Diesel in 04 - who do you think will do it?

[Fab]

There already was a diesel on the track in the 50' at LM...

As BSchneiderFan, and don't believe that a team could be interrested by a diesel engine...

[kdr]

yes but fab, imagine the publicity if you could make one that wins!

[hartham]

Delletrez entered a diesel in 49, 51 and 51, but it never finished..... You are right kdr, the publicity would be huge, along with the potential for companies to be seen to be sponsoring a more socially responsible opportunity... what with the age of having to fully justify commercial sponsorship programmes and the value they return

[KC]

I think that the endurance race at the Nurburgring has some diesels in the field every year. I think Volkswagen has raced several times with a diesel powered car there.

[hartham]

So Audi competitions boss Wolfgang Ullrich is quoted in Autosport this week as saying that diesel power was something that the Ingolstadt marque has considered.

....."That type of engine could be in the frame for the future, but no decisions have been made" he said. "You can rule it out for next year."

So it looks like unless BMW have something to offer, there will be no manufacturers running diesels in 2004.......

[Cynic]

My money would be on VW. They ran a Golf Tdi in the UK VW championship last year and it won the last two races of the season. I wouldn't expect to see a factory effort though. More likely they'll try to persuade one of the privateer LMP teams to run with it.

[hartham]

they do not have an engine though.... the golf is a mildly tuned 2 litre.... (boost, injectors ecu mods only, no engine mods) and the 5 litre v10 is just far too heavy to think about converting to race unit (500kg as it has a full spur gear train right up to the top of the engine to drive all the ancilliaries like injector pumop, alternator, water and oil pumps.

They are not likely to build a bespoke race diesel and then put it in a privateer team car, or compete as VW when audi and bently are in the frame

[egor]

In Class 1 Offshore Powerboats, diesel and petrol engines go head to head all the time.
Looking at the boat specs they either use a Lamborghini V12 petrol(8.2L) or a Seatek Diesel (10.3L).
From what I've seen of this racing they are a match for each other, but I'm not sure what the wieght difference between the two engines are if any, and if it effects powerboats in the same way as it would a racecar.

[hartham]

I think diesels in powerboats have been banned in the top categories as they smoke too much!!! hope the same doesn't happen in motorsport!!