Audi in F1 (part 1)

Note: this article is a two part column, the next portion is soon to come!

As I mentioned in my last post Audi's new head of R&D, Wolfgang Durheimer, has proclaimed it might be a good idea for Audi to make a move in to F1 sometime in the near future. Of course, he firmly believes Audi's first goal should be to pummel Porsche's 16-win-record at Le Mans -- sorry, Stutgart -- but should this be too idealistic, Volkswagen Auto Grop should keep their minds open.

I'm sorry but I whole heartedly disagree. The argument Durheimer presents is that Audi is a company that has made progress through domination and leaving, a real 'slash and burn agriculture' approach to racing. 

See it all started with the "Type C". This was the first race car of Auto Union, the company that would later be renamed "Audi". This is the project that Ferdinand Porsche really got started on making some hot racers. This car did normal comeptitions, grand prix races, nothing special. But it set a mile stone for Auto Union/Audi: Engine design. It was one of few V6 racers at the time, and it did spectacularly.

The four rings represent the four companies of Auto Union. Or the olympics, whatever you want to believe.

Now fast forward to the 1980's. The Audi Quattro has been developed and sent out in to rally racing, again, nothing but defeat and domination, of course in Audi's favor. But of course, the ever flopping brand grew bored of this sideways sport and in the 90's moved in to touring, specifically, DTM. By now Quattro drive had been confirmed as, how should I say this?: The Badass of Drivetrains. Winning championships accross Europe's different touring championships Audi grew bored, yet again. This time they set their eyes on FIA sanctioned races -- endurance races.

And here we are folks. Thirteen years of racing resulting in eleven wins at Le Mans, an unheard of ratio of wins/attempts.

Stay tuned for the next entry outlining my opinion of Audi's attempts in F1!

Audi's New Lineup

Recently there has been an exec change up within VWAG. Wolfgang Durheimer, an old executive at Porsche and current head of Bentley and Bugatti is making a leap of faith in to the R&D of Audi.

Now while no Lucious Fox, the man does have aspirations for his new found home-company:

          “Magazines are always comparing Volkswagen Group cars with each other, so why shouldn’t we compare our race cars within the same group? Competition is good for Volkswagen and it will not be a straightforward fight anyway, because there will be a technology battle going on too. Porsche will be racing using a petrol engine, Audi will be using diesel power.”

He's also hinted that he might be interested in pushing Audi towards F1 (my next post I'll talk about this further, my own opinion of course) and out of WEC. With Dr. Wolfgang Ulrich nearing retirement, Durheimer might just achieve this wanton path.

Dr. Ulrich has been very adamant and outspoken against Audi ever stepping foot in to F1 however Durheimer's argument is that Audi is a company built on dominating a sport and moving on, whether it be rally, touring, endurance, or even, yes, the dreaded Forumla 1.

Who needs SWAG when you have VWAG?

There's an up side though, Durheimer wants Audi to finish competing in WEC, and by finish, they mean break Porsche's record of 16 Le Mans titles; let's put it this way, Audi hold's 11 titles, and many, many more years of future endeavors.

Fourtitude article: 

http://fourtitude.com/news/motorsport_news_6/audis-future-at-le-mans-bright-according-to-vag-motorsport-boss-durheimer/

No More Trig!

Hey all, Sorry I haven't been posting much, I was finishing up my trig class at IRSC. Now that my summer classes are over I'm back to blogging and working.


Expect a post about once a week!


For your visiting and sticking around despite my laziness here's a funny photo for you:

Anyone who's been on imgur has probably seen this 20 times. Anyone else, I made this photo. Me.

My View on Le Mans 2012Let's be

The track, barren. Tire smoke, cleared. Pits, empty.

This years Le Mans 24 Hours was unprecedented with two huge records being set.

 The first is obvious, for the first time in 80 runs of this race a hybrid car won, the Audi R18 e-tron. In competition was the Toyota TS030 (LMP1 class) which suffered some unfortunate turns of events. The first car was a wash, a few hours in to the race it had a massive crash with a Ferrari 458 (GTE class) that destroyed the car, even it's driver, Anthony Davidson, came out injured. A fractured spine sent him in to the hospital and ended the teams run in Le Mans. The second TS030 suffered some damage in touching with another car and never was in full functioning order, it's run ended about halfway through the race.

Let's be honest, these were the only ones we cared about.

The second record set was by the DeltaWing. This amazing and marvelous machine set insane lap times considering is potentially a motor driven tricycle with a batman theme. Something sold in the "Hell" department at Toys R' Us. The car "competed" by itself in its own class established specifically for it. The car acted as a super expensive experiment for Nissan and for the automotive world. They proved that a car can turn on a pivot, it can consume less, weigh less, do everything less and even come out on top.

Except for when the TS030 clipped it and ruined it's rear suspension.



Damn Toyota.



Below is some links for everyone to read and a really interesting video from Baretzky, the inventor of the reigning engines for Audi Sport.

Baretzky Video:  http://tiny.cc/1s7kgw

TS030 Video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8jJB6viADM

DeltaWing Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJAiZVuC3YI

Le Mans stats: http://www.lemanslive.com/Lemanslive/Evenements/2012-Le-Mans-24-Hours/Live

Le Mans 24 Hours Update

So far the big news is that the two Toyota TS030's have been knocked out, Audi is holding a strong 1-2-3-4 lead in the LMP1 class.

The DeltaWing met some trouble when it collided with a TS030 but showed considerable strength through the race.

Coming in to hour 16 here of the race it looks like a summed up win for Audi, sort of boring really with no competition. However some excitement from the GTE class where the two Corvettes are fighting for a pole position against Porsche 911s, Aston Martin, and Ferrari 458's.

Updates tomorrow once the race ends!

DTM: Audi's Comeback?

So far this season Audi has been doing terribly in DTM. Up against the newly re-entered BMW M3 and the Mercedes AMG, Audi's A5 has been struggling for the last few races, but with today being the day of the Speilberg race this week has been practice laps and Qualifying.

For the first time in the 2012 season Audi placed first in all practice laps and even qualifying!

As of right now the point standings are:
Mercedes 68
BMW 43
Audi 35

Hope all goes well, I'll have updates within the next few days, and don't forget about the 16th! (Hint: It's Le Mans)


See ya round!


Picture: http://www.ausmotive.com/images2011/Audi-A5-DTM-17.jpg

Carroll Shelby Dead: Age 89

It is a sad time indeed. The legendary Carroll Shelby has passed at age 89 of pneumonia.


A true innovator and pioneer, he lives on in his cars and as an inspiration to many.


Over the years this mighty giant went from racing in to production. After a heart problem he was born with stripped him of his track suit, he decided he would design cars others could use. Among his mighty and beautiful creations were the Shelby Cobra, the Viper, as well as the GT40.

When Ford and Ferrari were working on a car together and Ferrari pulled out, Shelby stepped in to help finish the revolutionary race car, the Ford GT40, which would go on to steal the Le Mans title away from Ferrari - for four consecutive years.




Rest in peace, Texas' Giant.







For an even better telling of this great Hero's story go to: http://www.topgear.com/uk/photos/carroll-shelby-2012-05-04

College Engineering Advice

First thing to know is: I'm studying Mechanical Engineering. Currently a sophomore I've had a bit of experience and so I compiled a small list of ideas for future students. (Also, I'm an ASME Officer, jus' sayin')

Some high school students ask me questions about classes and there are a few select rules that I've ended up telling most of them, so here goes:

1. Screw AP

     Dual Enrollment is much more worthwhile. You are guaranteed the credit, you can build your GPA early on and DE classes are generally easier than AP.

2. Take AP

     I know, I know, I'm contradicting myself. But listen, Dual Enroll in classes that don't matter to your major. So say you're doing engineering, too. Dual enroll English and social studies, and arts or humanities studies as well. Things like calculus, chemistry, physics, statistics, etc... you should AP. The reason is even if you don't pass the AP you'll at least learn a lot more in AP for when you take classes in college, plus it serves as good practice. So mess up as much as you want and your college GPA isn't sacrificed for your mistakes.

3. Learn to Study

     I mean this one. Some people study differently; flashcards, basic notes, practice problems, hell some people don't need to study. Learn where to study, some people can do it around friends in their room, some people need the quiet solitude of library stacks. If you're like me, you prefer to be outside in the sun by water. It's nice. Point is, get comfortable, and get studied!

4. Accept Advice and Criticism

     Learn to accept that sometimes a separate point of view can be right. Sometimes you'll spend an hour on a single problem and get no where near right, a friend can offer a simple concept or idea that will instantly get it right. If you're too prideful to accept help, get over it. You'll never work alone as an engineer, and if you can't accept help from a friend, you'll be doomed for the rest of your career.

I hope this helps a bit, and no worries, I'll be offering more tips and advice through my semesters as an engineering student alongside my assessment of cars.

See ya guys!