Audi LMP1 Discussion

[joeb]

Originally Posted by PointDSM

That car is pure sex in flat black! Pure....fricken....sex!

Whatever happened to race cars being brutally mean machines, in addition to being pieces of art?

I quite enjoy it as well. Maybe they will run the 3rd car in this scheme at Le Mans. (wishful thinking)

[chernaudi]

That new video does make it seem that the tubs are the same design. We have to remember that it's believed that the original press photos were intentionally distorted in photoshop by Audi prior to release.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by chernaudi

That new video does make it seem that the tubs are the same design. We have to remember that it's believed that the original press photos were intentionally distorted in photoshop by Audi prior to release.

I have to agree. After having a closer look at it, the nose actually "appears" to be wider, but this is due to the bodywork panels on either side of the nose sitting much lower than on the sprint package. Same monocoque then


I am now turning my attention to the back of the car. There seems to be something interesting in respect of the exhaust layout.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by gwyllion

The LM aero package has a lot of detail changes behind the front fender.

Some interesting details at the rear as well. There is some sort of vertical fin raising halfway in each opening behind the rear wheels.

[chernaudi]

I don't see a fin aside from the extension of the rear wing pylon/crash structure.

But I do see an interesting rear gurney design with some very low dips and small up-raised portions near the fenders and wing pylon. Lowered areas almost are laying on the top of the rear diffuser.

[MyNameIsNigel]

A few additional shots of the Audi R18 LH have been published on www.automotocorse.it

These particular shots seem to suggest that the exhaust outlets have indeed been moved to a different location:

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by chernaudi

I don't see a fin aside from the extension of the rear wing pylon/crash structure.

But I do see an interesting rear gurney design with some very low dips and small up-raised portions near the fenders and wing pylon. Lowered areas almost are laying on the top of the rear diffuser.

I have highlighted these "fins" in the following picture. I guess we are talking about the same features:

[chernaudi]

We know, at least in theory, that Audi can't be running the exhaust blown diffuser to condition the rear wheel well exhaust like last year. The rules over that got tightened up last year and the exhaust should be coming out of the bodywork ahead of the tail's TE by a certain distance.

That's unless Audi found a loophole in the regs or something that the rules don't yet cover.

[chernaudi]

Originally Posted by MyNameIsNigel

I have highlighted these "fins" in the following picture:

Porsche were running similar flow conditioners according the the lemansprototypes blog, but they were concealed within the rear fenders more, ahead of the louvers.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by chernaudi

We know, at least in theory, that Audi can't be running the exhaust blown diffuser to condition the rear wheel well exhaust like last year. The rules over that got tightened up last year and the exhaust should be coming out of the bodywork ahead of the tail's TE by a certain distance.

That's unless Audi found a loophole in the regs or something that the rules don't yet cover.

Indeed. Considering that there are no apparent exhaust outlets on the sides, these should open on top of the rear bodywork and be positioned at least 300 mm forward of the trailing edge of the rear diffuser. I suspect these are now situated lower than where they are located on the sprint version, unless Audi have found some loophole in the regulations.

[TF110]

Dont think this has been posted, if it has, apologies

http://youtu.be/9tdBNzqmQfg

R18 and new R8 LMS. Those downshifts are awesome!

[MyNameIsNigel]

A screen shot of the Audi R18 "Langheck" captured from the video:


Difficult to see much...

[MyNameIsNigel]

New exhaust outlets ?


Many thanks to "The Gust"

[Gingers4Justice]

Ooooh. Possibly a coanda effect going on there?

[gwyllion]

Originally Posted by MyNameIsNigel

New exhaust outlets ?

"URL périmée"

This link works better: http://www.zimagez.com/zimage/audimo...40425-2112.php

[Simmi]

Langheck. Kind of.

[gwyllion]

http://www.mulsannescorner.com/newsmarch14.html has some comments on the LM aero.

Note there is no longer a gap between the trailing edge of the bodywork and the trailing edge of the rear diffuser. Typically this gap is where the air leaving the hot radiators exits the car. So that begs the question, where does the radiator exhaust go now? The hint is most definitely the strakes within the rear fender trailing edge boxes and their slightly larger shape inboard.

[gwyllion]

Confirmation that the #3 Audi will be in LM aero at Spa.

At Spa, car #3 continues an idea which Audi tested for the first time last year. The additional race car has a different body that can be recognized at first glance by the longer rear overhang. Its use in Belgium is very valuable for the Audi engineers, as the data generated by car #3 assists in validating the simulations which Audi previously performed. By the same token, the team can test how to handle the special body version and other technical modifications in racing conditions.

source: https://www.audi-motorsport.info/v2/...single/id/8677

[gwyllion]

http://danilomoroni.weebly.com/test-audi-lmp1--gt.html has some good pictures of the Monza test.

[gwyllion]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/113632 explains that the two damaged cars will be finished in time.

Audi has brought its two spare tubs - one which was at Silverstone and one which travels with its test team - into play after both R18 monocoques were damaged in the accidents sustained by Lucas di Grassi and Benoit Treluyer at Silverstone.
...
It is understood that the two damaged chassis have been returned to their Italian manufacturer for repair and that one of them could make it to Spa to be on hand as a spare.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by gwyllion

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/113632 explains that the two damaged cars will be finished in time.

Seems that autosport.com still have not taken due note of the fact that Olly will not drive at Spa and that Marco and Filipe will share duties on the #3 car

The third Audi entry at Spa, to be driven by Oliver Jarvis, Filipe Albuquerque and Marco Bonanomi, will run in Le Mans aero configuration, as in 2013.

[hcl123]

So the exhaust outlets seem to have moved from the bottom of the rear end dorsal fin ( one for each side), to the engine cover just below the "word 'e-tron' on the logo on the dorsal fin". Seems the intention is for the exhaust flow go directly helping the air flow working on the rear wing.

Where is the rear brakes cooling air intakes ? (hmmm... working directly from the mandatori top rear fender openings ? )

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by hcl123

So the exhaust outlets seem to have moved from the bottom of the rear end dorsal fin ( one for each side), to the engine cover just below the "word 'e-tron' on the logo on the dorsal fin". Seems the intention is for the exhaust flow go directly helping the air flow working on the rear wing.

The purpose/function of this outlet is still unclear to me, but this is likely not an exhaust outlet. This outlet (which is only present on the left side of the engine cover) can also be spotted on the sprint version:

(picture of sprint version taken at the Geneva Motorshow)

The exhaust outlets do appear to have been moved to the lowest portion of the engine cover (yellow arrow), upstream of the trailing edge portion of the engine cover where it meets the surface of the rear diffuser:


These exhaust outlets do however appear to be difficult to clearly spot on the Monza pictures that have been released so far. This is probably due to the fact that the exhaust outlets exhibit a relatively low height.

[hcl123]

Yes, but watching the video of qualifying at Silverstone, none Audi seems to have that opening there high in the engine cover( it could be engineered that way by default for the engines covers-> a second option, but covered.)

OTOH Porsche has only 1 exhaust outlet ( not 2 ) more or less in that position. And like Porsche, Audi is also a "monoturbo", there is by inherent architecture only 1 exhaust tube after turbo ( having 2 outlet tips, only if the single exhaust tube is diverted at the end).

Then there is the rule that mandates all exhaust ending tips must point up, blow diffusers is explicitly forbiden, but this rule pretty much invalidates any trick in that direction.

The "possible" exhaust exits pointed in the last image, are real down on the engine cover ( very close to the underfloor)... they seem too small.... if there are 2 as all the bodywork curves on this section indicates, they are quite part from each other, a great waste of space and "weight" for what is naturally a single tube... and they don't seem to point up...

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by hcl123

Yes, but watching the video of qualifying at Silverstone, none Audi seems to have that opening there high in the engine cover( it could be engineered that way by default for the engines covers-> a second option, but covered.)

OTOH Porsche has only 1 exhaust outlet ( not 2 ) more or less in that position. And like Porsche, Audi is also a "monoturbo", there is by inherent architecture only 1 exhaust tube after turbo ( having 2 outlet tips, only if the single exhaust tube is diverted at the end).

Then there is the rule that mandates all exhaust ending tips must point up, blow diffusers is explicitly forbiden, but this rule pretty much invalidates any trick in that direction.

The "possible" exhaust exits pointed in the last image, are real down on the engine cover ( very close to the underfloor)... they seem too small.... if there are 2 as all the bodywork curves on this section indicates, they are quite part from each other, a great waste of space and "weight" for what is naturally a single tube... and they don't seem to point up...

The outlet on the left-hand side of the engine cover can also be spotted on both cars that ran at Silverstone. It's difficult to spot as it is located in the black-colored portion of the engine cover:


As regards the rule governing the positioning of the exhaust outlet(s), it's true that Article 3.4 explicitly prohibits "blown diffusers" but this provision actually defines where the exhaust outlet(s) can or cannot be located:

Blown diffuser is forbidden :
Exhaust pipe outlets must not be inside the diffuser.
No point of these outlets must be situated less than 300 mm from the trailing edge of the rear diffuser.
Any point of these outlets must be visible when seen from above or the side.

Note that there is no requirement stating that the exhaust outlet(s) must point up. That would as a matter of fact be inconsistent with the possibility of positioning the outlets on the sides (as on the new Rebellion R-One it would seem). As long as the exhaust outlets are positioned in compliance with the above provision, it should be regarded as legal.

Besides, any exhaust outlet located on top of the rear bodywork (like Toyota's solution) inherently blows at least part of the exhaust gases rearward towards the trailing edge of the rear diffuser. If Audi's solution were to be regarded as not compling with the rules, you could argue basically the same regarding Toyota's.

If I am not mistaken, exhaust blown diffusers were also formally banned last year in F1 (and the year before that) and this led to the development of the so-called Coanda exhausts which were evidently considered as fully legit solutions (i.e. no "blown diffuser" as such).