Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Audi R15: The Forgotten Audi LMP

Hi everyone.

This blog post is about what I consider the forgotten Audi Le Mans car.  It tends to get overlooked because it wasn't as successful or long lived as other Audi LMPs.  However, it set two distance/speed records that will probably not be broken for a long time, and set the tone for its more successful successors.

The Audi R15 was created as the successor to the R10 and to provide a continued answer to the Peugeot 908.  While the R10 had the 908 beaten on speed and reliability at their first meeting at Le Mans in 2007, the newer 908 had more development potential, which showed in early 2008.  Audi won Le Mans thanks to better tactics, reliability and adaptability, and they closed the gap in performance during the season.  But the R10 was a relative dead end as far as development.

The R15 was hoped to be more agile and easier to drive than either the R10 or 908.  And though the car showed potential in testing, between rain and accidents in testing, the R15's test regimen wasn't as successful as hoped, and ended up showing up to Le Mans with teething problems that didn't even show up at the car's successful debut at the 2009 12 Hours of Sebring.  In so winning at Sebring, the R15 set the all time distance record for a victor at the Sebring 12 Hours, a record that still stands and will likely stand for a while yet.

Le Mans, though, was a relative disaster by Audi Sport standards.  One car finished well back due to mechanical problems, one crashed out, and the other finished 3rd after battling overheating issues and a lack of top speed during the event.  

Hence, it can be argued that the R15 didn't live up to its hopes.  The R10 struggled with top speed vs the 908 in 2008 at most circuits.  This didn't hurt the R10 much as it won at tracks like Silverstone and Road Atlanta for the Petit Le Mans, where its handling advantage over the 908 worked in its favor.  But at Le Mans, with 5 zones were the fastest cars can easily hit speeds of over 200mph, the speed deficit showed.  Only by being better in rainy conditions, better strategy and tactics, and better durability did Audi conquer Peugeot at Le Mans in 2008.

At Petit Le Mans at Road America--a track that suited the early incarnation of the R15 just as well as the R10--Audi dominated in both wet and dry conditions, only for late race spins to cost them a likely win when the race was stopped due to a flooded track.

Keeping in mind the Le Mans performance deficit to Peugeot and other minor problems that held them back, Audi Sport redeveloped the R15 for 2010, keeping only the chassis, basic suspension, and the 5.5 liter V10 TDI engine and 5 speed gearbox.  Every body panel on the car was otherwise changed.  

That re-engineering did close the gap to Peugeot, but not completely, at Le Mans.  However, the pace was hard and record setting during the race.  And the effects showed with the Peugeots suffering terminal problems, leaving the slightly slower, but more consistent, and more durable Audi R15s to take a 1-2-3 finish at Le Mans.  And like at Sebring a year in a half earlier, set an all-time distance and average speed record that's unlikely to fall anytime soon.

Performance against Peugeot was on par for the rest of the Audi vs Peugeot encounters, though further victories eluded Audi until the R18--which was developed based on feedback and developments from the R15--entered use.  And thus, started a new generation of Audi Le Mans Prototype cars that featured smaller engines, enclosed cockpits, and, ultimately, hybrid systems.

Video of the early R15 in late 2008 being tested:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo4W2Ycejr8&t=31s

Audi Sport promo video released before the 2009 12 Hours of Sebring:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMZE6xEc-lM

And now the 2010 version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CELNVjHCk6A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxNVmMycSdU

And now some articles and galleries, first 2009

https://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4044/Audi-R15-TDI.html

2010:

https://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4480/Audi-R15-plus-TDI.html

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Audi R8: Where the Name for the Audi Supercar Originated

 

Hi everyone.
 
I've written a lot about the Audi R10 lately, but what came before it? One of the few Audi Le Mans cars that was more successful than it was. So successful in fact that Audi named their flagship supercar after it. The Audi R8. 
 
From 2000-2006, it won 80% of the races it entered, and influenced several features on the R10 and other cars that came in the R8's wake. We kind of owe modern Prototype road racing to it in many ways. 
 
It incorporated several F1 like technologies, including a roll over bar that withstood 3x what was required of it. It also spawned a successful customer racing program that took over when the factory team left to concentrate on the Audi Sport supported Bentley Le Mans Program for 2003 (which also used the R8's engine and electronics) and what ultimately became the R10. And it also spawned modular design, something that was taken further by the R10 and others that followed. This included a whole rear end assembly that could be changed in less than 5 minutes. 
 
Also of note for road cars, the R8 introduced to racing direct fuel injection for gasoline engines, inspired by then modern diesel technology. Now DFI is very widely used on road cars by many manufacturers, as it boosts both fuel economy and performance.
 
As the car raced in multiple year and some are even still encountered in vintage/historic racing, I decided that for the sake of brevity that I'd post the page to links on info and specs on all versions of the R8:
 
A couple of technical pages:
 
 
From a teaser post I made recently:
 
Onboard from Laguna Seca as driven by Mr. Le Mans himself:
 
Technical video hosted by a man who has worked on the R8 and other Audi prototypes for many years and helps keep those in historical racing running:
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Audi R10: Introduction into Modern Era Diesel-powered Auto Racing

 

Hi everyone.
 
This post is a change of pace--literally. Instead of talking about World War II or the technology from that period used in that conflict, I'm switching genres and time period. While my electricity was out after the Sunday windstorm, I started to get back into auto racing and the history of it. I won't be reaching back too far, in this case 2006-2008 with one of my favorite racing cars of all time, the Audi R10.
 
It was notable for being the first diesel powered car to win Le Mans, one of the first to have notable success in auto racing, period, and its design and construction influences top class Le Mans type racing cars nearly 15 years after it broke cover.
 
Even though diesel powered cars no longer race at Le Mans (that ended when Audi Sport withdrew from top flight prototype sports car racing in late 2016), the basic design of the R10 is still a design influence. Even though it's open cockpit (which became less common after 2008 and eventually totally phased out at Le Mans in 2017), it's chassis design is still pointing the direction to go. Almost all Le Mans Prototype cars still use a "all monocoque" chassis, where there's no bodywork covering the chassis beyond non-structural elements. This allows the whole front and rear clips of the car to be detached in big chunks for rapid changes of damaged parts, set up changes and chassis/suspension adjustments.
 
Then there's it's 5.5 liter V12 turbodiesel engine. Both the engine's basic design principals and being a diesel were outgrowths of the earlier R8 program (the current Audi super car and GT racers were named after the earlier R8 LMP car). Namely, the R8's (and Audi road car) direct gasoline injection system was an outgrowth of Audi's TDI (Turbocharged Direct diesel Injection) system, but applies to gasoline engines. With the R10, things came full circle.
The engine made over 650-700 horsepower and over 900 lbs/ft of torque. In a car that weighed 900-925 kg (depending on series rules and season the car competed in), and, initially, had no traction control (and even then barely worked most of the time, which the drivers actually appreciated it's minimal interference). When the R8 raced, traction control was illegal and only became legal in 2006 (though the R10 initially ran without it).
 
The car didn't just impress with its speed, but relative near silence on account of the turbocharged, low-revving diesel engine. When on considered that the earlier R8 (which used a 3.6 liter turbocharged V8) wasn't especially loud for a race car, that's saying a lot.
It also helped introduce the modern long wheelbase design into LMP racing. This was partly to keep as much weight as possible within the car's wheelbase for handling reasons. It also enhanced handling at high speeds and in rapid direction changes. It also allowed the R10 to run to near the maximum LMP1 car length of 4650mm, given that LMP1 cars from 2006 to 2020 were restricted in terms of front and rear overhang (distance of bodywork allowed to extend beyond the confines of the wheelbase), though wheelbase (distance between front and rear wheel centerlines) was unrestricted. Formula 1 cars and Indy Cars, for example, also run such long wheelbases for the same reasons.
 
For reference, Audi Sport compared the R10's wheelbase to that of the then similarly new first generation Audi Q7 full size SUV, and is still comparable to full size sedans and full size SUVs. This, however, posed no impediment to agility for reasons mentioned above.
The only Audi prototype that was more dominant or accomplished in racing was the earlier R8, who's DNA was all over the R10. From here on out in this post are links to info, photos and videos.
 
Evo Magazine article from 2008 track test: https://www.evo.co.uk/audi/6720/audi-r10
 
Photo gallery from same test:
 
Technical blogs with photos and illustrations: http://www.mulsannescorner.com/audir10.html
 
 
And now videos, including a legendary drive from then Audi Sport factory driver (and now Audi Sport Formula E team manager) Allan McNish from worst to first at Petit Le Mans in 2008.
 
 
 
McNish part 1:
 
Part 2:
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