Quotes after the test day at Le Mans

Dr Wolfgang Ullrich (Head of Audi Motorsport): "That was a positive test day for us. We had a huge programme for both cars and we managed to work through all points without any trouble. We are satisfied with the performance and with everything we have achieved during this day.”

Dindo Capello (Audi R10 TDI #7): "I’m happy with our car today. First we did quite a lot of laps with the same set of tyres, but still the grip was very good at the end. Also with the race tyres the setup was perfect in the afternoon. It always depends also on the traffic on the circuit, who sets the fastest lap at Le Mans.”

Tom Kristensen (Audi R10 TDI #7): "I’m really impressed to be here at Le Mans with the Audi R10 TDI for the very first time. What comes to my mind first is going through the Porsche corners in fourth gear and you don’t hear the sound of the diesel engine at the back. That was a completely new experience for me. The balance of the car was immediately very good. We may not be the fastest on the straights but we have very good handling and for sure we have good fuel economy. We are well aware of the speed of our competitors but I’m sure we will have a strong race with our Audi R10 TDI.”

Allan McNish (Audi R10 TDI #7): "This circuit is the natural home of the Audi R10 TDI. This car was designed with the Le Mans 24-hour race in mind. My feelings about today are very positive. In terms of performance we are closer to our competitors as we have been at the same time one year ago. And also in terms of the balance and the tyres we are already doing the fine tuning. So as far as car number seven is concerned, we are ready for the race.”

Test day results

1 Helary/Montagny (Pescarolo-Judd) 3m 30.195s
2 Capello/Kristensen/McNish (Audi R10 TDI) 3m 32.090s
3 Bouchut/Collard/Comas (Pescarolo-Judd) 3m 32.205s
4 Biela/Pirro/Werner (Audi R10 TDI) 3m 33.160s
5 Gounon/Kurosawa/Nakano (Courage-Mugen) 3m 33.511s
6 Lammers/Yoong (Dome-Mugen) 3m 35.209s

Audi Sport Team Joest entirely concentrated on the new sport-prototype’s fine-tuning for the race on 17/18 June as the test day offers the only possibility to test and collect important data on the 13.650km Le Mans circuit. Audi was leading the field for almost the entire day. Just shortly before the end of the practice, the Pescarolo team set a fastest time of 3m 30.195s.

For Audi Sport, more important was the fact that the two new R10 TDI sportscars ran almost trouble-free and completed 162 laps (2211 km). There were only two unscheduled pit-stops. A repair of the hydraulic system cost Frank Biela, Emanuele Pirro and Marco Werner some time in the morning session, while some shifting problems had to be cured on the R10 TDI of Dindo Capello, Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish.

With the official test day, the "final countdown” for the Le Mans 24 Hours has started. Qualifying will take place on Wednesday and Thursday (14/15 June). The start of the race is scheduled for Saturday (17 June), 1700 hrs. The race will be covered "live” and in full length by various TV stations world-wide.