As part of the 2010 R8 pricing announcement, Audi told us how much green it'll take to get the even more Bruce R8 V10 with 5.2 liters of German fury. At 518 HP and 391 lb-ft of torque, it's not exactly the best bang for the buck, but with a body like that who cares?

Audi has won every race at La Sarthe since 1999, the sole exception being the 2003 event—which wasn’t really an exception at all, as the winning Bentley Speed 8 was nothing but Audi’s all-conquering R8 with a roof and a can of British Racing Green paint.

After retiring the R8, Audi returned in 2006 with the R10, the first modern diesel-engined endurance racecar, powered by a V12 TDI engine, which duly took victory at its first outing at Le Mans.

In 2007, Peugeot stepped up to the plate with a similar design, the 908 HDi FAP, which came in second on its inaugural race, retained this position for 2008, then roared back for a 1–2 finish this Sunday against Audi’s all-new R15. This marks Peugeot’s third win at their home race, after the Peugeot 905’s back-to-back wins in 1992 and 1993.

A Porsche RS Spyder entered by Team Essex/Poulsen Motorsport took the LMP2 class. The Corvettes marked their last race before retirement with a fifth class win in GT1, while in GT2 it was all Ferrari, with the top spot going to Risi Competizione’s F430.

Presented here are the best photos from the race.

The Corvette Racing C.6R of Jan Magnussen of Denmark, Johnny O'Connell of the United States of America and Antonio Garcia of Spain drives during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 15, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

Ferrari F430's head through the Dunlop Chicane during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Jan Magnussen (L) of Denmark and Team Corvette Racing and Nicolas Lapierre of France and Team Matmut drive down the Mulsanne Straight during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

Nicolas Minassian of France drives the Team Peugeot Total 908 HDi FAP car down the Mulsanne Straight during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

An Audi R15 heads down to Indianapolis corner during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

The Peugeot Sport Total 908 HDi FAP of Alex Wurz of Austria, David Brabham of Great Britain and Marc Gene of Spain drives during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Dindo Capello of Italy drives the Audi Sport Team Joest R15 during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

The Team RML Lola Mazda of Tommy Erdos, Mike Newton and Chris Dyson drives during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Johnny Kane of Ireland drives the Speedy Racing Team Sebah Lola during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

Jan Magnussen of Denmark and Corvette Racing drives during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

Cars go through Indianapolis corner during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

Cars head towards Terte Rouge during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 14, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

A Kolles Audi R10 drives at sunrise during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 14, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

The Aston Martin Racing Lola of Stuart Hall, Harold Primat and Peter Kox comes in for a pitstop during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 14, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

The Aston Martin Racing Lola of Jan Charouz of the Czech Republic, Stefan Mucke of Germany and Tomas Enge of the Czech Republic drives during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 14, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Ker Robertson/Getty Images

Pedro Lamy of Portugal and Team Peugeot suffers rear left hand damage after a collision in the pitlane during the 77th running of the Le Mans 24 Hour race at the Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans on June 13, 2009 in Le Mans, France.

Photo Credit: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

To appreciate the full spectrum of the XKSS’s lunacy, consider these seven easy steps you’d have to take to create a contemporary equivalent:

1. Acquire last year’s Le Mans winner: the Audi R10
2. Fit passenger door and seat
3. Fit rudimentary canvas top
4. Install windshield
5. Remove giant rear wing
6. Replace headlight assembly
7. Add a bit of chrome

And you’re done! Notice how it’s remained a race car with a featherweight carbon fiber body and a 700 HP V12 turbodiesel.

But the engine in the XKSS was not a turbodiesel. It was a gasoline-fueled straight six with triple Webers, good for 250 HP, brain-meltingly loud at 6,000 RPM and also very pretty. In a very British way.

It was not only the engine which made the D-Type such a monster at Le Mans. The body was an aluminum monocoque, carried over from aircraft manufacturing. Very advanced for its day of body-on-frame and superleggera designs, with an aerodynamically shaped underbody for low drag. And, of course, that giant asymmetrical fin behind the driver’s seat, good for stabilizing the car when you were screaming down the Mulsanne Straight at 180 MPH.

The D-Type won at Le Mans three times in a row. Fifty years after its last victory in 1957, I was wandering about the parking lot at Le Mans, waiting for the 2007 race to begin, when I spotted one. It had apparently been driven to the race on the public road. Armed with a brochure which depicted Mike Hawthorn—the man who drove the D-Type to its first victory here—I reunited car and driver.

Human biology would have allowed for such a reunion without my help, as Hawthorn would only have been a springly 78 on this cold, damp June day. But he had already been dead since 1959, having crashed his souped-up Mk1 Jaguar into a tree. Four years after eighty people died at the very Le Mans race he won. Two years after nine of the planned 25 XKSS’s were destroyed in a factory fire, resulting in the 16 examples ever made of the car.

Perhaps this is why D-Types are so downright frightening in person. They carry their grim history like a personal thundercloud tied to that massive shark fin of theirs.

Photo Credit: John Dominis/Life (McQueen in XKSS, click to download in 3200×2372!), Balázs Fenyő (Jaguar XK engine) and the author (D-Type at Le Mans in 2007)

The #2 Audi R15 of Allan McNish, Tom Kristensen and Dindo Capello lapped the 3.7-mile track in 1:43.596, half a second quicker than their teammates Marco Werner, Lucas Luhr and Mike Rockenfeller in the #1 car, and a full 1.4 seconds clear of the Frenchies in their Peugeot 908’s.

Allan McNish, who scored the first victory for the R15’s predecessor—the R10, pictured above at last year’s race—with teammates Kristensen and Capello at Sebring in 2006, had this to say about the new diesel racer:

The car feels more agile, it feels more reactive, especially at high speed and through Turn 1, which is a very bumpy corner, it’s more stable than the R10 was. We're actually going through there a gear higher.

We’ve got a better response from the engine as well. I think the V10 being a bit shorter and lighter is allowing the chassis to be more agile in the other parts of the circuit.

Performance-wise, what we’ve seen to date is that we’re a little bit ahead of Peugeot on short runs and also on long runs. Acura are very early in their running because they didn't run on Saturday, so I think we’ve got to wait until Tuesday or Wednesday to see their full potential.

Poor Peugeot. They have been trying to beat Audi since 2007 to no avail. If the R15 wasn’t such an absolute treat for the aluminum and carbon fiber heart, one would almost feel compelled to root for them.

Source: Autosport.com

Photo Credit: Doug Benc/Getty Images

Suspension upgrades come in the form of magnetic ride control aimed at improving both ride and at the limit grip. It rides on new 19-inch ’10-spoke Y design’ wheels hiding 14.9 inch brakes up front 14.0 inches at the rear. The styling gets tweaked with a modified sideblades with bigger intakes in gloss clear finish over carbon fiber. The rear end gets a modified diffuser and oval exhaust tips, all designed to look pretty while it's leaving you in the dust.

NEW AUDI R8 V10 READY FOR THE ROAD (AND TRACK)

Acclaimed aluminium-bodied, mid-engined Audi sports car now available with both ten and eight cylinder power

* Second R8 model powered by 5.2-litre V10 FSI petrol engine scheduled to open for UK order in January 2009 for first deliveries next spring
* Available with manual gearbox at £99,575 OTR, or with R tronic sequential shift transmission at £104,665 OTR (R8 4.2 V8 £77,405 OTR and £82,495 OTR)
* 5,204cc V10 produces 525PS at 8,000rpm and 530Nm at 6,500rpm (R8 4.2 V8 420PS at 7,800rpm, 430Nm at 4,500rpm)
* 0-62mph in 3.9 seconds, top speed 196mph, combined mpg 20.6 (R8 4.2 V8 R tronic 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds, top speed 187mph, combined mpg 20.7)
* Combines classic mid-engine configuration with advanced all-aluminium Audi Space Frame (ASF) construction and quattro permanent four-wheel-drive
* World’s first all-LED headlamps as standard, plus Audi magnetic ride adaptive damping and Bang & Olufsen audio system

Audi is sending shockwaves through the sports car establishment yet again with the new R8 V10, a ten-cylinder, 525PS, 196mph evolution of the quattro four-wheel-driven sports car that UK enthusiasts have taken to their hearts. The project that has been the subject of intense speculation since the 2006 launch of the V8-powered R8 is set to come to fruition in January when the new super car opens for UK order priced at £99,575 OTR in manual form, or £104,665 OTR equipped with the R tronic sequential shift transmission. First deliveries are expected next spring.

The new 5.2-litre FSI V10 petrol engine mounted longitudinally directly behind the cockpit is almost identical in construction to the unit powering the recently announced R8 LMS that will race at customer level in the GT3 class. It contributes only 31kg more to the overall weight of the all-aluminium-bodied R8 than the existing V8, taking it to 1,620kg, and making possible an impressive power-to-weight ratio of 324PS per ton.

Punching out its 525PS maximum at 8,000rpm, and peak torque of 530Nm at 6,500rpm, this exceptional and highly efficient direct injection unit rockets the R8 through the 62mph barrier in just 3.9 seconds as it revs freely to its 8,700rpm limit in each of its six ratios. When linked to the R tronic transmission it can reach 124mph in only 12 seconds, and in the right conditions can maintain its breathtaking momentum all the way to 196mph – an unprecedented high for a road-going Audi.

By mounting the ten-cylinder unit as close as possible to the centre of the R8, Audi engineers have achieved near perfect 44 per cent front / 56 per cent rear weight distribution for optimum handling balance. Dry sump engine lubrication – an element specifically derived from racing - also furthers this aim by enabling the V10 to be mounted as close to the road as possible to lower the centre of gravity.

Advanced Audi magnetic ride
This classic configuration, combined with advanced Audi Space Frame (ASF) construction mating lightweight aluminium panelling to an aluminium space frame, provides the very best operating conditions for the futuristic chassis with its agile double wishbone set-up and standard Audi magnetic ride adaptive damping system.

The Audi magnetic ride dampers swap conventional fluid for a magnetorheological solution containing minute magnetic particles that can be influenced by an electromagnetic field. By applying a voltage to the system’s electromagnets, the viscosity of the fluid is altered by the affected magnetic particles, increasing resistance to damper movement to iron out pitch and roll when necessary, and reducing resistance when ride comfort takes precedence. The system constantly monitors road conditions and driving style and reacts accordingly.

The striking 19-inch ’10-spoke Y design’ alloy wheels naturally contend with the V10’s formidable output with the help of the legendary quattro permanent four-wheel-drive system, which apportions power to front and rear axles in constantly varying degrees dictated by road conditions. Ventilated and perforated 380 millimetre front and 356 millimetre rear disc brakes, which at extra cost can be upgraded to virtually fade-free ceramic discs, also help to instil complete confidence. As a whole, the configuration, which also includes a super precise gear shift and fast-reacting, communicative steering, has already been lavished with exceptional praise by critics the world over in the V8-powered R8.

World’s first all-LED headlights
As a further safety enhancement feature that also adds a new dimension to the already much lauded styling of the R8, the V10 is equipped as standard with the world’s first all-LED headlamps. For the first time the high intensity diodes have been used for low beam and high beam settings, as well as for daytime running lights and indicators, intensifying the sports car’s visual drama.

The list of subtle embellishments to the taut, emotive body of the R8 V10 also includes a high gloss finish for the grille and front air intakes, more pronounced side sills, wider side cooling vents within the contrasting ‘sideblade’, high gloss rear air outlets, oval exhaust tailpipes and a new rear diffuser.

The everyday usability of the R8 has been as widely commended as its capacity to enthral drivers, and the V10 version will of course be no different. The much praised quality of the interior fixtures and the deceptive amount of space afforded by the generous 2.65-metre wheel base makes this one of the most easygoing super cars ever built, and the V10 with its extra equipment emphasizes this further. In the most powerful R8 to date electric adjustment and heating is added for the Fine Nappa leather-upholstered sports seats, and DVD satellite navigation and a CD changer playable through a 465-watt Bang & Olufsen audio system simplify and enhance day-to-day driving. An interior light package including LED footwell lighting, light and rain sensors and LED engine compartment lighting also comes as standard.

Audi’s starter for ten – The new 525PS, 196mph Audi R8 V10 joins the highly successful V8 model in the UK in the spring of 2009 priced from £99,575 OTR.

Why biodiesel in a racing car?
Christian Bokich: We're racing to show people what's coming in our future cars, and to show that we're leaders in diesel. It has always raced on GTL; it's not from an oil barrel, it's from natural gas using a high-tech conversion. The new twist is the GTL was only the stop-gap to learn how to create synthetic diesel. We know we wanted to do biomass diesel, not based on foodstuffs.

Racing is fun. Racing is exciting. But we're racing for a reason: A to win, and B to bring the technology to customers. Though we don't recommend more than 5% biodiesel in our cars now, we want to say for the future you can use it in one of our new cars with a full warranty, and racing is an easy way to test that technology.

Did you have to make any adjustments to the cars to run the mixed fuel?
We did not. There were no adjustments.

You ran a mix of GTL and BTL, that's what you're trumpeting, but did you run it the whole time?
We were running the fuel mixture the entire race. There was no night-time mixture or day-time mixture.

WIll you continue to use BTL or is this a one-off race, albeit a successful one, with a low mix?
I think eventually you'll see higher mixes. We haven't announced what's going to happen now with the remainder of the US races we have. I assume we will continue. I think if we start using it now it would only make sense to keep using it now.

What's better, ethanol or diesel? You race against the E85-powered Vette; do you want to talk some smack?
Diesel offers the benefits that ethanol might have, but we have tremendous amounts of range. The R10 TDI, if it were not for the restrictions that were placed to put our cars on a level playing field, not only on the size of the gas tank but the rate at which we can refill, we could go lap and lap and lap without refueling.

Sure, we think diesel has an advantage over ethanol. The fact that we're using BTL that just uses garbage is a sign that we're investing in technology that uses a lot of existing resources. From what we know, ethanol does interfere with the human food chain.

This was your first trip to Le Mans, how was it?
I've never seen a race that seems more prestigious. I've been to the Indy 500, to all the ALMS races for two-years running. I guess the length of the race itself is prestigious. The regalia and the tradition that goes with it. We arrived and we went to this parade and they have all these fancy cars. And you look at the caliber of the people walking around. It's just an exciting and enthralling place. It was overwhelming, but it was kind of cool. I don't get very euphoric at times, but it was pretty easy to get euphoric about it.

[Photos: Robin Thompson for Audi of America]

What gives this car away are a couple of subtle changes to the intakes. Notice that the front grille now only has two horizontal bars, whereas a normal R8 has three. Also, look closely at the side scoops in the crossblades and you'll notice that they've been enlarged to feed the bigger engine. Ze 'chermans are all about ze details, yes?
[BridgeToGantry]

To tell the story of the Type C, you have to start at the Great Depression. As they were everywhere, the period was hard for Germany, and though the engineering talent of Ferdinand Porsche was well know at the time, the commissions for automobiles had simply dried up. Not one to have his ambitions squelched, Porsche joined with a group of his former associates including Adolf Rosenberger and Karl Rabe to form the Hochleistungs Motor GmbH (High Efficiency Engines company). At this point, development work on a Grand Prix-competitive engine began in earnest without a contract.

In parallel, the companies of Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer formed Auto Union in an effort to ride out the storm of the depression by way of leveraged finances and increased purchasing power. As all good, freshly minted European auto makers in the 30's must do, a race car was commissioned, and this one went through Porsche, who had connections to Auto Union through Wanderer. The cash to do the development is what gives these cars a special, perhaps infamous place in history. Adolf Hitler, the newly appointed Chancellor of Germany, had commissioned Mercedes Benz to build a car to dominate racing and had provided 500,000 Reichmarks to do it. After convincing Hitler of the benefit of two entries from Germany, the chancellor split the pot and 250k RM went to each team.

At the time, the front engine, rear-driver layout was considered the state of the art, but flush with funds, Porsche's team set to work bringing the drawings of a low, mid-engined, wundercar to life — and the design would be called the Auto Union Type C. By placing the engine at the rear, fuel tank in the center, and the driver in the front, concessions for the drive shaft and transmission tunnel were no longer necessary. And oh, that engine, a twin-block, 6 liter, 45 degree bank, 32 valve V16, was force fed air through a Roots supercharger and developed 520 HP in its final form. With the uneven 40/60 front to rear weight distribution and the massive power available, the car tended to oversteer and it was difficult for drivers used to a rear seating position to determine the limits of adhesion. Before the advent of the ZF limited slip differential, the car was known to produce wheel spin at speeds as high as 150 MPH.

The front and rear suspensions were considered state of the art at the time. The driver sat over a split axle and torsion bar setup in the front while the rear was managed with a double wishbone and transverse leaf spring suspension. The body stretched over this mechanical symphony was carefully crafted in the German Institute for Aerodynamics and provided both efficient cooling and enviable aerodynamic effect. When completely developed, the 1,618 lb. car was capable of 211 MPH flat out.

Drivers of this infamous car read like a who's who of early Grand Prix driving — Hans Stuck, Ernst von Delius, Achille Varzi and of course Bernt Rosemeyer. It was Rosemeyer who mastered the chassis and drove these cars into legend, securing six victories of twelve races in the 1936 season. The wins lead to Auto Union securing the builders title, and Rosemeyer being awarded the European Champion title. Over the next two years he would win another eight races outright and lose to Mercedes in 1938 only after they tied in race wins, but lost in laps led to the newly developed W125.

The Auto Union Type C, as well its competitor the Mercedes Benz W125, represent a pinnacle of engineering achievement not seen again until the turbocharged racers of the 1980s.The Type C was the exact car that started the racing revolution, the shift which was necessary to go faster and lighter. The move to mid engine racing was ultimately inevitable, but the confluence of history, engineering passion, staggering performance, and intimidating design captures the imagination. It also demands a place in the Jalopnik Fantasy Garage.

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The Jalopnik Fantasy Garage:
1978 Aston Martin V8 Vantage | Honda 1300 Coupe 9 | 1931 Daimler Double Six 50 Corsica Drophead Coupe | Ferrari 288 GTO | Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 | 1970 Buick GSX 455 | First Generation BMW M Coupe | Bugatti Veyron 16.4 | Ford GT | Citroen SM | Porsche 928 | Jensen FF | DeTomaso Vallelunga | Audi Quattro S1 | Buick GNX | Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R | Honorary Fantasy Garager: The LS1 Powered Rotus | Lamborghini LM002 | Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe | Ferrari 250 GTO | Bentley Speed Six | Talbot-Lago T150C SS Figoni et Falaschi Raindrop/Teardrop Coupe | Porsche 917 | Audi RS4 Avant | Lamborghini Miura | Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.9 | BMW E39 M5 | Jaguar E-type | Mercedes-Benz 300 SL | Dodge Charger/Challenger R/T | Toyota 2000GT | Facel Vega HK500 | Voisin C28 Aerosport | Bugatti Type 41 Royale | McLaren F1 | Maserati Bora | Continental MK II | Tucker 48 | Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato | BMW 507 | Porsche 959 | 1925 Rolls-Royce Phantom 1 Jonckheere Coupe | Land Rover Defender | Lotus Eleven | Cadillac Eldorado Brougham | 1963 Mini Cooper S | 1934 Duesenberg Model SJ | Caparo T1 | Morgan Aero 9

Sources: Classics, Wikipedia, DDavid.com, The Supercars, Youtube