Tag Archives: Baretzky

New Rules Same Result – Audi R18 TDI #106

New regulations, mandating a smaller motor and smaller fuel cell presented Audi with a new challenge for it’s 2011 Le Mans Challenge.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Ulrich Baretzky was responsible for designing R18 TDI to meet the new challenge and elected for a Coupé body,

Audi R8C, Goodwood Festival Of Speed

a body type not seen on an Audi Le Mans challenger since the Peter Elleray designed Audi R8C, seen above, built in 1999.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

The single piece carbon-fiber composite aluminum honeycomb monocoque was manufactured by Dallara in Italy.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

To improve the handling the R18 TDI is fitted with taller and wider front tyres, by effectively moving the mass of the car forwards the balance of the the car is better optimised for to create better front tyre temperatures which improve mechanical grip.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

The L shaped tube in front of the cockpit is a Pitot tube for measuring airflow, this could be useful information for determining the aerodynamic balance of the car or more likely to help the engineers determine the engine settings for the motor which is fed air by the duct above the cockpit.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Unlike the previous R15 TDI Le Mans challengers fitted with a pneumatic gear selection system the R18 TDI six speed gearbox was fitted with an electronic gear change system, the main benefit of which was to save weight.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

The fuel tank situated behind the cockpit was restricted to 65 litres / 14 imperial gallons comparable to that found in a large, European, daily driver.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

The motor was restricted in size to just 3.7 litres / 225 cui for turbocharged diesel powered motors and so a single turbocharged V6 replaced the twin turbocharged 5.5 litre / 335 cui V10 used to power the Audi R15 TDI.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

With only 532 hp, adown from 590 hp on the previous years V10 the R18 TDI chassis #106 seen here at Goodwood, driven by Benoit Tréluyer, Marcel Fässler, Andre Lotterer was three seconds a lap slower than the 2010 R15 TDI Plus, but still qualified on pole for the 2011 Le Mans 24 hour race.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

The 2011 Le Mans 24 hours proved to be a game of cat and mouse between the Audi and Peugeot teams. Audi had the advantage of outright speed, good tyre durability – capable of going 44 laps on a set of slicks, but poor fuel economy – only going 11 laps on a tank of diesel.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Peugeot meanwhile could run 12 laps on a tank of diesel, but only 36 laps on a set of tyres.

Audi R18 TDI, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Audi’s cause was not helped when Allan McNish crashed the #3 entry out of the race in the first hour after tangling with a back marker in an incident from which everyone miraculously managed to walk away.

Seven hours later the #1 Audi driven by Mike Rockenfeller was involved in a similar incident from which he also walked away.
After the a 2 hour safety car period during which the track safety barriers were repaired the #1 Audi was left to fend off a three car onslaught from the diesel V8 powered Peugeot’s which did not suffer their first serious set back until the #7 Peugeot driven by Alexander Wurz hit the barriers and lost 3 laps.

The #1 Audi driven by Benoit, Marcel and Andre manged to pit for the final time without losing the lead and held on to cross the line, just 13 seconds ahead of the fastest Peugeot after 24 hours of racing.

#106 seen here a couple of weeks after the victory appears to have been retired from active competition thereafter. Apart from the Le Mans test weekend in April 2011 where Marco Bonanomi joined the cars regular squad of three drivers to set 4th fastest time the cars only other appearance was in the Spa 1000kms where Benoit, Marcel and Andre finished 5th from 2nd on the grid.

Thanks for joining me on this “New Rules Same Result” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a British Group C Le Mans Challenger. Don’t forget to come back now !

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3,362 Miles – Audi R15 TDI Plus #204

After the disappointment of losing their first Le Mans in six years to Peugeot in 2009 Audi returned in 2010 with R15 TDI Plus cars developed by a team led by Ulrich Baretzky.

Audi R15 TDI Plus, Cholmondley Pageant of Power

The immediately obvious difference between the new challenger and the 2009 R15 TDI were the new head light configuration and the loss of some bodywork panels to reveal the front crash structure.

Audi R15 TDI Plus, Cholmondley Pageant of Power

Less obvious differences included lower front wings and a ‘simplified’ approach the previous years aerodynamics.

Audi R15 TDI Plus, Cholmondley Pageant of Power

Despite restrictions mandated to reduce the 2010 Le Mans Cars power by reducing the size of the restrictor plate and reducing the boost pressure of the turbochargers the R15 TDI Plus Audi engineers claimed the output of the 2010 5.5 litre 335 cui Turbo Diesel V10 was around 590 hp as it had been in 2009.

Audi R15 TDI Plus, Cholmondley Pageant of Power

Today’s featured chassis seen at Cholmondley Pageant of Power last year is believed to be #204 which was completed in time for Timo Bernhard, Romain Dumas and Mike Rockenfeller to qualify 2nd for the 2010 Spa 1000kms race in which they finished 5th.

Audi R15 TDI Plus, Cholmondley Pageant of Power

For the 2010 Le Mans 24 Hours a month later the same trio qualified 5th, fastest of the Audi’s, but over two seconds slower than the pole winning Peugeot.

To their advantage the Audi team had better economy and ultimately better reliability so that when the final Peugeot retired Audi were left to sweep the podium with today’s featured car #204 finishing ahead of team mates, André Lotterer, Marcel Fässler and Benoît Tréluyer in the #8 TDI Plus with Tom Kristensen, Allan McNish and Rinaldo Capello finishing third in the #7.

Astonishingly given that the Le Mans track has been slowed down with the addition of chicanes on the Mulsanne Straight and numerous new corners between the pits and Tetre Rouge all three Audi’s covered a greater distance than the Porsche 917 driven by Gils van Lennep and Dr Helmut Marko in 1971, with the winning car raising the record from 3,107.7 miles to 3,362.061 miles, both records requiring 397 laps of the differently configured track to be completed.

#204 made one final appearance during the 2010 season at Petit Le Mans where Allan, Tom and Rinaldo qualified 4th and finished 3rd behind two Peugeot’s.

Thanks for joining me on this ‘3362 Miles’ edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a Le Mans competitor from Triumph. Don’t forget to come back now !

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