There’s less than a month left until the 83rd official edition of the prestigious Le Mans 24-hours race is due and Audi reckons a little family intimidation can’t hurt.

That’s why the German automaker gathered all of its 13 Le Mans-wining cars for a photo shoot. This is the first time all vehicles were brought together, from the very first R8 to the very last R18 e-tron quattro.

With all these mean machines in one place, Audi glorifies the fact that it won 13 times around Circuit de la Sarthe, in the past 15 years. A respectable accomplishment, surpassed only by Porsche, which won at Le Mans 16 times – not to mention, 7 winnings were in a row, from 1981 to 1987.

Audi isn’t far back on these performances, that’s why Ingolstadt finest is “intensively preparing to battle for its 14th victory”.

The new modern era of Le Mans – an era governed by Audi – began 15 years ago at the end of the 20th century. Frank Biela, Tom Kristensen and Emanuele Pirro took the gold with the help of the R8 Audi LMP1. From then on, until its retirement in 2006, the R8 won 4 races at Le Mans. Unlike its successors, this model was driven by a petrol-powered V8.

In 2006, the R10 model successfully replaced the R8. It was an engineering marvel and it raised some eyebrows since it was the first modern-day diesel-powered car to compete and later win at Le Mans. Fun fact: The first diesel car entered in 24-hour race was the Delettrez Diesel, in 1949.

The R10 had won 3 races in a row, from 2006 to 2008. Its replacement came in 2010, in the form of the R15+ TDi, which had a V10 diesel engine and basically was a development platform for the R18. It broke the distance record at La Sarthe, covering 5,335 Km (3,315 Miles) in 24 hours.

The modern day R18 began its life in 2011, replacing the R15+ after just one year. In 2012, the R18 e-tron quattro entered Audi in the history books as “the first carmaker to win at Le Mans with a hybrid drive system”. From then on, while being continuously updated by Audi, the R18 diesel-hybrid has evolved in the complex, efficient and powerful racing car we know today.

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