What’s It Like to Drive Audi’s 1000 HP R18? Watch and Find Out!
Nothing Can Prepare You for the Unimaginable Difficulty of Driving Something That Resembles a Spaceship More Than a Car
It’s always puzzling when people don’t comprehend that modern race car drivers are world-class athletes. Perhaps it’s their idea that drivers “simply sit down in a car, push some pedals and turn the wheel” just like most of us do on a grocery run. In reality, most people’s brains can’t even comprehend the gargantuan task that is driving, let alone competing inside a race car like the Audi R18.
We could go on and on and attempt to explain how a normal person’s eyes simply couldn’t keep up with the speed at which objects are flying by. Or one’s neck muscles would be shot after just two laps at race pace. Lasting a two-hour stint like these guys do in several endurance races across the world is completely out of the question. Instead, we’re going to show you a video which depicts the complexity of it all.
Jethro Bovingdon is the editor Editor-at-Large of DRIVETRIBE, and he recently had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to drive Audi’s R18 racer. The Le Mans competitor pushes an incredible 1,000 horsepower, and only weights around 875 kilos, which translates to roughly 1,900 pounds. That’s less weight than a Mini Cooper, but more than six times the power. How about that?
Bovingdon was briefed on how to pilot the R18, and then given the chance to turn a few laps at an Audi testing facility in Germany. The result? A glorious video that gives us smithereens of information about these multi-million racing outfits.
Turn up the volume!