Audi and Peugeot diesel sportscars set to battle in Le Mans 24 Hour

Between the test periods, mainly designed to iron out any problems and develop the car, two other chassis were built, taking the number of 908 HDi FAP to three. Two of these are being used in races, and the third is used for development work.

The all-aluminium 5.5 litre V12 HDi FAP engine is even more brutal than the Audi, producing 700 bhp and 1200 Nm of torque. The choice of a twelve cylinder engine helps keep the cylinder bore diameter very close to that of a production series engine to leverage Peugeot's extensive knowledge of diesel combustion and ensure the engine has a reasonable piston stroke.

So far in 2007, the Peugeot 908 HDi FAP has had two starts for two very emphatic wins. On April 15, Nicolas Minassian and Marc Gené took a 908 HDi FAP into the winners circle at Monza in its first appearance at the Le Mans series, with a second Peugeot crew of Stephane Sarrazin and Pedro Lamy taking third. Three weeks later, Sarrazin and Lamy turned the tables with a flag-to-flag win in Valencia

Now the Audi and the Peugeot are facing each other for the first time in the biggest Le Mans race of them all – the real deal over 24 hours at Le Mans and the 908 HDi FAP has leapt out of the gates at a blistering pace and set a provisional pole for the upcoming 24 Heures Du Mans race, a half a second ahead of the Audi. So this year's Le Mans is shaping up to be a battle of the latest generation high-torque diesels - and a test of whether the lightning-quick Peugeot has the reliability to take on the rock-solid Audi over 24 hours of hard endurance racing.

Le Mans week action kicked off Wednesday evening with the first official practice session which saw Team Peugeot Total claim the fastest and third fastest times in the dying seconds. The evening’s run was interrupted by two red flag incidents, and was also upset by a brief but heavy thunderstorm that dumped rain over much over the French circuit. Stéphane Sarrazin (N°8 Peugeot 908 HDi FAP) and Nicolas Minassian (N°7) profited from drying conditions late in the session, however, to post their quickest times in a particularly thrilling finale. Practice resumed last night but rain soaked the track for the final qualifying session and the times from Wednesday have decided the grid positions – they’re not nearly as important as with shorter races, but provide an insight into the Peugeot’s potential.

The two four-hour test sessions organised on the Wednesday and Thursday evenings prior to the weekend’s celebrated 24-hour classic are, along with the preliminary test day organised earlier in the month, the only chance teams get to put the finishing touches to their race preparations round the full 13.629km track. The job list traditionally involves fine-tuning the set-ups of the cars in race-trim, completing final systems and fuel consumption checks, and ensuring all drivers cover the mandatory minimum number of night-time laps (three). Plus, if conditions and time allow, attempting to secure the best possible position on the grid for the start of Saturday’s race (3pm).

And that is exactly what Team Peugeot Total succeeded in doing on Wednesday evening in an exciting final flurry of top times that saw Stéphane Sarrazin (N°8 Peugeot 908 HDi FAP) post the quickest lap of the day in the dying seconds of the session. In an all out attempt on his final lap, during which he admitted to being very close to the limit, the Frenchman succeeded in toppling his rivals from top spot with an emphatic 3m 26.344s, while team-mate Nicolas Minassian narrowly failed in his bid to join his team-mate on the front row of the provisional grid.

Minassian and Sarrazin monopolised the driving of their respective cars during the first half of the session before the storm broke. After a short initial run, the two Frenchmen pitted (to fine-tune the set-up in the case of the N°7 car and to make a precautionary rear wheel-bearing change in the case of car N°8) before going back out on fresh rubber. However, despite laps of 3m 29.836s (N°7) and 3m 29.635s (N°8) - which put them 4th and 2nd respectively on the timesheets - both drivers suggested they could have done better had they not been caught in traffic, while Minassian’s second flying lap was thwarted when the red flag was shown for the first time.

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