cars news 10: Audi Announces New R18 e-tron Racer, Cutbacks for Le Mans Race

The Volkswagen Group is pinching pennies to deal with its diesel emissions scandal, and the financial cutbacks are affecting the entire company, including its motorsports division. Audi recently unveiled the newest version of its R18 e-tron Quattro race car, but also announced that it, along with sister company Porsche, will have fewer entrants for the upcoming 2016 World Endurance Championship season.

“In the interest of maximum cost efficiency, Audi and its Group sister brand Porsche, have both agreed to each compete in the Le Mans 24 Hours, the WEC season’s pinnacle event, with only two instead of the most recent three cars,” Audi said in a statement.

That said, the updated R18 e-tron Quattro LMP1 racer moves up from the four-megajoule to the six-megajoule hybrid sub-class, according to a report by Autocar. Contributing to the move is the R18’s new energy storage system featuring a front-axle, lithium-ion battery system, which replaces the flywheel setup used in previous cars. A six-cylinder TDI diesel engine remains. Audi has yet to release figures on the revised powertrain. Visually, the new R18 features redesigned, L-shaped headlights, along with a red-accented black paint job.

Porsche will unveil its race car at a later date. Autocar reports that one Audi car will be piloted by Andre Lotterer, Benoit Treluyer, and Marcel Fassler, while the other will have a team consisting of Loic Duval, Lucas de Grassi, and Oliver Jarvis. Audi drivers from last year’s number-three team (Filipe Albuquerque, Marco Bonanomi, and Rene Rast) remain on the team as works drivers.

Meanwhile, Porsche’s teams will include Mark Webber, Brendon Hartly, and Timo Bernhard in one car, and Romain Dumas, Neel Jani, and Marc Lieb in another car. The Porsche team that won it all in last year’s Le Mans race (Nick Tandy, Earl Bamber, and Nico Hulkenberg) look unlikely to return.

Source: Audi, Autocar