Audi LMP1 Discussion

[ger80]

The new Batmobile? Maybe Don works for Audi now and the engine is under the front?
The #1 names could be Leena's sister?

[FxL]

The current 2013 R18 names are Jody Summer (#1), Bertram (#2) and Nike (#3). The 2012 #1 car's name was Electra, the 2011 #2 car was called Red Sonja

[CTD]

Originally Posted by ger80

The new Batmobile? Maybe Don works for Audi now and the engine is under the front?
The #1 names could be Leena's sister?

Nope, as Leena will be race engineer on the #2 next year
(Tom and Allan will drive the #1)

[JoestForEver]

Well, the best way to talk about Audi R18s in the future is calling their nicknames probably.

[CTD]

Originally Posted by JoestForEver

Well, the best way to talk about Audi R18s in the future is calling their nicknames probably.

Nicknames for the diehards, on going names for the casuals .

I wonder what the internal project name for the R18-bis is?

[alless]

Originally Posted by MyNameIsNigel

A quick comparison highlighting that the perspective of the picture of the 2014 Audi R18 e-tron quattro is misleading and that the cockpit width of the new car remains substantially similar to that of the old one:


One thing for sure, the air intake on the roof is massively larger than on the previous R18 iteration. Strangely, the front fenders and BHH also appear to be wider...

Width of the cockpit must remain same as before, the rule change was to hight of the cockpit and that will be very visible.
Width has changed for overall car, how the car will look with some normal pics we have to see yet as this picture is so deceiving to make the car look angry but i doubt it will look so on track.

How is it actually with pics, arent they testing at sebring? Nobody got some shots sofar?

[Bandicoot17]

It's private testing
Someone went to the track but was asked to leave so pics are probably unlikely

[alless]

Originally Posted by Bandicoot17

It's private testing
Someone went to the track but was asked to leave so pics are probably unlikely

hmm, where are all the spies when you need them...

[chernaudi]

A lot of them have day jobs, and it also seems that Audi are more virulent than usual with asking for a closed track, which means asking peeping toms to leave.

That, though easier said than done with the location of Sebring Raceway, is still easier than at Monza, which is part of a public part, and readily accessible by the public--which is why we get so many videos and photos from tests at Monza.

I don't think that Audi want anything substantial to leak before the 18th.

We also have to remember that the photo released by Audi is distorted because of the 50mm narrow angle lens used. Again, don't expect any good photos until the 18th.

[CyberMotor]

Originally Posted by chernaudi

Again, don't expect any good photos until the 18th.

My gosh, man, that's 8 days! These are the days of the Internet and instant gratification, not the old days where we had to wait 6 weeks for a magazine to come out with the latest photos! How are we going to wait that long?

[chernaudi]

Of course, if Audi were testing at Monza as Porsche already have, we'd have photos and videos, because of Monza being part of a public park complex. But Audi have tested twice in Europe (video footage suggest Paul Ricard as a potential suspect there), and now at Sebring.

I'd bet that Audi have their own photo and video crews there to take preview photos and videos when it comes time to release the new R18 "for real" in about a week. But the teaser photo obviously is just that because of it being distorted with that wide angle lens. Probably to prevent comparisons with the "old" R18 from last year.

[deltawing]

Camo vs. camo, the P-car is actually prettier.

[Simmi]

More shots emerging



http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/111818

[FxL]

Originally Posted by Simmi

More shots emerging

At first glance I thought it's the Porsche

[vincegail]

Yeah me too. I think Audi and Porsche have the same vinyl wrap supplier.

Unlucky enough, the picture Simmi has posted is in the subscription part of Autosport. When I click the link, I can read the article, but I cannot enlarge the pictures at the bottom.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Interesting exhaut outlets integration at the back:

[Creep89]

Looks really weird. In the middle it's the exhaust? But on the right, what's that?

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by Creep89

Looks really weird. In the middle it's the exhaust? But on the right, what's that?

The exhaust outlets (I believe there are two) are actually located forward of the trailing edge of the rear bodywork/rear diffuser, just where the black-coloured extension of the rear-wing support is located. The 2014 Technical Regulations (cf. Article 3.4) do not any more allow exhaust outlet(s) that would open directly at the trailing edge of the rear diffuser (like on the 2011 and 2012 Audi R18). The exhaust outlet(s) now has(have) to be located at least 300mm forward of the trailing edge of the rear diffuser ("No point of these (exhaust) outlets must be situated less than 300 mm from the trailing edge of the rear diffuser").



That's a very nice way of integrating the exhaust outlet(s). Much "cleaner" that Porsche's asymmetric solution

[Creep89]

Mhm ok, but what's the thing under the right exhaust? Air jack connector? Looks different for me.

[NelisB]

Originally Posted by Creep89

Mhm ok, but what's the thing under the right exhaust? Air jack connector? Looks different for me.

If you mean the round red/orange tube it's probably a overflowpipe for engine oil/coolant.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by NelisB

If you mean the round red/orange tube it's probably a overflowpipe for engine oil/coolant.

That would be my best guess as well. Surely a temporary solution though as it seems a bit "crude".

[Audifan]

How much slower will be lmp1 2014 regs in compare to 2013?

[NelisB]

Originally Posted by Audifan

How much slower will be lmp1 2014 regs in compare to 2013?

Hard to say. I personally don´t think they will be that much slower then this year, but there´s no data to back that up just a bit of wishful thinking.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by Audifan

How much slower will be lmp1 2014 regs in compare to 2013?

Not much from what I've heard and could read. In this article (in German) of motorsport-total.com, it is reported that the initial tests by Porsche and Audi show that the LMP1s will still be very quick:

Erste Probefahrten der beiden Deutschen Werke haben offenbar gezeigt, dass die LMP1 im Jahr 2014 immer noch sehr schnell sein wird.

Martin Muehlmeier of Audi is also reported to say that the new LMP1s should achieve similar lap times as last year:

"Wir werden rund ein Viertel weniger Treibstoff verbrauchen. Mal schauen, auf welchem Niveau sich die Rundenzeiten bewegen werden. Sie werden aber nicht komplett woanders liegen als jetzt."

Motorsport-total.com further report that "experts" believe that the 2014 LMP1s could even achieve faster lap times at LM:

Einige Experten gehen davon aus, dass die LMP1-Autos 2014 sogar schneller sein werden als in diesem Jahr - zumindest auf der schnellen Strecke in Le Mans.

[CTD]

Is it me, or has the R18-bis adopted many of the ideas from the failed R15?
It seems very open through the bodywork at the front.