Laser lighting for Audi R18 e-tron quattro

We recently brought you the first pics and details of Audi’s new R18 e-tron quattro that will go head-to-head with Mark Webber’s Porsche LMP1 car in the 2014 Le Mans 24 Hours and in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

Now the four-ringed brand has announced the state-of-the-art racer will debut laser lighting technology that provides superior illumination.

“By using this new lighting technology Audi is setting yet another milestone at Le Mans,” said Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Management Board for Technical Development of Audi AG, at the official presentation of the new R18 e-tron quattro that took place as part of the ‘Audi Sport Finale.’

According to the company, the laser lighting tech has real-world implications as it will eventually filter through to the brand’s production models.

The laser lighting complements the main LED headlights of the new R18 e-tron quattro, with a blue laser beam backlighting a yellow phosphorus crystal lens through which the light beam is then emitted.

Audi claims this new light source provides “even more homogenous lighting” of the road.

“The new laser light is just one of numerous technical innovations featured by our new R18,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr Wolfgang Ullrich.

“We’re not going to reveal any more than that at this early stage, as in 2014 we’re facing an extremely tough competition and a year full of challenges for Audi Sport.”

In 2014 Audi’s motorsport program will again focus on three high-profile categories (at least in Europe) – Le Mans prototypes (LMP1), DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, which is Germany’s premier ton-top category) and GT sport.

In addition, Audi Sport is preparing for its move into the new Motorsport Competence Center in Neuburg in the summer of 2014.

“This is a very important step to ensure that Audi will retain its ability to be successfully active in motorsport at the highest level but, obviously, it also puts an additional strain on our squad,” said Dr Ullrich.

Audi Sport Team Joest enters the 2014 LMP1 championship as the defending title-holders, and the squad will be fielding two R18 e-tron quattro cars for the series, with a third vehicle bolstering the assault for the season’s blue-ribbon event at Le Mans on June 14/15

As previously reported, the new R18 mightn’t look dissimilar from the vehicle that won Le Mans in 2012 and 2013, but overhauled regulations for the coming season mean it’s effectively a brand-new car.

Major changes include a reworking of the mid-mounted turbo-diesel V6, which makes use of an electric turbocharger for the first time. The turbocharger can use either exhaust gases or stored electrical energy to build extra induction pressure.

Meanwhile, a revised kinetic energy recovery system (ERS-K) receives further changes to the way it stores flywheel energy, in line with new rules that require some cars to use up to 30 per cent less fuel than the 2013 racers.

“The idea behind this is to achieve similarly fast lap times as in the past with considerably less energy. Making more out of less: a forward-thinking approach,” said Dr Ullrich.

The Audi R18 e-tron quattro makes its competitive debut in round one of the 2014 World Endurance Championship, the six-hour race at Silverstone in the UK on April 20.

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