Category: Audi

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Audi Video

Audi RS3 growls around the Nordschleife

Audi RS3 prototype

We really like the sound of Audi’s inline five cylinder. It’s a unique growl that heightens the senses. And thankfully it seems Ingolstadt is intent on keeping its famed 2.5 litre five pot in the next-gen RS3.

Here’s a clip of an RS3 test mule being put through its paces around the Nürburgring. The body is pretty much standard S3—look to the A3 clubsport quattro for new RS3 inspiration—but there’s no mistaking this car’s five cylinder heart.

Peak power in the RS3 will have to be at least 300kW (400hp) just to keep people interested, but perhaps, like that clubsport quattro Audi will go well beyond 300kW.

Previously it has been suggested we might see the RS3 this year. Latest guesswork says we should expect the RS3 in Geneva next March. We’ll be waiting!

[Thanks to John for the tip]

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Audi Mercedes-Benz Volkswagen

Mercedes v Volkswagen: Four-cylinder warfare

Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG engine

Mercedes-Benz has returned serve to Volkswagen in the increasingly public battle for four-cylinder supremacy.

Recent concepts from Volkswagen and Audi have shown the Volkswagen Group is looking to push beyond the 300kW (400hp) mark with a revised version of its familiar EA888 2.0 litre.

Jochen Martin Schmid, AMG Powertrain Development engineer, has boldly stated Mercedes will win this battle.

“We cannot, and will not, let them get ahead of us,” Schmid declared. “If that means the start of a new power war for four-cylinder cars, then it’s the start of a new power war for four-cylinder cars.”

Schmid gets specific, too, saying the 2.0 litre used in the A45 AMG has more development potential.

“Theirs is based on the EA888, right? That’s a pretty old engine now and ours is a completely new concept with room for development,” he said.

The cause of these power games can be traced back to Volkswagen’s recruitment of Friedrich Eichler, the man who oversaw the introduction of AMG’s first four-cylinder engine, used in the A45. With 265kW/450Nm it currently holds rank as the world’s most powerful production-based four-cylinder engine.

Despite Schmid’s dismissal of the EA888 engine, Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Audi Chief Technical Officer, is showing faith in his product.

“For production, we have to change the cylinder-head, because in the EA888 it has the exhaust manifold in the cylinder-head now,” Hackenberg explained when talking about the 309kW/450Nm TT quattro sport concept. “With this engine and its output, it produces too much heat in the head to keep it like that, so we have to change it.

“But, apart from swapping in some stronger parts, it can still be made within our production system.”

The net result of all this is the fact it’s looking like the A45 AMG Black Series, or whatever Mercedes has up its sleeve, will have to push beyond 310kW (415hp) if it’s going to win this war.

You know, it’s not all that long ago we used to salivate over the 309kW/430Nm 4.2 litre V8 in the B7 RS4. And soon we’ll be having that sort of power in a Golf-sized hatch. Keep fighting Mercedes and Volkswagen, keep fighting!

[Source: motoring.com.au | Thanks to John for the tip]

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Audi Porsche Toyota Video WEC

2014 24 Hours of Le Mans in 3 minutes

2014 24 Hours of Le Mans

Couldn’t sit down all day Sunday to watch the 24 Hours of Le Mans? Then fear not because here’s all the best bits put into a three minute video. It’s produced by Michelin so see how many times you can count their logo during the video!

There’s also a bonus clip with just under a minute of close action slow motion footage as well.

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Audi WEC

2014 LM24: Audi post-race review

2014 24 Hours of Le Mans

A few days on and Audi’s one-two victory at the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans is no less remarkable. This year’s race was a true test of endurance and when the #2 R18 e-tron quattro (Fässler/Lotterer/Tréluyer) came in to have a new turbo fitted, the sweet taste of champagne would have been the last thing in mind.

Such was the attrition, with Toyota first, and then Porsche, falling by the wayside, that the adage of never giving up proved true and Audi’s thirteenth Le Mans win was the result.

A fantastic result for a team who knows how to win. Further illustrated with the second place finish for the #1 car (di Grassi/Gené/Kristensen). This car also needed its turbo replaced and such is the precision of the Audi crew that they were able to reduce the time in pit lane compared with the repairs to the #2 car.

Audi likes to brag about its efficiency, their pit guys showed that efficiency comes in many forms. Perhaps more than usual Audi’s mechanics have a real stake in this result and it was a thoroughly deserved win for Audi Sport Team Joest.

Race winner André Lotterer summed his team up best: “They know Le Mans and what needs to be done.”

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Audi WEC

Audi wins 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans

Audi R18 e-tron quattro wins 2014 Le Mans

The #2 R18 e-tron quattro (Marcel Fässler, André Lotterer, Benoît Tréluyer) has won an amazing thirteenth victory for Audi at the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Providing a formation one-two finish the #1 R18 (Lucas di Grassi, Tom Kristensen, Marc Gené) came home in P2. While the #8 Toyota TS040 (Anthony Davidson, Nicolas Lapierre, Sébastien Buemi) finished third.

This was a true test of endurance and all three podium winners spent extended time in the pits with problems.

Porsche has much to be proud of but will be disappointed that neither of its cars were classified finishers.

We’ll have more, including a pictorial update in coming days.

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Audi Porsche WEC

2014 LM24: Wake up Australia!

2014 24 Hours of Le Mans

With less than three hours to race Mark Webber’s #20 Porsche 919 Hybrid is leading the 24 Hours of Le Mans!

Mark’s car is not the fastest and has assumed the lead due to problems with its competitors. First, the #7 Toyota TS040 looked very comfortable and set for a well earned victory. The car dominated the race for 14 hours until an electrical fault with the wiring loom forced the car into retirement.

That gave the lead to the #2 Audi R18 which enjoyed a solid three lap gap to the cars behind. Drama soon befell that car when it came into the pits for a turbo replacement. The car lost over 20 minutes and resumed in P3, some two laps down on the #1 Audi.

Remarkably, then, the #1 Audi was leading the race. Remember, this was the car that was built from the ground up overnight during the week after the original chassis was crashed by Loic Duval during the first qualifying session on Wednesday. Marc Gene was drafted into the team to replace Duval who was ruled out, despite not suffering any serious injury.

Also, this meant Mark’s Porsche, with Timo Bernhard at the wheel, was now in second place. It couldn’t happen, could it?

More drama followed when the #1 Audi also had to pit for a new turbo. Suddenly, the #20 Porsche found istelf in the lead. It’s a lead the car still holds, albeit some 50 seconds ahead of the #2 Audi, which has showed outstanding speed since its turbo was replaced.

It’s not clear if it’s due to strategy or outright pace, but the Audi is clearly faster than the Porsche right now. For the leading 919, with Bernhard at the wheel, young Kiwi Brendon Hartley would usually be the next driver in the car. We expect there will be one more driver change before the end of the race. Will Mark Webber be given the responsibility to bring the car home?

One thing is clear, Porsche is so far exceeding all expectations, even if largely due to the misfortune of others. But, as the saying goes, to finish first, first you have to finish. And we could be set for an all-time classic finish, so get your arse in front of your laptop, or on the couch and cheer Mark home!

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Audi Porsche Toyota Video WEC

2014 Le Mans video updates

#7 Toyota TS040 Hybrid

The 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans is approaching half race distance and to date the race has been dominated by the #7 Toyota TS040 Hybrid. Alex Wurz is at the wheel right now and he holds a lead of over 2 minutes from the #2 Audi R18 e-tron quattro with André Lotterer at the wheel.

Intermittent and heavy rain patches affected the race early and ended the chances of the #8 Toyota and #3 Audi after a coming together on the Mulsanne Straight. The Toyota was able to limp back into the pits and get back running again and it’s now in P6 13 laps behind the leader. Alas for the Audi its race was over.

Porsche seemed to be running a split strategy with its two 919 Hybrids. The #14 car was running hot early in the race, mixing it with the leaders, until an electrical glitch limiting the car’s speed after 30 minutes forced the car into pitlane. Meanwhile, Timo Bernhard’s more circumspect approach in the #20 919 paid dividends when for a short while he lead the race. His lack of outright pace made him vulnerable, though, and Bernhard was soon swallowed up by the #7 Toyota and the #2 and #1 Audis.

Mark Webber has finally had his first competition experience at Le Mans after two failed attempts in the late 90s with Mercedes. He put in some solid laps, driving well into the night, but said after his stint they’re having to manage some problems. The car is running relatively smoothly in fourth place but is two laps behind.

There’s a selection of video highlights for you after the break, along with the following links to help you foolow the action.

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Audi Porsche Toyota WEC

Toyota claims pole for 2014 Le Mans

2014 24 Hours of Le Mans qualifying

The third and final qualifying session for the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans has just finished and the #7 Toyota TS040 Hybrid (Wurz/Sarrazin/Nakajima) has claimed pole position with a time of 3:21.789, set by Kazuki Nakajima.

Porsche’s return to the outright category has gone well so far with its #14 919 Hybrid (Dumas/Jani/Lieb) posting a best lap of 3:22.146, good enough to be on the front row. The #20 Porsche (Bernhard/Webber/Hartley) will start from P4 (3:22.908). This car held provisional pole (3:24.136) after Wednesday’s qualifying, but did not improve its time.

Audi had a less than smooth qualifying after a massive crash by Loic Duval in the #1 R18 e-tron quattro during the opening session on Wednesday. Remarkably, he suffered no serious injury but has been ruled out of the race and has been replaced by Marc Gene. The car was a total wreck an Audi has used a new tub to build a new car and will start with three cars as planned.

The best placed R18 is the #3 car (Albuquerque/Bonanomi/Jarvis) which will start from P5 (3:23.271). Starting from P6 will be the #2 R18 (Fassler/Lotterer/Treluyer) with a best time of 3:24.276. The recreated #1 R18 (Di Grassi/Gene/Kristensen) is the last placed of the main front runners and will line up from P7 after setting a time of 3:25.814.

Toyota’s second TS040 will line up from P3 after the #8 car (Davidson/Lapierre/Buemi) lapped the 13.6km Le Mans circuit in 3:22.523.

Taking a look at the total lap count of the top seven cars from qualifying is interesting. The Toyotas and Audis had lap counts in the high 30s, while the Porsche lap counts were in the mid-teens. There’s probably countless theories as to why the 919 was relatively inactive, but if nothing else the car clearly has raw pace.

We’ve got an onboard video for you after the break, filmed from the #7 Toyota TS040. We’ll also update this post with official statements from the three main teams as they come to hand.

[Source: Autosport]

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Audi Porsche Video WEC

Audi welcomes Porsche back to Le Mans

Audi R18 e-tron quattro

It would appear Audi is very happy to have Porsche back chasing outright success at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. To illustrate that fact they sent an Audi R18 e-tron quattro on a drive from Ingolstadt to Stuttgart to deliver a special message. It’s pretty cool.

With 27 race wins between them they are the most successful marques in the race’s long and proud history. And yet, we reckon it’s Toyota both need to be watching ahead of next weekend’s race.

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Audi Porsche Toyota WEC

Toyota favourites heading to Le Mans

WEC 24 Hours of Le Mans official test session

The Toyota TS040 Hybrid has firmed as the car to beat at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. Two wins in the opening rounds of the WEC season had already set up Toyota as the 2014 front runners and the TS040’s abilities at the Circuit de la Sarthe were confirmed after last weekend’s official test session, when the two Toyotas topped the lap charts.

Two weeks out from the event this is the only opportunity for the teams get to run the full Le Mans layout. After the two day session the fastest time around the 13.6km circuit was set by the #8 Toyota (3:23:014).

Audi set the early pace with its R18 e-tron quattro, but in the end the defending champions had to make do with the third and fourth best times. Audi is the only of the LMP1 teams to run three cars and the remaining R18 split the two Porsche 919 Hybrids. The #14 Porsche was fifth and Mark Webber’s #20 919 the seventh and slowest of the factory-backed LMP1 runners.

Full statements from the three teams can be read after the break. The 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans will take place on 14–15 June with Australian television coverage available on Foxtel’s Speed TV channel.

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Audi Video

VIDEO: Audi A3 clubsport quattro

Audi A3 clubsport quattro

Remember the Audi A3 clubsport quattro? How could you forget it! It’s that RS3 in concept clothing now on show at Wörthersee. It’s got stupid amounts of horsepower—it even puts the GTI Roadster in the shade—and a massive don’t stuff with me air brake on the boot lid.

Audi Germany has put together this short clip showing the making process before letting the beast strut its stuff on the track.

Drool.

[Thanks to John for the tip]

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Audi Video

A short history of the TT gang

Audi TT

Got a couple of minutes to spare? Then here’s a a short video from Audi UK bringing you up to speed on all things TT.

As you’ll see the first gen started off all French curves and bendy and now its becoming aluminium rulers and angular. To us, all three generations of TT look pretty damn fine. But so far our pick is the middle child.

Although, we are very keen to see this new dash display in action.

[Thanks to John for the tip]

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