Audi Employees Celebrate Le Mans

Audi employees celebrated the Audi R10 TDI which won the Le Mans 24 Hour race। Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen completed show laps with the over 650-hp strong diesel sportscar at the Audi factory in Neckarsulm (Germany). "This was a great event and I was very impressed at just how many Audi employees came to celebrate and wanted autographs," explained Tom Kristensen who won the French Endurance classic last weekend together with his team-mates Dindo Capello and Allan McNish. For both Audi and Tom Kristensen it was the eighth victory at Le Mans.

Head of Audi Motorsport Dr Wolfgang Ullrich and Ulrich Baretzky, responsible for Engine Development at Audi Sport were also present in Neckarsulm। They were welcomed by Uwe Hans Werner, Head of the Audi Forum Neckarsulm, and Norbert Rank, Head of the Works Council in Neckarsulm. The next race of the Audi R10 TDI will take place at Lime Rock (US state of Connecticut) on 12 July. On 17 August, the diesel-powered sportscar will compete in the 1000-kilometre race at the Nürburgring and thus for the first time ever in Germany.

Audi gears up to give Peugeot and France the fight of their life

Peugeot have produced pace that would render a sprint race a formality and with a squad of former Formula One drivers, including the 1997 world champion, Jacques Villeneuve, the talent to get the maximum performance from their three cars. All of France is ready to crank up the atmosphere, send the foreigners packing and acclaim a long-awaited home victory.

Peugeot have secured the first three places on the grid. The Frenchman Stéphane Sarrazin took poll with a stunning time of three minutes, 18.513 seconds, a record for the circuit since chicanes were introduced on the Mulsanne Straight in 1990. McNish was fastest of the Audi drivers, in fourth, over five seconds adrift. Le Mans is motor racing's ultimate test of endurance and Audi have demonstrated that they have the savvy to get the job done better than anybody. The German team have won seven times in eight years.

McNish has led at Le Mans in each of the four years since he joined Audi, only for the fates to conspire against him. Twelve months ago he gave perhaps his greatest drive, leading his crew to a seemingly unassailable lead. He then watched in disbelief, over breakfast, as a wheel broke loose from his R10, which was being driven by Rinaldo Capello.

It would be just his luck now, a decade on from his only win, at the wheel of a Porsche, if his best efforts for Audi were rendered impotent by the fleet-footed French. McNish accepts that possibility, yet his faith in the team is unshaken.

"We know it's going to be tougher than ever to win this year," he said. "If one of their cars runs as fast as we know they can and is reliable throughout they should, in theory, win. Eight of their nine drivers have Formula One experience. But it rarely happens that you get a totally trouble free run and they're going to have to be really good to beat us.

"We are better and quicker at pit stops and we know how to win this race – they've got to prove they can. They've won the three Le Mans series races this season but those are relative sprints of six hours. This is four of those races in one go. When things go wrong, which they invariably do at Le Mans, we'll be able to rectify it as quickly as possible. We'll have the strategy, I believe, to come through it again."

Team work, preparation and organisation are as important as a quick car and a gifted driver at Le Mans and McNish, who has worked with McLaren, Benetton, Renault and Toyota in Formula One, knows how to measure Audi's expertise. The 38-year-old Scotsman said: "I've been with some pretty good Formula One teams and the way that Audi goes about Le Mans is exactly the way a top Formula One team goes about it; the personnel, the operation, the systems they use.

"Over the 24 hours we cover roughly the same distance as a grand prix season and at the same speed, and we do it with no engine or gearbox change. That tells you something of the level of the technology and personnel."

Audi's three cars and nine drivers are backed up by 120 team members. Each driver can expect to be at the wheel for stints of more than three hours. They try to catch some sleep during their off-duty periods.

McNish said: "I'm too much of a livewire to adapt my sleep pattern ahead of the race. I struggle to relax, so I don't do anything different in preparation. We are in the car for the equivalent of two grands prix at a time and I try to get away from the garage when I finish a stint, so that I'm not mentally and emotionally dragged into how the car's working. I can't do anything about that anyway.

"Engineers take care of everything in the car, doctors and physios take care of everything physically, out of the car. That's when they take over. I get away, have a shower, something to eat and a bit of physio. I may have some press and marketing to do and I have to be on standby at least an hour before I'm due back in the car. So the period of relaxation is only a couple of hours.

"We have cabins kitted out with a couple of beds and a toilet. I've learnt to sleep at Le Mans but not a deep sleep. The cabins are soundproofed, but not totally. You never get rid of the sound of cars going by. I have a radio in case they need me quickly. Mentally, you are always on alert."

Up to 70,000 British fans among the 300,000 expected over the weekend will catnap along with McNish, hoping to wake up and find national pride honoured in other categories of the race, notably GT1, where Aston Martin resume their duel with the Chevrolet Corvettes. McNish, however, is Britain's only realistic contender for the main crown. He could be forgiven for feeling it is payback time after the angst of recent races, especially after what happened last year.

He said: "I don't think we will ever produce a more perfect Le Mans than we did in 2007, so it was doubly frustrating for it to end like that. Then I think of the drivers, such as Mario Andretti, who never won Le Mans. He came back year after year to try and get that trophy and there's one sitting in my living room that he will never have.

"I want it probably more this year because last year we were so close, but no one is entitled to a Le Mans victory. You have to earn it. You've got to sweat blood and tears, and I've done both. You have to be philosophical, but it's the hardest place in the world to be philosophical."

Lower CO2 A4

It's a development of the 141bhp 2.0 TDI turbo diesel introduced earlier this year when the A4 saloon was launched. In its new form it produces 118bhp, which isn't a lot for a car of this size but still gives reasonable performance of 127mph flat out and 0-62mph in 10.7 seconds. More significantly, it manages 55.4mpg on the combined fuel economy cycle.

The new engine is available in A4 saloon and Avants in standard, Sport and S line specifications.

The headline figure, though, is 134g/km. This puts the A4 into the current VED Band C, which means annual tax of £120, falling to £110 when the new VED structure comes into force next year. Audi also points out that the benefit-in-kind tax liability is just £1582.20 per annum (or £131.85 monthly) for a company car user in the 40% tax bracket.

Peugeot threaten Audi

Ahead of Sunday's official one-day test in preparation for the race on June 14 and 15, Peugeot are favourites to triumph on home soil.

Audi have their work cut out if they are to retain their Le Mans 24 Hours title for the fifth successive year.
This year the French marque have three cars competing, spearheaded by 1997 Formula One champion Jacques Villeneuve, with the Canadian joined by Nicolas Minassian and another former F1 driver in Marc Gene, who previously tested with Ferrari.

Current BMW Sauber test driver Christian Klien is partnered by ex-BAR, Jordan and Toyota driver Ricardo Zonta and former Toyota test driver Franck Montagny in another Peugeot.

The third car has at the wheel current Honda test driver Alex Wurz, who is joined by Stephane Sarrazin and Pedro Lamy, who raced in F1 for Lotus and Minardi from 1993-96.

For one of Audi's stars, Allan McNish, it appears his bid to win the event for the first time since 1998 could not be harder.

McNish will again be joined by regular co-drivers Dindo Capello and Tom Kristensen, who were on course for a comfortable victory last year in their R10 TDi until the Italian crashed out just over seven hours from the end.

Assessing Sunday's test involving 55 cars, 38-year-old Scot McNish said: "The Le Mans circuit is made up of a permanent race circuit plus closed public roads, and is unique in this respect.

"This fact alone makes the pre-test, the only time prior to Le Mans race week that we can drive on the track, very important in the final build-up."
"It's reported Peugeot will have a new aero package, so we'll take a keen interest in that."

My personal take on the Porsche Takeover

With as much profit that Porsche has made from using VW/Audi Chassis and Technologies, I see Porsche tightening its grip on the brands underneath the VAG flag. Porsche in the past had reminded Audi during the development of the Audi RS2 Avant that it did not want to see the group produce an Audi which would go head to head in the open market with its products. The reason the lower HP rating on the Audi S2 coupe was in response to Porsches wishes.
Now lets take a look at the Audi R8 and R10, the current supercars from Audi which is a direct competitor with Porsche 911 and its variants. As much as Audi has been a dominant force in recent motorsport history making I can clearly see Porsche moving Audi away from Racing and into Touringcars or similiar classes of racing. With Audi campaigning a winning Diesel in LMP1 and Porsche with its Spyder RS in the LMP2 class Porsche will inevitability takeon Audis spot in LMP as the brand moves more and more back into its racing heritage. Just from a current standpoint and what Porsche has done in the past, this quite possibly could be the end of an era for Audi as a motorsport innovator and Porsche moving sources to their effort. Much as the VAG did to promote Bentley and the Speed 8 LMP1 which won on its first outing with a full Audi support team.
In a business sense it would be smart to move resources to the Tier 1 marque but having both in racing would cost the company millions at the end. Germany with its nationalist roots has for the past two decades fended off takeovers by outside interests in the automaking sector. If I had to choose one I couldn't.
But the future of takeover will be decided in the Lower Saxony courts and the future is still unstable as to which family will have absolute reign over the Volkswagen Audi Group.

Audi could be taken to court by Daimler for BlueTec Technology infringement.

Audi has confirmed talks with Daimler AG, in response to a patent infringement dispute on Mercedes BlueTec technology, which allows diesel engines to produce lower carbon dioxide emissions.
Daimler is currently investigating if Audi has in fact been using the technology behind BlueTec without Daimlers permission. Since the two German automakers are in talks further litigation is unknown at this time.

Audi bumped from #1 spot on controversial final lap @ Monza

The last 20 laps of the Monza LeMans saw an incredible fight between Audi and Peugeot. Audi tried hard to keep the French marque at bay but it was in the final 2 laps that the N8 Peugeot 908 HDi FAP touched the Audi , which was forced to stop to change a wheel, leaving the Peugeot 908 HDi to take the win. Peugeot now leads by two points ahead of Audi. The season will continue with the race at Spa-Francorchamps where the Peugeot will be joined by Jacques Villeneuve and Alexander Wurz. The Audi and Peugeot lapped within thousandths of a second of each other, which means the fight for the best Diesel powered LMP car has turned into an all out war.

New Audi S4 gets 3.0 litre Supercharged engine

With VW/Audis continuing plan to go green, Audi has announced the new S4 platform will receive a supercharged 3.0 litre V6 producing 340Bhp. The sad fact is quattro GmBH was not set to design the forthcoming S4. It seems the VAG group is concerned about rising fuel costs and is focusing on fuel economics in respect to performance which most Audites have grown accustomed too.

The body will be the same as the base model A4 and will not have any type of distinction aside from the body panels. The newer S4 will feature a new magnetic differential similiar to that found in ZF Technologies version for BMW. Weight is rumoured to be around 3900ilbs which only adds certain dismay concerning the power to weight ratio.

Audi and a possible F1 team ?

There is now a small rumour Audi might chair a seat in F1, although this is just a rumour what is a known fact now is that Hans Stuck former driver for BMW has left and is joining the VW group and has hinted at a possible F1 team in the future. He will currently be a liason titled "Motorsport Representative".

Hockenheimring: Audi race report

New Audi A4 DTM dominates in racing début

o Commanding 1-2-3 victory at Hockenheim DTM opener
o Mattias Ekström wins ahead of Timo Scheider and Tom Kristensen
o Martin Tomczyk shines in fight to make up ground

Ingolstadt/Hockenheim - With a commanding 1-2-3 victory at the Hockenheim DTM season opener Audi yet again, underpinned the brand's slogan "Vorsprung durch Technik", not only on the road but on the circuit. 93,000 spectators (throughout the weekend) witnessed an impressive premiere showing of the new Audi A4 DTM, which outperformed the competition in its racing début, clinching positions one, two, three and five.

The fourth-generation A4 DTM features leading-edge technology with numerous innovative details, particularly in the area of aerodynamics. Using advanced CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) calculations, the engineers intensively worked on the airflow around and through the vehicle. In addition, the technology specialists at Audi Sport managed to lower the vehicle's centre of gravity and achieved a further reduction of the car's dry weight. With the four-litre V8 that delivers approximately 460 hp, the engineers found further development potential as well.

At the season opener at Hockenheim the new Audi A4 DTM was the quickest car straight from the start. In the race the Audi drivers impressively demonstrated that their new "company" car is not only competitive throughout a lap but delivers consistently fast lap times along with immediate reliability. On average, race winner Mattias Ekström beat the best Merc by over half a second per lap - a margin of mammoth proportions in the DTM.

At Hockenheim, the race was crucially determined as early as at the start: Mattias Ekström managed to take off a bit quicker than his team colleague Timo Scheider, who had started from the pole position. The Swede had to briefly relinquish his lead only during the two mandatory pit stops. His eleventh victory in the DTM now makes Ekström the most successful Audi DTM driver of all time.

Timo Scheider followed Mattias Ekström over the entire race distance like a shadow and saw the chequered flag in second place merely 0.824 seconds behind the title defender. By finishing as the runner-up, Scheider repeated his best DTM result so far, achieved in the 2007 season finale.

Tom Kristensen, who had started from position five on the grid, finished third to complete Audi's total triumph. The Dane benefited from perfect pit stops and a good strategy of Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline, which caused him to move in front of the two Mercedes cars driven by Bruno Spengler and Paul di Resta. Impressive, as well, was Martin Tomczyk's fight to make up ground. Tomczyk had dropped to ninth place at the start, but managed to improve to fifth. Shortly before race end, he even caught up with Bruno Spengler.

Solid performances were also shown by the drivers of the 2007-spec A4 cars: Oliver Jarvis, Mike Rockenfeller, Alexandre Prémat and Markus Winkelhock captured places nine to twelfth, respectively. Finishing the very first DTM race in his career in ninth place, the 24-year-old Brit Oliver Jarvis barely missed scoring a point. Jarvis clearly won the duel between the DTM newcomers against former Formula 1 star Ralf Schumacher.

Katherine Legge finished her first DTM race as well. Her team-mate Christijan Albers retired after a collision with Ralf Schumacher in the early stages of the race.

The Audi squad will not have a lot of time to celebrate its triumph at Hockenheim: as early as next weekend, the second 2008 DTM round is on the agenda at Ochersleben - a circuit on which Audi has traditionally been very strong.

Quotes after the race

Dr Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): "This is really a superb start for the new Audi A4 DTM. It was obvious that this car delivers very good performance. The front row on the grid and three podium places in the first race - it's hard to wish a better result than this. Martin (Tomczyk) even came extremely close to clinching fourth place. A great achievement by the squad throughout the winter, as well as here on site. We were strong in terms of driving performance, and the pit stops - particularly with the new cars - were sensational. Now we've got a good base. Of course we need to continue working on it to sustain a consistently good performance."

Mattias Ekström (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #1): "The car was simply fantastic. I want to thank Audi Sport and everyone in my team who had a part in creating such a good car. These were the best prerequisites. I was able to really enjoy the race because the car did everything I expect a racing car to do. In the end, we clinched places one to three, which is great for the team. I think after such a good weekend, we definitely deserved this result."

Timo Scheider (GW:plus/Top Service Audi A4 DTM #10): "Starting with the completely new developed Audi A4 DTM after the winter break was a difficult task. Nobody would have expected us to strike like this on a circuit that used to be Mercedes territory. I want to really thank Audi and the Abt squad for this brilliant feat. They laid the foundation for what we achieved today. Except for my start, my race was perfect. I had a bit too much wheel spin, that's why Mattias (Ekström) passed me. I wasn't able to follow him too closely because my car would have had more understeer in that case. The car was good enough for winning the race. I think my team and I are strong enough to fight for podium places and also victories on numerous other occasions this year."

Tom Kristensen (Audi A4 DTM #9): "That was a superb race. Having started from fifth position on the grid, it was clear to me that I'd have to fight in a Mercedes sandwich. My crew had a good strategy and performed an excellent pit stop. When I left the pit lane, I fought for half a lap with Bruno Spengler before I was able to get away. A great feeling! But my two team-mates were already too far away at that point so that I took it easier, something I've never done before in the DTM. Places one to three on our rival's home circuit - that's a great feeling."

Martin Tomczyk (Red Bull Audi A4 DTM #2): "My race was good even though it hadn't started well. I lost a few places at the start. The car had a great setup and was running very well over the whole distance. After my second pit stop I caught Bruno (Spengler). It was a very tough but always fair duel. I was lacking a tiny bit of speed to overtake him. It was the first race, so a scoring points is more important than trying to force the issue."

Oliver Jarvis (Best Buddies Audi A4 DTM #15): "My start was great and I managed to move forwards to sixth place. In the first two turns, though, I had to let up a bit, and my tyres picked up some dirt, which caused the car to oversteer. When I pitted for the first time, I was in eighth place. Just as I was about to leave the pit lane, Ralf Schumacher came in and I had to stop briefly, which cost me a second. Bernd Schneider overtook us. At that point, our race became very tough. After the second pit stop 'Rocky' was really putting on the pressure. Too bad, that I wasn't able to score a point. Still, it was a good first race."

Mike Rockenfeller (S line Audi A4 DTM #18): "Of course tenth place isn't what we'd been hoping for this weekend. I started from twelfth place. The pace was okay. I had a very good start but lost four places as early as on the first lap. I was too passive for fear of having an accident. I should have attacked more. The performance in the race was okay, but we need to get stronger at Oschersleben. I want to thank my team for their work."

Alexandre Prémat (Audi Bank/Shell Helix Audi A4 DTM #14): "That was a very difficult race. Even the start wasn't good because my tyres were spinning too much and I lost ground. After that, there were some nice position fights. The car was difficult to drive because I didn't find a good setup all weekend. The car consistently changed between under- and oversteer. I am definitely disappointed about eleventh place. But I'm all the more delighted about Audi's places one to three for Mattias (Ekström), Timo (Scheider) and Tom (Kristensen)."

Markus Winkelhock (Playboy Audi A4 DTM #19): "The start was very good but I was driving a bit too defensively. I didn't want to take any risks and so I lost everything. Up to the first pit stop I was caught behind Mathias Lauda. Then we pitted twice in short succession, after which I drove 22 laps in one go. The car felt good, and I fought with Alex Prémat. I could have driven a bit faster but didn't want to take any risks in a fight with other Audi drivers. That's why I only managed to finish in twelfth place. It's unfortunate that we didn't do better in qualifying, otherwise a better result would have been possible."

Katherine Legge (Audi A4 DTM #20): "At my first DTM race the atmosphere was fantastic, which was a pleasant experience. Unfortunately, our race didn't go according to plan because we had a few problems. But we did finish and can learn from this."

Christijan Albers (Audi A4 DTM #21): "We had a very good day on Saturday, but Sunday was a bad day. I had a normal start. After that, I was fighting with Markus Winkelhock and the other Audi drivers. But then Ralf Schumacher came from behind and hit my right front wheel. As a result my suspension broke."

Hans-Jürgen Abt (Team Director Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline): "This was a sensational day. I really, really thank everyone. Everybody was fully in control while doing their job. The cars were perfectly prepared. Today, everything fit. Such a made-to-measure opening race is hard to imagine. But it wasn't sheer luck, but meticulous, detailed work throughout the winter. Congratulations to the entire team!"

Ernst Moser (Team Director Audi Sport Team Phoenix): "The race couldn't have been any better. A 1-2-3 victory for Audi is a great exploit and we're all very happy. We weren't able to keep the pace of the new A4 cars and fought with the Mercedes drivers. Oliver (Jarvis) did a superb job in his first race and made a great start. He's a fantastic fighter. I'm very satisfied. Behind him, Alex (Prémat) fought with Markus (Winkelhock). The boys showed a nice race. Unfortunately, we were a little too far at the back, but next time we'll get closer again."

Arno Zensen (Team Director Audi Sport Team Rosberg): "Congratulations to Audi, to Dr Wolfgang Ullrich and to the entire squad on clinching places one, two and three! Our race was unspectacular. I have to thank my pit crew because we had to manage although several of our people were absent due to illness. Nonetheless, the crew performed four very nice stops. Markus (Winkelhock) put up a great fight and could have driven faster. Still, finishing the race in ninth and the following places with cars from last year is okay. 'Rocky' drove a flawless race - today, that's all we were able to do."

From:DTM.net