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Audi recaps its thrilling victory at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans

Drew Phillips — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos, Audi, Racing

Recap of Audi's victory at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans - Click above to watch the video after the jump

The 79th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans was one of the most exciting in the history of the race, with Audi narrowly beating Peugeot by less than 14 seconds. The win made it 10 victories in 13 years for the Four Rings, and incredible record that is is only bested by Porsche.

Like in previous years, Audi's victory at Le Mans didn't come as a result of a faultless race, but because they were able to handle the hardships given to them by the grueling event. The #2 Audi, which was the fastest car during qualifying, had to hold off four Peugeots for more than half the race after both Allan McNish and Mike Rockenfeller suffered massive crashes. The three winning drivers set a blistering pace that couldn't be matched by their competitors, and it was André Lotterer who finally took the checkered flag.

If you weren't able to catch the race on television (or even if you did), you can get a great recap of Audi's victory in the video after the jump.

Continue reading Audi recaps its thrilling victory at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans

Audi recaps its thrilling victory at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pics Aplenty: The class winners of the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans

Drew Phillips — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 19:58:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports

#2 Team Joest Audi R18 TDI at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans - Click above for high-res image gallery

We're still sorting through the thousands of images we captured at this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans, but we had to bring you the photos of the individual class winners before anything else. First up, of course, is the #2 Audi Sport Team Joest R18 TDI that had to fend off a quartet of Peugeot 908s all alone after the fellow Audi teams suffered massive crashes. The remaining Audi team ran nearly a perfect race, though, and managed to capture the overall victory just seconds ahead of the #9 Peugeot 908.

Next up in the LMP2 class is the #41 Greaves Motorsport Zytek powered by a brand new Nissan 4.5-liter V8 engine. After finishing a disappointing 8th in class earlier this year at Spa, the Greaves Motorsport team had a dominating performance, taking the checkered flag ahead of the factory Nissan prototype run by Signatech.

Finally, in the GTE categories, it was a fantastic race for Corvette fans, with the #73 Corvette Racing entry taking the GTEPro class and the #50 Larbre Competition C6.R finishing first in GTEAm. Neither team did extremely well in qualifying, starting 6th and 4th in class respectively, but both teams ran consistently throughout the 24 hours to eventually take the checkered flag.

You can view photos of each car in the high-res galleries below.

Pics Aplenty: The class winners of the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audi shows off A1 clubsport quattro at Le Mans

Drew Phillips — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 18:50:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Hatchback, Audi

Audi A1 clubsport quattro - Click above for high-res image gallery

Audi has a huge presence at this weekend's 24 Hours of Le Mans. In addition to running a trio of R18s in the race, the Four Rings takes over a large portion of the track with displays, hospitality suites and even a temporary hotel that is built for the event each year.

One of the vehicles on display was the A1 clubsport quattro that debuted last week at Wörthersee, a celebration of all things Volkswagen. The show car is a clue that Audi's quattro system will soon make its way into the A1 lineup, although the demonstration is more extreme than anything that will make it to production.

Under the hood is a 500-horsepower version of the 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine, allowing the A1 clubsport quattro to go from 0-100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour) in just 3.7 seconds. The car also features a beautiful matte white paint job, a widebody aerodynamics kit, carbon fiber roof and rear spoiler, retro 19-inch wheels and more.

You can see our live photos of the Audi A1 clubsport quattro in the included high-res gallery, and check back in the next few days for more coverage of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Audi shows off A1 clubsport quattro at Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 10 Jun 2011 18:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aston Martin sketches out Le Mans-bound 2011 LMP1 racer

Jonathon Ramsey — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 18:34:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Aston Martin, Racing

Aston Martin's 2011 LMP1 challenger for the 24 Hours of Le Mans - Click above to enlarge image

The Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), which oversees various Le Mans series in Europe and elsewhere, laid out a number of changes to the 2011 LMP1-class cars, aiming to equalize performance between diesel- and gasoline-engined cars. Sniffing a chance to not only steal some thunder, but perhaps beat Audi and Peugeot over the head with it, Aston Martin plans a brand-new LMP1 entrant for 2011 to go for overall Le Mans victory.

An open cockpit, monococque single-seater with a new engine, it would be the first racing Aston developed entirely in-house in fifty years. The biggest X factor is whether, and how much, the regulations will actually work to close the diesel/gas disparity. If it's close, Aston Martin Chairman Dave Richards believes his company is in with a shout. Follow the jump for the press release.

Gallery: Aston Martin's 2011 Le Mans LMP1 challenger

[Source: Aston Martin]

Continue reading Aston Martin sketches out Le Mans-bound 2011 LMP1 racer

Aston Martin sketches out Le Mans-bound 2011 LMP1 racer originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 12 Sep 2010 18:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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More details on the 2011 Le Mans technical regulations, now with hybrid power

Sam Abuelsamid — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Hybrid, Audi, Honda, Porsche, Peugeot, Diesel, Racing

Peugeot 908-HY hybrid prototype - Click above for high-res image gallery

On Thursday, June 10, the Automobile Club de L'Ouest (ACO), which organizes the 24 Hours of Le Mans, held its annual press conference and announced new technical regulations for the 2011 event as well as the European Le Mans Series. The ACO has long encouraged a variety of powerplant configurations, which is what prompted first Audi and then Peugeot to develop diesel-powered prototypes. 2011 will bring the official introduction hybrid power to Le Mans racing in all of the new classes.

Next year the club will move even further in the direction already pioneered by the American Le Mans Series with its "green racing" initiatives. The top LMP1 class will adopt what are essentially the current LMP2 rules, with gasoline racing engines limited to 3.4 liters normally aspirated or 2.0 liters turbocharged. Diesels can displace no more than 3.7 liters. The current LMP1 cars will be allowed to compete in 2011, but performance will be restricted by as-yet-unannounced means that will likely include more weight and smaller air restrictors. Check out the rest of the changes after the jump.

Gallery: Geneva 2009: Peugeot 908 hy

[Source: Automobile Club de L'Ouest]

Continue reading More details on the 2011 Le Mans technical regulations, now with hybrid power

More details on the 2011 Le Mans technical regulations, now with hybrid power originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 13 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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