Audi R10 Spa Wings--the real where, when and where?

[chernaudi]

On the advise of an admin, I'm starting this thread here (due to the age of the other places I wanted to place this post), though if it's better for the dedicated IMSA or ACO areas (or even a historical forum), feel free to place this thread there if you're a mod or admin.


Anyways, the meat of this post is that I got an ALMS Audi R10 media guide I purchased yesterday, and though I saw these photos before, they were in high resolution on the info CD that was contained within.


On two of the photos, it showed first the areas where the holes cut in the rear deck that the "wings" covered being sealed up by glued on or bolted on panels that seemed to be removable. Also, another photo showed holes in the rear deck area where the outboard section of the wings would be bolted to.



The photos were apparently from the 2008 Le Mans Series test at Paul Ricard. Which was held about 2 months before the Spa LMS round where the wing devices were debuted in competition. This suggests to me that Audi were working on them dating back to early 2008.



Thus, were Audi hiding them until they felt like using them, or were they waiting for full IMSA and ACO homolgation before debuting them?

[chernaudi]

Photos in question:

[seanyb505]

Is this of any interest?

https://www.mulsannescorner.com/audir10-2.html

[chernaudi]

No, I already know of that, I'm trying to find out about/ask about where and when as far as development, not when they first appeared in the public eye. IMO, these photos show that Audi were working on it well before they actually used them.

[A20 YBP]

They were working on the tech earlier than it was publicly revealed

[chernaudi]

Any further information that can be shared on here about that?


Also, was it to add overall downforce to the car, or to give another tool to tune aero? I find it interesting that aside from Spa in '08 (where the 2007 ALMS spec tail gurney flap was used), Joest still ran with the tall tail gurney (or maybe slightly shorter) for the remaining LMS rounds. Champion in the ALMS also initially did, but from Mosport on Champion ran a much shorter tail gurney on their R10s for the rest of the season, even at Detroit and Laguna Seca.



By PLM, Champion were hardly running any tail gurney on their cars, and only at Laguna Seca did the #2 Audi revert to a slightly taller one (similar to 2006 ALMS spec).


I wonder if the "Spa wings" allowed for such a change, or if it was just the difference between LMS and ALMS tracks at the time?



Also a bit of a general R10 note that may or may not play into this: I did see a small section of a 2009 Autosport Magazine article (from the Feb. 19 '09 edition) that at least with the R10 that Allan McNish and Tom Kristensen preferred a more oversteery car than most other drivers on the Audi Sport LMP squad did at the time (though this pertained to brake bias adjustments). And Allan also said back in 2000 for the ALMS (though this pertained to the R8) that Dindo Capello liked running set ups similar to what Allan preferred.

[A20 YBP]

The whole wing and gurney changes probably had a lot to do with each track’s needs, like higher downforce for Spa, but less so for places like Laguna