As far as cool racing cars go, the Audi R18 e-tron is currently close to or at the top of the list. It looks, sounds and goes brilliantly well and it’s also proved very successful in its racing career, despite being an unusual approach to the whole Le Mans prototype challenge.
EVO sent Richard Meaden to try it out on track, and as you’d expect he did not come away from the experience without sharing it in a video. As you’d expect, you can’t not be impressed by the R18.
Meaden goes through the entire experience of being in and driving the diesel hybrid racer. He explains that it’s not only the sheer speeds it can attain, but also the FIA’s new-found focus on efficiency that is of crucial importance.
For instance, if the driver uses more than the allowed diesel per lap, he will then be forced to make it up over the next two laps, which will be driven at lower and more efficient pace. If this is ignored, the driver and team can incur some serious penalties.
All this while going at vision blurring speeds, having your organs bounced around in the corners and also often dealing with severely adverse weather.