaft case
Engine management system : Bosch MS14
Lubrication system : Dry sump, Shell oil
Cubic capacity: 5500 cc
Power: over 650 hp
Torque: over 1100 Nm
Drive / transmission system: Drive Rear wheel drive
Clutch: Ceramic clutch
Gearbox: Pneumatically-actuated sequential race gearbox, partner X-trac
Differential: Viscous-mechanical locking differential
Drive shafts: Constant velocity tripod plunge-joint driveshafts
Suspension / steering / brakes
Steering: Electronically controlled power steering (rack and pinion)
Suspension: Independent front and rear double-wishbone suspension,
pushrod-system with torsion bar and adjustable dampers
Brakes: Dual-circuit hydraulic braking system, mono-block light-alloy brake calipers, front and rear ventilated carbon fibre brake discs,
driver adjustable infinitely variable brake-balance
Wheels: O.Z. magnesium forged wheels,
Front: 13x 18 inch
Rear: 14.5 x 18 inch
Tyres: Michelin radial
Front: 33/68-18
Rear: 37/71-18
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