When a lot of people think of "biodiesel," what comes to their mind's eye is a diesel-engined 1970s-era Volkswagen camper/van which spends each night being driven to fast food outlets so the VW owner can empty all the used cooking oil into barrels, take it home, and mix-up another batch of biodiesel for use the next day. (Photo - Audi has built a concept using their R8 sports car equipped with their V12 turbo-diesel racing engine; it's named "R8 V12 TDI Concept").
That image is about to change, and in a big way. Audi has announced they will be using biodiesel as a portion of the fuel mixture to be used in their R10 race cars at the upcoming LeMans endurance race. (Photo - Audi's turbo-diesel R10 dominated and won the 2007 Sebring 12 Hour race).
With the sports car endurance racing season about to get underway the weekend of June 14th 
with the '24 Hours of LeMans,' Audi, for the first time in two years, has some tough competition. For Peugeot, it was a case of "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," so Peugeot has developed their own version of the V12, 5.5-liter 650-horsepower turbo-diesel engine which has powered Audi's R10 racers to victories the past two LeMans races in a row.
Actually, Audi has won the previous four LeMans, with their R8 winning in 2004 and '05, using standard racing-grade gasoline fuel, but they startled the world of racing, especially in the USA, by driving diesel-powered cars to victories in both '06 and 2007.
Now Audi reveals another racing "first" ... That their diesel racers at LeMans will be fueled, in part, by biodiesel. No word yet from Peugeot if they'll join Audi in using the biodiesel.
Europeans are already well-aware of diesel's positives; and now, with over 60% of all cars and light trucks sold in Europe already being diesel-powered, Audi and Peugeot, and the other Euro car-makers, are interested in changing the mind-set of American car-buyers, trying to convince them that diesel-powered vehicles are not only reliable and fast, they are also superior in many ways to the gasoline-powered cars and trucks Americans have been driving for over 100 years.
New diesel technologies will become available in many showrooms in the US later this summer, with Audi and Volkswagen bringing their 'TDI' diesels and Mercedes-Benz importing their 'Bluetec' diesel cars and trucks to America. Other manufacturers, including the Detroit Three, will follow suit, utilizing all-new technologies developed over the past several years and shared among many, if not most, car-makers. (Photos - Below, this Audi R10 turbo-diesel will run the '24 Hours of Lemans' using, in part, biodiesel fuel; Bottom, the company's R8 V12 TDI Concept as seen from above).
Audi's R10 diesel racers have been successful at Daytona, LeMans, Sebring, Miller Motorsports Park in Utah and elsewhere over the past two years and we hope Peugeot can give them a literal 'run for their money,' because it will result in even better and more-improved diesel vehicles becoming available at dealerships. Racing still does improve the breed.
Mazda won the LeMans event in 1991, the first time a Japanese car-maker had won that august event and the first time a Wankel rotary engine was victorious in that race. For inexplicable reasons, probably due to a lack of money, Mazda did not blow their own horn at all in their marketing or advertising after that amazing victory. Admit it; until you just read it here, you probably didn't know about that victory or forgot about it a long time ago.
Audi has been advertising their victories, especially to the racing fan of America, the 'influencers,' the 
person on the block who is thought of by their neighbors as the local Car Nut. Their entry into endurance racing with their diesel engines, and Peugeot's, too, has not been cheap. It's costing them certainly tens of millions, and probably a couple of hundred millions, of dollars. Even using the diesel fuel at these many race tracks adds huge costs to the team's budget.
Just using LeMans as an example, Audi had to pay for the construction and underground installation of fuel tanks built just for diesel. The tanks can never be used for any other type of fuel; perhaps this year Audi can share some of those hard costs having to do with the various race tracks with competitor Peugeot.
Here's more information from the Audi press release announcing their team's use of biodiesel:
Click below to read Audi's press release about their first-ever use of biodiesel in a modern-day race car.
(Photo - Audi's R10 race cars sport a V12, 5.5-liter turbo-diesel powerplant makes over 650-horsepower).
2008 Audi R10 TDI uses Next Generation Biodiesel; Audi R10 TDI uses Biofuel of the next generation for the first time / World premiere at the 24 Hours of Le Mans / New: Shell V-Power Diesel race fuel with GTL and BTL / Synthetic diesel fuel reduces emission of CO2
Ingolstadt – World premiere in motorsport: At the 2008 Le Mans 24 Hours on 14/15 June, the three Audi R10 TDI prototypes entered by Audi Sport Team Joest will race for the first time with the next generation of Biofuel manufactured from Biowaste and promising a reduction in the emission of CO2 by almost 90 per cent when compared with traditional diesel.
Audi fields the 650-hp plus R10 TDI, which has already won the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans twice, in sportscar races since 2006. Shell V-Power Diesel race fuel produced by development partner Shell has been used since the very beginning. It’s a particularly powerful and efficient synthetic fuel which is created from Natural Gas in a process called Gas To Liquids (GTL). Fuels with these components are already available at the pumps. (Photo - Early version of Audi's R10 turbo-diesel race car testing two years ago somewhere in Europe).
For the third appearance of the Audi R10 TDI at Le Mans, a small amount of Biofuel of the next generation
is mixed for the first time with the previously well-proven GTL components: BTL (Biomass To Liquids), as it is officially called, is extracted from Biowaste that is unfit for use in foodstuffs, for example from waste wood. BTL promises a reduction in the amount of CO2 emission by almost 90 per cent compared to traditional diesel.
Although they are manufactured from different raw materials, the two alternative fuels BTL and GTL are practically Sulphur free and odourless. They combine quality and efficient combustion with reduced exhaust emissions.
The V12 TDI known for its efficiency and fitted to the Audi R10 TDI has already been tested successfully with the new fuel on the dynamometer and during tests. The first public appearance follows this coming Sunday (1 June) at the official test day at Le Mans. It traditionally provides teams with the only opportunity to test on the 13.629-kilometre circuit of Le Mans before the race. (Photo - Audi R10 steering wheel, various controls and instrument panel).
Practice is on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. All three cars of Audi Sport Team Joest and all nine drivers will be in action. (End of Audi release) ...
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