WEC (World Endurance Championship) 2013

[Bomber_Pilot]

Autosport article:

Audi is running a blown-diffuser on its 2013 R18 LMP1 contender, the German manufacturer has admitted.

Audi Sport head of LMP Christopher Reinke explained that the exhausts from the R18 e-tron quattro's V6 turbodiesel engine now exited under the car for aerodynamic gain.

Asked if this was akin to the blown diffusers used in Formula 1 before they were outlawed for 2012, Reinke said: "That is probably a good way of putting it. It is not exactly the same philosophy [as F1], but we have made developments in that area to use the exhaust gases for aerodynamic purposes.

"It is obviously efficient for our car, otherwise we wouldn't be using it."

Audi's blown diffuser is understood to be quite different from an F1 system, partly because the exhaust energy from a low-revving turbo engine is significantly less than from a normally-aspirated powerplant.

One theory is that Audi uses the exhaust gasses to create what one rival engineer described as "virtual skirts" to help direct airflow under the car and through the diffuser.

Toyota has revealed that it experimented with a blown diffuser on its TS030 HYBRID over the winter but decided against running the system.

Toyota Motorsport GmbH technical director Pascal Vasselon said: "We have been testing this system a lot since last season, but apparently we have come to different conclusions."

He explained that there were various reasons for Toyota's decision not to run a blown diffuser, one of which was the effect of hot exhaust gases on the tyre wear.

I don't think that anyone outside Audi knows for certain what they are using the exhaust for.

[matt21]

Blown diffusor on the Audi R18.
It is rumored that they are blowing through the openings allowed by the rules for the suspension system. What I´m wondering is, why they are allowed holes when the whole suspension is lying above the diffusor.

Does anybody know the rules covering these openings?

[zorog]

A copy of the rules is available at http://www.mulsannescorner.com/2013LMP12.pdf

[matt21]

New radiators on the R18 with micro channels.

[matt21]

New LMP1 car for 2014.

http://perrinn.com/

[matt21]

New Dome LMP for 2014

[Holm86]

Isnt Le Mans a little later this year than usual?? Its not untill the 22nd of June this year. Anyone knows why??

[Huntresa]

Isnt Le Mans a little later this year than usual?? Its not untill the 22nd of June this year. Anyone knows why??

It was 16-17 last year, so only a week later this year and 2011, was 11-12th

[Sombrero]

http://www.endurance-info.com/version2/ ... 14379.html

Initially the 24 hours of Le Mans 2013 were scheduled on June the 15th and June the 16th. The US F-1 GP was supposely being held the same week in New Jersey. That's why the FiA asked the ACO to postpone the race for a week. The change was done in November 2012.

[Holm86]

Thanks for the info.

[Forza]

The 90th Le Mans 24 Hours is approaching fast, with the test day already this Sunday, so we think it is a good time to explain a little more graphically about the TOYOTA HYBRID System – Racing (THS-R) which is at the heart of the TS030 HYBRID.
The powertrain consists of a 530hp v8, 3.4litre, normally-aspirated petrol engine combined with a 300hp hybrid system. Under braking, in the designated hybrid recovery zones, the system harvests energy which is converted into electricity by the Motor Generator Unit (MGU), located between engine and gearbox, within the gearbox housing. This electricity is transmitted, via a DENSO inverter, into the NISSHINBO super capacitor storage device, sited next to the driver in the cockpit. When the driver accelerates, the hybrid boost is delivered automatically for around three seconds, with the electricity travelling from the super capacitor, through the inverter and into the MGU, which adds the power to that of the petrol engine and transmits it to the rear wheels.
The below graphic shows what the THS-R looks like, under the skin of the TS030 HYBRID

[Sombrero]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... M26Aet0MKo[/youtube]

http://www.toyotahybridracing.com/

More manufactureers are on their way to Le Mans with hybrid LMP1 in the next few years : Porsche (2014), Nissan (2015). Who's next ?

[RB7ate9]

It would be really great to have Peugeot come back. Otherwise, it would be really great to see some of the other big names we see in motorsports to put their hand in (considering the high level tech in their production cars):

Ferrari
Aston Martin (a bit more successfully, next time)
Honda
Mazda
Mclaren

[WhiteBlue]

Ferrari, Aston Martin, Mazda, Mclaren

You are entitled to your opinion but I'm convinced that other firms like Mercedes, Audi, BMW, Toyota, Honda, Nissan and others will fill the gap.

[Huntresa]

Are Nissan confirmed for 2015 ?