Perfect “triple”: Audi claims all three DTM titles

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Perfect “triple”: Audi claims all three DTM titles

Perfect “triple”: Audi claims all three DTM titles

“Golden October” at Hockenheim and a perfect day for Audi: The manufacturer from Ingolstadt on clinching a one-two win in the penultimate race of the season secured all three DTM titles early. Audi managed to defend the title in the manufacturers’ championship. Audi Sport Team Rosberg is DTM teams’ champion for the first time. Drivers from all three Audi teams – Mattias Ekström, race winner Jamie Green, René Rast and Mike Rockenfeller – still have chances of clinching the drivers’ title on Sunday.

“It’s been a great race and a great day for Audi,” Peter Mertens said following the early title decision. The Member of the Board of Management, Technical Development, AUDI AG personally watched the thrilling race at the venue and was one of the first to extend congratulations after the finish. “My congratulations to Dieter Gass and to the entire Audi DTM squad. Our engineers built the best DTM car last winter and our teams and drivers did a perfect job of putting everything on track. The three titles are more than deserved.”

“Today, we secured the drivers’ championship for Audi – that was our big aim,” said Head of Audi Motorsport Dieter Gass. “The manufacturers’ and teams’ championships are assured as well. You can’t do any better than that. We saw a tremendous race and clinched a one-two victory. Jamie (Green) once again showed a superb performance. Mike (Rockenfeller) drove fantastically as well. Now we’re looking forward to a great finale tomorrow in which the DTM fans will get to see a thrilling shootout for the drivers’ championship.”

Mattias Ekström (Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline) defended his lead of the standings but, in position eleven, scored no points on Saturday and now has only a nine-point advantage over Jamie Green. From position three on the grid, the Briton from Audi Sport Team Rosberg celebrated his third victory this season. “I won, so I’m very happy,” said Green. “I had a tough battle with Timo Glock and am happy that I was able to advance. The winners’ trophy is a sweet reward for Audi and Team Rosberg that have been giving me such a superb car.”

Following cautions, Ekström and Green have received five- and ten-place grid penalties, respectively, for Sunday. This improves the title chances of Mike Rockenfeller (Audi Sport Team Phoenix) and René Rast (Audi Sport Team Rosberg) who took positions two and six on Saturday and are entering the crucial finale with deficits of 13 and 20 points, respectively.

The last time Audi secured all three DTM titles in the same year was 13 years ago: In 2004, Mattias Ekström won the drivers’ championship. The last Audi DTM Champion to date and the first at the wheel of an Audi RS 5 DTM was Mike Rockenfeller in 2013. Jamie Green and René Rast will be battling for their first DTM titles on Sunday.

courtesy: www.audi-mediacenter.com

Audi’s Smart Factory Hackathon: 25 hours to devise new software ideas

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Audi’s Smart Factory Hackathon: 25 hours to devise new software ideas

Audi’s Smart Factory Hackathon: 25 hours to devise new software ideas

Startup spirit with Audi’s Smart Factory Hackathon: From October 4 through October 6, the Audi Forum Ingolstadt played host for the second time to all things big data, machine learning, algorithms and data visualization. Around 80 talented data scientists from around the world developed software solutions for the factory of the future, on the basis of real data sets from Audi Production. The “Tricycle” team won the programming competition. The students from Karlsruhe and Munich convinced the jury with their idea on “Defect mapping in body manufacturing.”​

Following its successful premiere last year, the Smart Factory Hackathon is now in its second round. Various Audi departments from the Press Shop, Body Shop, Assembly and Logistics had provided real, anonymized data sets. True to the motto “Data drives our production – You innovate from our data” the programming geniuses in groups of three to five participants with expertise in IT, math or communications design fine‑tuned digital solutions for the specified problems. To do so, they had 25 hours, based on Audi’s 25th hour – the “extra hour”. This extra hour stands symbolically for the time gained with autonomous driving. The six‑strong jury of Audi experts, external IT specialists and business consultants assessed the results. Technical methodology, user‑friendliness, value added and type of presentation are key elements in the overall verdict. The audience’s votes were also incorporated into the assessment.

The two jury members from Audi – Tarek Mashhour, Head of Production Central Functions, and Chief Information Officer Mattias Ulbrich – sponsored this year’s Smart Factory Hackathon. Tarek Mashhour was full of praise: “For these talented data scientists our Hackathon is the ideal platform to demonstrate their skills. They provide us with valuable impetus on how we can tackle big-data activities. In return we aim to promote their innovativeness and provide them with a springboard for their own startup.”

Mattias Ulbrich says: “We are constantly on the lookout for new use cases in line with today’s digitalization trends. In this respect, the Smart Factory Hackathon is a key component. This year too, it was very inspiring for me to see the kind of passion and dedication shown by these young, creative minds as they set about creating new software solutions for Production and Logistics – and to do so in just 25 hours. I am really looking forward to seeing the concepts fine‑tuned with the teams.”

Maximilian Backenstos, Svenja Seip and Niel Wagensommer alias “Tricycle” had chosen the topic “Defect mapping in body manufacturing.” They developed a linear model that enables potential defects in the body dimensions to be predicted early on. Using this system, minor value deviations can be used to establish where defects might develop later on and how these can be prevented beforehand. This provides greater process stability and prevents rejects.

The Hackathon received just under 170 applications; 80 participants, split up into 19 teams from countries such as India, Egypt, Germany and Israel, made it to the competition stage. A plant tour gave the participants an initial feel for the upcoming task. In the factory, Audi experts from Production and IT explained to them the current and future challenges. They also subsequently mentored participants, helping them elaborate the competition entries.

The company is currently driving forward around two thirds of the ideas from the first Smart Factory Hackathon in 2016 and integrating them into production in cooperation with the teams. This year too, Audi will follow up on the most promising solutions with the Hackathon participants and implement them in production. The three best‑placed teams will also be treated to an Audi driving experience.

courtesy: www.audi-mediacenter.com

Audi e-tron FE04 fast and reliable

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Audi e-tron FE04 fast and reliable

Audi e-tron FE04 fast and reliable

The new Audi e-tron FE04 has left a strong impression at the official pre-season testing of the Formula E electric racing series at Valencia (Spain). Team Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler from Monday to Thursday completed the largest number of test kilometers of all ten teams. The lap times of the first all-electric Audi race car were promising as well.

New Audi factory driver Daniel Abt (Germany) and title defender Lucas di Grassi (Brazil) reeled off an extensive test program with the four race cars of Team Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler in high summer temperatures of up to 30 degrees centigrade in the shade. The program was focused on race simulations and optimization of the energy management of the new motor-generator unit (MGU) which now only has one forward gear.

In spite of the heat, the four Audi e-tron FE04 ran with complete reliability on all three days, so enabling Daniel Abt and Lucas di Grassi to reel off a total of 474 laps on the three-kilometer Circuit Ricardo Tomo near Valencia, which equates to a distance of 1,466 kilometers – equalling the race distance of a whole Formula E season. The two Audi drivers were regularly part of the top group, although the absolute best times are only of limited significance: testing was only permitted with the full qualifying power of 200 kW twice per day and per car. In addition, the track configuration was modified by a second chicane on the start-finish straight during the test.

“Daniel and Lucas felt comfortable in the car right from the beginning and confirmed to me that we’ve done good development work and made a big step forwards with the new powertrain,” said Team Principal Allan McNish, assessing the tests. “Even though we’re only going to see where we really stand at the season opener in Hong Kong and still have a lot of work to do until then, we can be very happy with the test in Valencia. The Audi e-tron FE04 is reliable and fast. Now we need to continue to optimize energy management and the software on the test bench and in the simulator.”

“It’s been a positive test,” reigning Formula E Champion Lucas di Grassi agreed. “I believe that our new car is very competitive. Audi, ABT and Schaeffler have done a good job. We made optimal use of the three test days in order to put ourselves in a good position for the season opener in Hong Kong. The top times were very close together. I’m expecting a thrilling season.”

“The test at Valencia went smoothly,” said Daniel Abt. “There was a lot to learn with the new software and other things. We made good progress on these three days, especially on the last day. The car is running superbly and is fast. I can hardly wait to tackle my first two races as an Audi factory driver in Hong Kong.”

From now on until the season opens in Hong Kong on December 2 and 3 testing is prohibited in Formula E. The four Audi e-tron FE04 cars will be completely dismantled and reassembled once more at the team’s base in Kempten. In mid-November, they will be flown from England to Hong Kong.

courtesy: www.audi-mediacenter.com

Emotion instead of emission: Audi heading for the motorsport future in electric power

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Emotion instead of emission: Audi heading for the motorsport future in electric power

Emotion instead of emission: Audi heading for the motorsport future in electric power

Audi presented the Group’s first all-electric race car in Neuburg on Wednesday night. The Audi e-tron FE04 mirrors the company’s transformation from a classic automobile manufacturer to a forward-thinking mobility provider on the race track.

“After nearly 40 years of being successfully active in motorsport on the highest level, Audi now becomes the first German automobile manufacturer to compete in Formula E in order to test and advance the development of new technologies for production,” says Peter Mertens, Member of the Board of Management, Technical Development, AUDI AG. “Following quattro, TFSI, TDI, hybrid drive and many other innovations, our first single-seater race car is a portent of our product offensive in the field of electric mobility that we are ringing in with the Audi e-tron in 2018.” At the IAA, Audi announced having more than 20 electrified models in its range even before 2025 including Plug-in-hybrids and fully electric cars.

In Formula E, the teams and manufacturers are allowed to develop the powertrain consisting of the motor, transmission, parts of the suspension and the respective software. The combination of the motor and transmission is the centerpiece of the Audi e-tron FE04. The engineers primarily focus on designing the motor-generator unit for ever greater efficiency. To transmit the power to the wheels, Team Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler will be using a high-efficiency transmission with only one gear in the 2017/2018 season.

Emotion instead of emission: Audi heading for the motorsport future in electric power

“Together with our technology partner Schaeffler, we have developed a completely new powertrain,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Dieter Gass. “You can immediately tell this by looking at the new carbon housing of the powertrain. The car also sounds different because we’re pursuing new avenues in technology.”

A progressive new livery featuring white, metallic green and black as the basic colors visually distinguishes the Audi e-tron FE04 at first glance clearly from the car in which Lucas di Grassi won the Formula E championship title in July. For the first time in his career, the 33-year-old Brazilian is entering a new season in car number “1” of the title defender and on the occasion of the world premiere in Neuburg he did not let the opportunity pass by of driving the softly whirring new electric race car onto the stage.

courtesy: www.audi-mediacenter.com

Audi R8 LMS GT4 goes on sale

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Audi R8 LMS GT4 goes on sale

Audi R8 LMS GT4 goes on sale

The new Audi R8 LMS GT4 which complements Audi Sport customer racing’s offering by a third model range can now be ordered on four continents.

Audi R8 LMS GT4

Sales launch of most recent addition: In April, Audi Sport customer racing presented the Audi R8 LMS GT4 as its third model range for customer sport. The GT4 sports car delivering up to 364 kW (495 hp) can now be ordered. The company offers the race car at a price of 198,000 euros (excluding VAT). Deliveries are planned to begin in December. Prospective buyers can order the race car in Europe via Audi Sport customer racing, while Audi Sport customer racing North America, Audi Sport customer racing Asia, Audi Sport customer racing Japan and Audi Sport customer racing Australia are handling sales on three other continents. Hendrik Többe is available as the central point of contact: hendrik.toebbe@audi.de

Audi R8 LMS GT3

Dream weekend on Phillip Island: Matthew Stoupas won all three races in the finale of the Victorian State Circuit Racing Championships in Australia. At the fifth racing event, the Australian in his Audi R8 LMS ultra not only remained unbeaten on the circuit of Phillip Island, but also in the Sports Cars Championship. As a result, Stoupas has been confirmed as the driver succeeding Steven McLaughlan who had decided the racing series in the Australian state of Victoria in an Audi R8 LMS ultra in his favor last year. Ross Lilley completed the successful weekend of the Audi Sport customers with a second place in both the first and third race.

One-two win on South Island: Team International Motorsport in round two of the South Island Endurance Series in New Zealand celebrated a one-two victory. At Mike Pero Motorsport Park in Ruapuna, Lyall Williamson’s squad fielded the second generation of the Audi R8 LMS for the first time. Andrew Bagnall/Matt Halliday won the three-hour race in this car in front of their teammates Neil Foster/Jonny Reid who drove a first-generation Audi R8 LMS ultra.

Positive season finale at Barcelona: Belgian Audi Club Team WRT finished the season in the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup with a second place in Spain. The two Britons Stuart Leonard and Jake Dennis shared an Audi R8 LMS with the Dutch Audi Sport campaigner Robin Frijns. The trio battled for victory up until the last turn and after three hours of racing at Barcelona had to admit defeat by merely 0.719 seconds.

Audi Sport TT Cup

Suspense before season finale: On October 14, the title race in the Audi Sport TT Cup will be decided at Hockenheim. Following four victories, three second and two third places, Philip Ellis is in the top spot. The Briton has a 24-point advantage over the Spaniard Mikel Azcona who has won five races. A total of 50 points can still be scored in the two races. Ranked in third place of the overall standings, Tommaso Mosca is the best rookie in the field. In the classification for newcomers, the 17-year-old Italian has a 44-point advantage over the South African Keagan Masters, so practically being out of reach. From a purely mathematical point of view Mosca, with a 39-point deficit, still has a chance of winning the title in the overall classification as well.

courtesy: www.audi-mediacenter.com