We reported yesterday that Volkswagen had reached a settlement concerning their diesel emissions tomfoolery and rumors were flying that this could have an impact on the future of Audi. Sadly, today rumors turned to reality as Audi announced they would be leaving the FIA World Endurance Championship at the end of the 2016 season, meaning they will no longer compete in the 24 Hours of Lemans. Audi is going to focus on other types of motorsport, including Formula E racing, turning Team ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport into a full factory effort. This aligns with their push to make zero-emission vehicles at least 25% of their global sales by 2025.

(Heavy sigh....) Unfortunately, this was inevitable. Audi raced with diesel hybrid engines that have fallen out of fashion due VW emission scandal which has effectively eliminated the market for diesel hybrids, along with the need to demonstrate their performance on the race track. Porsche is also competing in WEC and Le Mans which is effectively brand duplication as Porsche and Audi are under the same corporate umbrella. Plus, the Audi WEC program is estimated to cost $100-200 million Euros per year, money now needed to help pay for the multi billion dollar diesel emissions cheating settlement and future compliance with emissions standards.

The factors that led to this decision are clear, but disappointment remains nonetheless. The Loud Pedal is properly gutted. Audi has competed in the top tier of sports car endurance racing for 18 years, winning Le Mans 13 times. They have 106 wins in Audi LMP cars out of 185 races. Audi has accomplished so much in endurance racing that now would be the time to walk away as the trophy shelf is already too heavy to move. It is too bad that they walk away with the cloud of the diesel scandal hanging over their heads.

At TLP we have been privileged enough to see Audi complete in LMP 1 in races in North America with the R8, R10, R18 (and the Bentley Speed 8). The technology, pursuit of excellence and organization of Audi's prototype efforts are legendary and were always an amazing spectacle to watch. Audi taught us that you can change the entire rear end of a race car in less than 5 minutes. Audi also taught the competition that innovation was the key to success, rather than just building a car to the suit the rules. In the old days (the early 2000s) it was common for Audi to turn a race weekend into a master class on how to "do" racing. In those races, Audi proceeded to compete against itself in lieu of racing a competitor able to challenge them.

Certainly the car was a marvel of modern science, but the story of the Audi Le Mans program is not properly told without mentioning the team. Joest, Ulrich, Juttner, Gade, Kristensen, McNish, Capello, Biela, Pirro, Fassler, Lotterer and Treluyer. They have all left an indelible mark on the sport of endurance racing, and on our memories of going to the track each season to see our favorite cars teams and drivers. Despite the loss to WEC and endurance racing fans, Audi has undoubtedly left its mark...its DNA on the sport. We hope that when and if VW gets its house in order, we may see Audi back in endurance racing. Perhaps the jump to an all electric series and a corporate shift to electrons, over hydrocarbons, could lead Audi back to Le Mans. It's not much of a stretch to think that the future of racing, in all of its formats, will be based on exclusively electric vehicles.