WEC (World Endurance Championship) 2013

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WhiteBlue wrote:safety car, it will help Toyota I think
Dieter Gass from Audi paid a visit to the German Eurosport commentator booth and was confident that the Audis can keep the lead if nothing fundamentally changes. They need to be 1 s per lap faster for every lap of fuel they can do less. Mostly they are doing ok there.

Audis are flying right now and pulling away, gaining 2-4 seconds a lap. Leading Audi 5 min or so ahead of the first Toyota. Of course still have almost 18 hours to go.

stefan_
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I don't know how it is for you guys, but for me the amount of commercial breaks is becoming ridiculous.

43 min. in the pits for #1 Audi - ouch!
"...and there, very much in flames, is Jacques Laffite's Ligier. That's obviously a turbo blaze, and of course, Laffite will be able to see that conflagration in his mirrors... he is coolly parking the car somewhere safe." Murray Walker, San Marino 1985

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stefan_ wrote:I don't know how it is for you guys, but for me the amount of commercial breaks is becoming ridiculous.

43 min. in the pits for #1 Audi - ouch!
I don't know what feed you are watching, but I'm splitting between Speed on the tv and Eurosport on the computer. Not perfect but it has limited the breaks. Speed keeps interviewing everyone and their grandmother which is somewhat annoying. I want to see racing not random people (no matter how important they used to be)

Not just #1, #3 had the tire issue. Not nearly as bad as #1 but within just a few min Audi went from looking very strong to looking in trouble but that's Le Mans!

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WhiteBlue
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Audi #1 had an alternator failure. #3 had a racing accident which blew the tyre. Audi are a bit unlucky. Good that they brought three cars. It keeps them in the frame right now.
Formula One's fundamental ethos is about success coming to those with the most ingenious engineering and best .............................. organization, not to those with the biggest budget. (Dave Richards)

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WhiteBlue wrote:Audi #1 had an alternator failure. #3 had a racing accident which blew the tyre. Audi are a bit unlucky. Good that they brought three cars. It keeps them in the frame right now.
I'm hearing some reports that it was a crank sensor. That to me would make more sense. Audi wouldn't run just 1 alternator when many of the cars in both LMP and GT are known to run 2 would they? The C6 runs one off the driveshaft and one off a halfshaft. Audi are amongst the best prepared teams at Le Mans, I can't see them missing such a simple trick.

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WhiteBlue
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It was initially said that it was a crank sensor, but the report was not true. That could have been fixed in five minutes. It was officially told by Audi that they had an alternator failure. Very sad. But it has also happened to Red Bull in F1. They are also meticulous. So you have to consider that such a failure cannot be prevented with 100% certainty.
Formula One's fundamental ethos is about success coming to those with the most ingenious engineering and best .............................. organization, not to those with the biggest budget. (Dave Richards)

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WhiteBlue wrote:It was initially said that it was a crank sensor, but the report was not true. That could have been fixed in five minutes. It was officially told by Audi that they had an alternator failure. Very sad. But it has also happened to Red Bull in F1. They are also meticulous. So you have to consider that such a failure cannot be prevented with 100% certainty.

Ahh, ok so I'm hearing some of the initial reports. Next year I bet Audi will have dual alternators. Race has tightened up a little. Hope it stays close to the end.

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Holm86
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Wasn't hybrid LMP's supposed to run on pure electric in the pit lane last year?? I know both Audi and Toyota did so last year.

I don't think any of them does so this year. Is it because FIA abandoned the rule that says 2014 F1 cars should run on pure electrics in the pit lane? So ACO decided to do the same???

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Holm86 wrote:Wasn't hybrid LMP's supposed to run on pure electric in the pit lane last year??
I just 'heard' the Toyota leave his pit-box; Seemed electric start to me.

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Saribro wrote:
Holm86 wrote:Wasn't hybrid LMP's supposed to run on pure electric in the pit lane last year??
I just 'heard' the Toyota leave his pit-box; Seemed electric start to me.
Okay. But I know the Audi's is using engine power in the pits. I've seen several shoots of Audi's onboard driving in the pits.

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Saribro wrote:
Holm86 wrote:Wasn't hybrid LMP's supposed to run on pure electric in the pit lane last year??
I just 'heard' the Toyota leave his pit-box; Seemed electric start to me.
X2
Just heard (or should I say didn't hear) them leave pit lane.

Earlier the Speed announcers explained since Audi has the front wheels driven by the electric motors they cannot use e power until they hit 120kph, preventing them from using e power in pit lane. I would think the ECU could be setup to bypass the 120kph requirement if the pit lane limiter was activated so the rule must be off the books.

Blanchimont
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What about the barriers used in Le Mans, are they designed to break and need to be repaired out of energy absorbing reasons?

Now it's the seventh time the safety car is deployed, is this normal for Le Mans?
Dear FIA, if you read this, please pm me for a redesign of the Technical Regulations to avoid finger nose shapes for 2016! :-)

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Holm86
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The channel I'm watching is claiming a safety car record.

Blanchimont
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Safety car #10!

Am i the only one thinking the safety car rules (three safety cars, cars not allowed to leave pit until the next safety car group has passed pit exit) and the need to repair the barriers after every impact is killing the racing this year and highly influencing car position on track?
It seems as if the barriers used are different to what has been in use before. Total safety car time is now 4,5 hours, which was mainly caused by the need to repair the barriers.
Dear FIA, if you read this, please pm me for a redesign of the Technical Regulations to avoid finger nose shapes for 2016! :-)

marcush.
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the idea of having two starters or two alternators is not new at all -somehow audi seem to have concluded it is worth the risk to run only one ..
having electric drive and still need an alternator seems rather odd to me...