The latest auto news, reviews, prices, product and vehicle releases. Apr
25th
Stay connected Subscribe to our RSS feed
The FIA World Endurance Championship will resume in Belgium on May 4 at Spa-Francorchamps. German car manufacturer Audi will bring a new version of its R18.
A standard R18 won the season's opener at Silverstone a few weeks ago. And Audi will bring a new long-tail variant of the hybrid sports car to be tested in Belgium. Audi Sport Team Joest thus wants to optimally prepare for the Le Mans 24 Hours, the pinnacle of the season for the sports prototypes held on June 22 and 23.
Audi will run three cars in two versions of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro that, also visually, can be clearly distinguished from each other will be running at Spa.
The winners of the opening round, Loïc Duval/Tom Kristensen/Allan McNish, and the current World Endurance Champions Marcel Fässler/André Lotterer/Benoît Tréluyer, will be starting with the aerodynamic variant that was victorious at Silverstone. It generates optimal downforce for track types such as the 7.004-kilometer circuit at Spa.
The third Audi R18 e-tron quattro, driven by Marc Gené/Lucas di Grassi/Oliver Jarvis, on the other hand uses an aero package that has been optimized for the high-speed Le Mans track and can be recognized by its lengthened rear section (long tail, low drag).
The comparison, however, is not focused on absolute lap times. Instead, the team will analyze the time differences to be expected between both models on individual track sectors. In addition, practical aspects of using the second body version will be reviewed and data generated for the fielding in the race at Le Mans.
A standard R18 won the season's opener at Silverstone a few weeks ago. And Audi will bring a new long-tail variant of the hybrid sports car to be tested in Belgium. Audi Sport Team Joest thus wants to optimally prepare for the Le Mans 24 Hours, the pinnacle of the season for the sports prototypes held on June 22 and 23.
Audi will run three cars in two versions of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro that, also visually, can be clearly distinguished from each other will be running at Spa.
 |
| Photo: Audi Motorsport |
The winners of the opening round, Loïc Duval/Tom Kristensen/Allan McNish, and the current World Endurance Champions Marcel Fässler/André Lotterer/Benoît Tréluyer, will be starting with the aerodynamic variant that was victorious at Silverstone. It generates optimal downforce for track types such as the 7.004-kilometer circuit at Spa.
The third Audi R18 e-tron quattro, driven by Marc Gené/Lucas di Grassi/Oliver Jarvis, on the other hand uses an aero package that has been optimized for the high-speed Le Mans track and can be recognized by its lengthened rear section (long tail, low drag).
The comparison, however, is not focused on absolute lap times. Instead, the team will analyze the time differences to be expected between both models on individual track sectors. In addition, practical aspects of using the second body version will be reviewed and data generated for the fielding in the race at Le Mans.