Top 5 Audi Cars in Motorsports
Audis look great and offer a high class luxury interior, but owning an Audi isn't just about show! Check out these five Audi race ready cars from over the years.
Audi and Motorsports
Audi has been driven by the same passion for competition as many of us, developing its sport department and improving its cars on the track to take on all comers. Throughout the years Audi has built an unbeatable legacy around its cars and we've taken the liberty to compile some of the best Motorsport cars they have to offer. While they've always been a force to be reckoned with in all types of motorsports, in 1978 the modern Audi took rally racing by storm with its model 80, thereby paving the way for the infamous Quattro.
5. 1938 Auto Union type D
Ever wonder what you would get when you place a 512hp V12 on a small lightweight chassis? The mad scientists behind the Auto Union D wondered that same question and they built this hell of a machine to find out. The Auto Union D was used between 1938 - 1939, it managed to win several races, despite the power making it hard to drive and ill handling. These cars continued to menace the track until World War II, causing an immediate halt to its legacy.
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4. 1979 Audi 80
Known as the first Audi rally car, the Audi 80 was the platform Audi used to break into the dirty side of motor sport. Using many parts that would end up in the soon-to-be Ur-Quattro successor, the Audi 80 featured a 160bhp 1.6l engine. The 80 utilized a front-wheel drive, independent suspension system that provides good traction and responsive handling. In 1979 the Audi 80 took its first championship at the Trifels Rally. Later this platform was developed into a Quattro version, which featured AWD and a larger engine, and set the template Audi follows to this day.
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3. 2009 Audi R8 LMS
How could we not include a GT3 car that has its own one-make championship? The Audi R8 can be considered the pinnacle of Audi sport car engineering. Featuring a V10 direct-injection 560hp engine, it can manage 0 - 60mph in 3.1 seconds. As a GT3 car, over 100 cars were purchased and used by customer teams. The LMS itself has just over 200 world international victories under its belt.
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2. 1981 Audi Ur Quattro
This car revolutionized the rally world. Audi wedged its way into the rally competition with the creation of its Sport Department in 1978. The Ur Quattro took the road in 1981 with Finn Hannu Mikkola and Michele Mouton driving. However, people did not start talking until the 1982 World Rally Championship in San Remo, where Michele Mouton became the first female driver to win a world cup. Many naysayers at the time credited the win to the quattro all-wheel drive system, which brought more attention to the car itself. It featured a 2144 cc Turbocharged five-cylinder engine, rated at 340bhp and permanent AWD – a first for Audi.
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1. 2000 Audi R8 LMP
Built to conquer the Le Mans racing series, the R8 LMP (LeMans Prototye) is a robust machine that produced 670hp and was used between 2000 - 2005, winning at LeMans every year but 2003. It has a notorious legacy, winning 63 out of 79 competitions it raced in and is the predecessor of the infamous Audi R8 street car. What really makes this car special is that even when faced with newer regulations that resulted in restricting the overall power of the engine to about 520hp, the Audi LMP still managed to snag a win at the 2005 Le Mans competition.
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