Audi R8 (racing prototype)

Audi
R 8
Production period:	1999-2005
Class :	race car
Body versions :	Roadster
Engines:	Petrol engines : 3.6 liters (404–449 kW)
Length:	4650 mm
Width:	2000 mm
Height:	1080 mm
Wheelbase :
Empty weight :	900-950 kg
successor	Audi R10 TDI

Under the name Audi R8 which are since 1999 in the first place Le Mans prototype from Audi announced that in the 24 Hours of Le Mans have won five victories.

The racing car, which was used from 2000 to 2006, is one of the most successful sports prototypes of all time, with 62 victories in 79 races.

prehistory

In 1997, several plants were active in endurance races, and so Audi Motorsport decided in 1998 to take part from 1999 onwards. R8 was assigned as the code of the project and a V8 turbo engine was developed. Audi commissioned Dallara with the R8R, an open roadster similar to the BMW V12 LMR built by Williams F1 . In view of the successful closed GT1 racing cars such as the Porsche 911 GT1 , Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR and Toyota GT-One and the rule change to LM-GTP, Audi was no longer sure whether this concept, which was at least one lap faster, was not the better one. In the autumn , rtn in Norfolk also received the order to build a coupé, the R8C .

Premiere with Audi R8R and R8C

Audi R8R 1999

Audi R8C 1999

In 1999 the Audis took part in races for the first time, at Sebring and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. There, the Audi R8C Coupé from the British, which had been built in a shorter time and was much less tested, proved to be unreliable, in contrast to the Audi R8R. The roadster was used by the experienced Joest team so that reliability was ensured. Due to a lack of speed, the Audis were not candidates for victory, but achieved third and fourth place after the competition failed - the latter even after three gear changes.

Based on this experience, the R8 was developed together with Joest for 2000 . The R8C was put on hold and experience from development flowed into the Bentley Speed ​​8 .

At the same time, Mercedes, BMW and Toyota withdrew from sports car racing in favor of Formula 1 . Porsche decided not to use a new racing car with a V10 engine and used it to develop the engine for the Porsche Carrera GT .

Successes 2000

Audi R8

The new R8 immediately won the Sebring 12-hour race and the Le Mans 24-hour race, thereby announcing the changing of the guard for last year's winner BMW V12 LMR, which was no longer developed and whose works team did not compete. The rest of the season was also successful with victories in Petit Le Mans and the American Le Mans Series .

For the 1000 km races on the Nürburgring , which were revived after a decade of break, the strong German teams from BMW and Audi were considered favorites. In the rain, however, the bizarre front-engined Panoz LMP-1 from Jan Magnussen / David Brabham won ahead of a BMW V12 LMR, an Audi R8 and the second Panoz.

Dominance from 2001

Between 2000 and 2005, the Audi R8 won the famous Le Mans 24-hour race five times. Three victories in a row were achieved by 2002, which meant that Audi was able to keep the trophy and has been exhibiting it in the company museum in Ingolstadt ever since . In 2003 the Bentley was given precedence within the group and won with the unofficial support of the factory team and Joest against the R8 of the customer team.

On April 25, 2001, Michele Alboreto had a fatal accident during test drives due to a puncture in the R8 on the oval next to the EuroSpeedway Lausitz . Audi then equipped the R8 with air pressure sensors in the tires in order to detect a "creeping puncture" at an early stage.

The victories at Le Mans and the American Le Mans Series were mostly double or triple successes by Audi drivers. Only the Cadillac Northstar LMP were represented as factory competitors, otherwise only private teams or small manufacturers such as Panoz, Lola , Zytek , Courage , Riley & Scott and Reynard .

With the restructuring of the two overall victorious prototype classes LMP900 and LMP675 into a hierarchical structure with faster LMP1 for works and more professional private teams and cheaper LMP2, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest introduced new technical regulations. All older cars were allowed to continue to run as so-called 'hybrids' until 2006 with modifications. Audi decided not to develop a new vehicle for this transition period, but instead had to compete in the ALMS and the 24 Hours of Le Mans with reduced engine power from 2003 , and in 2005 in Le Mans with just 520 hp, 50 kg additional weight and 80 instead of the usual 90 liter tank capacity.

The Audi R8 in its last race at Lime Rock Park in 2006

At the end of 2005 the Audi R8 was officially decommissioned and a street sports car of the same name was announced. In the ALMS, the racing prototype was also used after the premiere of the R10 in Sebring until mid-2006. On July 1, 2006, the Audi R8 contested its last race in Lakeville's Lime Rock Park . Audi Sport North America started in Lime Rock for the last time with the “good old” R8. For the farewell race in the USA, Audi Sport came up with a special paint job for the R8: the names of all 18 drivers who had won the R8 races could be seen on the vehicle, as well as the names of the 23 racetracks around the world on which the R8 was driven won - from the successful debut in Sebring in March 2000 to the 61st triumph in Houston . At the wheel of the R8 in the last race were Rinaldo Capello and Allan McNish , the leaders in the LMP1 category of the American Le Mans Series at the time. Capello took 18 wins with the R8, only Frank Biela was more successful with 21 wins.

The successor in racing from 2006 onwards was the R10 TDI , which was powered by a 5.5-liter V12 turbodiesel engine with 475 kW (646 hp) and 1200 Nm. The TDI-Audi was therefore used a year earlier than a diesel from Peugeot . The R10 TDI continued the success story of the R8 with three overall Le Mans victories from 2006 to 2008.

List of achievements

• 2000
  • Winner 24 Hours of Le Mans (one-two-three)
  • Winner 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Winner " Petit Le Mans "
  • Third 1000 km race on the Nürburgring
  • American Le Mans Series winner

• 2001
  • Winner 24 Hours of Le Mans (one-two)
  • Winner 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Winner "Petit Le Mans"
  • American Le Mans Series winner
  • Winner of the European Le Mans Series

• 2002
  • Winner 24 Hours of Le Mans (one-two-three)
  • Winner 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Winner "Petit Le Mans"
  • American Le Mans Series winner

• 2003
  • Winner 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Winner "Petit Le Mans"
  • American Le Mans Series winner
  • Winner 1000 km race of Spa-Francorchamps and 1000 km Le Mans

Audi R8, Johnny Herbert , 2004

• 2004
  • Winner 24 Hours of Le Mans (one-two-three)
  • Winner American Le Mans Series (13 wins in 14 races)
  • Winner Le Mans Endurance Series
  • Winner 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Winner of the Monza 1000 km race
  • Winner 1000 km race on the Nürburgring
  • Silverstone 1000km winner

• 2005
  • Winner 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans
  • Silverstone 1000km winner
  • American Le Mans Series winner

Technical specifications

Performance data of the Audi R8C / R8R as it was used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1999:

• V8 engine
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 600 HP power
• approx. 900 kg weight (with driver)
• 345+ km / h top speed

Performance data of the Audi R8 as it was used in the 24-hour race of Le Mans and in the American Le Mans Series from 2000 to 2002:

• V8 engine (from 2001 with FSI )
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 610 HP power
• approx. 900 kg weight (with driver)
• 335+ km / h top speed

Performance data of the Audi R8 as it was used in the Le Mans 24-hour race in 2003:

• V8 engine FSI
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 550 hp power
• approx. 900 kg weight (with driver)
• 325+ km / h top speed

Performance data of the Audi R8 as it was used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and in the American Le Mans Series in 2004:

• V8 engine with FSI
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 550 hp power
• approx. 900 kg weight (with driver)
• 325+ km / h top speed

Performance data of the Audi R8 as it was used in the Le Mans 24-hour race in 2005:

• V8 engine with FSI
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 520 hp power
• 950 kg weight (with driver)
• 310+ km / h top speed

Performance data of the Audi R8 as it was used in the American Le Mans Series in 2005:

• V8 engine with FSI
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 550 hp power
• approx. 900 kg weight (with driver)
• 325+ km / h top speed

Performance data of the Audi R8 as it was used for three races in the American Le Mans Series in 2006:

• V8 engine with FSI
• 3600 cm ³ capacity
• 520 hp power
• approx. 930 kg weight (with driver)
• 310+ km / h top speed

Web links

Commons : Audi R8 (racing prototype)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files