Obsessive regulations-reader John calls attention to an interesting tidbit in the ACO's new rules for the LMP classes:
The ambient temperature around the driver must not be higher than 30 C (86 F) whatever the temperature on the outside when the car is in motion. After a stop, the temperature must go back down to this value in 5 minutes maximum. An efficient air conditioning system comprising a compressor, a condenser, a pressure reducer and an evaporator is compulsory for the closed cars. It must be described on the homologation form and approved by the ACO.
The closed cars also get a restrictor-plate advantage over the open cars to make up for the power-robbing climate-control system, and here's where it gets interesting: diesel cars get a .1mm advantage in restrictor sizing over gasoline cars. Is the R10 simply a stepping stone to a world-dominating descendent of the awesome Speed 8? As cool as the open cars are, there's just something about the look of a closed-cockpit Le Mans car that just does it for us like nothing else.
Mulsanne's Corner (scroll down)
Related:
Audi Launches R10 LeMans Racer: Yes, it's a Diesel