Audi Pulls The Wraps Off Their New LMP1 Warrior, The 2016 R18

The new 2016 Audi R18 has been revealed, with the company claiming that there is almost nothing in common with its predecessor.

The latest German race car utilizes a more radical aerodynamic agenda and features a new safety cell and -for the first time- a battery-powered hybrid powertrain which makes it about 10 per cent more efficient than last year’s car.

Thanks to a change in the regulations, the hybrid system now recovers 50 per cent more energy than before and produces more than 1,000hp in total.

“The result is a race car that manages energy even more effectively than before. This is an objective we’re pursuing for our road-going automobiles as well,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “This type of motorsport continues to set an example for automotive engineering. For Audi, production relevance has been a core topic of all racing programs for 35 years.”

Audi replaced the flywheel energy storage system, used from 2012 to 2015, with a lithium-ion battery pack because now there is so much more energy to be processed. The front-mounted motor generator unit is capable of providing up to 476hp but due to restrictions it will be tuned to 408hp.

The four-litre V6 TDI engine has now a lighter turbocharger and provides more than 850Nm of torque while individual components have been redesigned in order to make room for the new aero agenda.

Audi will compete in the 2016 WEC season and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the new R18 LMP1 race car.