If you’re an Audi customer and you qualify, you can book ‘seat time’ in an Audi R8 LMS supported by the factory’s Le Mans-winning team!
"For the first time, Audi offers customers the opportunity to participate in a race with a professional factory team without having to enter into a long-term commitment or to make a high financial investment,” explains Klaus Demel, who is in charge of the Audi driving experience. "I’m very happy that we’ve been able to win Audi Sport and Reinhold Joest’s team as a partners for this project.” The Audi R8 LMS, specifically developed for use in customer sport events and was the GT3 car to beat last year in its first racing season, provides the platform for the new Audi Race Experience. As many 120 customers drove the 386-kW mid-engine sports cars during the Audi Sportscar Experience in October 2009.
The Audi Race Experience now marks the next stage. It offers a customer the opportunity to compete with the Audi R8 LMS themselves or opt for support of professional race drivers. The vehicles will be prepared and fielded by Reinhold Joest’s Audi team, six-time winners at Le Mans. Team Joust will compete in the French endurance classic on June 12-13 with the latest Audi R15 TDI.
Audi’s Race Experience Team Joest is planning a total of six races for the 2010 season, fielding two cars each as part of the "Langstreckenmeisterschaft” (VLN) on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, starting on April 24. In addition, there will be R8 LMS events at various race tracks and at the Groß Dölln Driver Training Facility at which the customers will be trained and can also obtain the required racing license.
"As far as I know, Audi is the first car manufacturer in the world to offer such a program,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. "This shows yet again how innovative and progressive the Audi brand is. Our colleagues from the Driving Experience and Reinhold Joest’s squad with whom we’ve been successfully working together since twelve years will provide our customers with an exclusive and unforgettable motorsport experience. And the Audi R8 LMS, which, according to our "factory” drivers, is a very forgiving GT3 car is perfectly suited for this project which we fully support.”
For more information about 2010 Audi vehicles, please visit http://www.audiusa.com/us/brand/en.html