Month: November 2021

Finally: Jutta Kleinschmidt and Mattias Ekström clinched their first trophy in Extreme E in Sardinia. In a dramatic finale and with an impressive race to catch up after a botched start, the German-Swedish duo celebrated second place in the so-called Island X Prix on the coast of the Italian island. After three race weekends with a wide variety of challenges, ABT CUPRA XE kept a cool head even in changing weather conditions and rewarded themselves with the first podium finish in the series for all-electric SUVs.

“Congratulations to the entire team, this success is more than deserved,” said ABT CEO Thomas Biermaier, who followed the Island X Prix in the garage and command centre. “We have already had to deal with a few setbacks this season. Nevertheless, we have never given up, but always motivated ourselves anew. Jutta and Mattias have become a super team – it’s a lot of fun to watch them prepare together. Now they have finally rewarded themselves and the whole team.”

The weekend in Sardinia was also marked by some ups and downs: In free practice, the power steering failed, causing valuable preparation time to be lost. From qualifying onwards, the e-CUPRA ABT XE1 then ran smoothly: third place after qualifying paved the way to the strongly contested second semi-final, where ABT CUPRA XE met the eventual winner RXR and Carlos Sainz’ team and finished second.

The final, in which five cars competed against each other, began with a little shock moment: Jutta Kleinschmidt stood a good three seconds too long and then chased after the field. And how she did that: After only half a lap she had caught up with the leader and handed over the car, which by now was marked by rain and mud, to her team mate in second place. Ekström’s attack on the eventual winners quickly came to an end, however, when a door came off and the team therefore decided, also in view of the water crossings, to rather drive home second place safely.

“Another crazy weekend, but this time with the happy ending for us,” said a delighted Mattias Ekström. “We fought bravely and with a lot of heart today, but also drove very smart – thanks for that to the whole team.” Jutta Kleinschmidt said: “I’m especially happy for the guys who give everything every weekend and take great care of us. Now we have the first trophy and of course we want to follow up in England.”

The finale of the first Extreme E season will be held on 18 and 19 December at the so-called Jurassic X Prix in Dorset (Great Britain).

It is not without good reason that Audi describes the latest Q8 TFSI e as the “most progressive SUV coupé to date” of its vehicles: It combines dynamic performance with local emission-free and low-noise driving. This is achieved by the combination of an electric motor and V6 engine. Four selectable driving modes determine the extent to which the two drive solutions are used. The most powerful model, the Q8 60 TFSI e, has a combined system performance of 462 HP (340 kW) available under your right foot. With its performance upgrade*, ABT Sportsline boosts the combustion engine from 340 HP (250 kW) and 450 Nm to 408 HP (300 kW) and 500 Nm, thereby providing significantly more power to the plug-in hybrid. After installation of the high-tech control unit ABT Engine Control, the system performance of the SUV coupé is an impressive 530 HP (390 kW). The upgrade from the Bavarian company is also available for the Q8 TFSI e model with lower system performance.

The world’s largest automotive aftermarket and performance parts specialist for Audi and VW provides more than merely boosting performance. The hybrid Q8 can also be enhanced with a more individual appearance. To this end, ABT Sportsline offers a multi-component Aero package that comprises front skirt add-on, rear skirt set, rear spoiler and fender inserts. The latter is also available in stylish carbon fibre. All parts are also available separately.

ABT Sports rims are available in three different versions. The GR model in glossy or matt black is available in 22-inch. And if more girth is your thing, the GR-F is available in the same colours, but in 23-inch. For a different colourway, the HR-F wheel is available in dark smoke. This is available in both 22 and 23-inch sizes. If you like this multi-spoke design but prefer a classic black, then the glossy black version is the one for you. The last two offer next to stylish optics also a low empty weight because of FlowForming –Technology – which lifts them up to the class of High-Performance-Wheels.

For further individual tuning options for the Q8TFSI e, such as the interior or details regarding the electronic lowering ALC, visit the ABT Configurator.

Extreme E is coming to Europe: After events in Saudi Arabia, Senegal and Greenland, the off-road series for fully electric SUVs will take place in Sardinia (Italy) next weekend (23 and 24 October). With the Island X Prix, the teams, drivers and organisation also want to draw attention to the growing threat to the island from heat waves and forest fires. In sporting terms, the ABT CUPRA XE squad, with its drivers Jutta Kleinschmidt and Mattias Ekström, will be competing for the first trophy in their debut season.

The venue for the race is the Capo Teulada military training area in the Sulcis-Iglesiente region, a historic area in the south-west of Sardinia. The approximately seven-kilometre-long course leads over hard ground with many rocks and bushes, as well as dried-up riverbeds. In the autumn months, the terrain softens, creating many natural obstacles for the drivers. This also results in different ideal lines and thus overtaking opportunities. Drivers and teams will get to know the track for the first time during the track walk on Thursday afternoon.

After the shakedown and a free practice session on Friday, Saturday is dedicated to the qualifying races, before the semi-finals and the final will decide the winner on Sunday. The Island X Prix is the penultimate race of the season. The final will be held on the weekend before Christmas (18 and 19 December) as the Jurassic X Prix in Dorset (Great Britain).

Kelvin van der Linde and ABT Sportsline kept their word and fought for the DTM drivers’ title until the very end. In a dramatic finale at the Norisring, the title dreams only burst shortly before the end of the last race of the season with the left rear tyre of Kelvin van der Linde’s ABT Audi R8 LMS.

It was preceded by two intense days of racing on the DTM’s only city street circuit. Free practice on Friday already indicated that the two Ferraris of the Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse team would also have a clear advantage at the Norisring. The only one who could threaten championship leader Liam Lawson in qualifying was Kelvin van der Linde, who secured second place on the grid for both races. In the first qualifying session, however, he was almost two tenths of a second off the pace – a small world on the Norisring, which is only 2.3 kilometres short.

Accordingly, Kelvin van der Linde had to take a lot of risks in both races. The South African put all his eggs in one basket and attacked Liam Lawson in the first corner – both times with consequences.

On Saturday, the ABT driver braked a little too late, was carried far to the outside in turn one and dropped back to seventh place. Also thanks to a clever strategy, the South African was able to move up to fourth and finish one place behind Liam Lawson. The title decision was thus postponed until Sunday.

In the second qualifying session, only 41 thousandths of a second were missing for pole position. Again, van der Linde tried to attack the championship leader on the better inside line. Because he pushed Liam Lawson wide in turn one, he had to serve a 5-second time penalty during the pit stop.

Despite the time penalty, van der Linde returned to the track after his pit stop ahead of the eventual winner and champion Maxi Götz in the Mercedes. This would have put him ahead of Götz in the championship. Attempting to resist of being passed on cold tyres, the two title contenders touched at the exit of the Dutzendteich corner, which deflated the left rear tyre on the ABT Audi R8 LMS and finally shattered the title dreams.

Team-mate Mike Rockenfeller also suffered a puncture shortly after the start on Saturday and retired from the race. On Sunday, in his last DTM race for Audi, “Rocky” just missed the podium in fourth place. The entire team wore caps with the words “Thank you Rocky” on the starting grid.

Lucas di Grassi showed how quickly he learns in his second outing in the DTM. The Brazilian managed to match the pace of his teammates and could have scored top ten results in both races. On Saturday, his crew delayed the compulsory pit stop too long, which is why di Grassi was retroactively demoted to 15th place. On Sunday, the Formula E star spun after a contact with Mike Rockenfeller in the frantic start phase. Although he did not find reverse gear straight away, di Grassi still finished twelfth.

Even before the finale of the 2021 season at the Norisring, ABT Sportsline has already set the course for the future. Kelvin van der Linde will continue to compete in the DTM for the team from the Allgäu region next year.

“The message is clear: we remain committed to the DTM and are looking forward to continuing our extremely successful collaboration with Kelvin,” says Team Principal Thomas Biermaier. “Kelvin’s debut season in the DTM impressed everyone in the team. He is one of the fastest GT drivers in the world and was clearly the benchmark with the Audi R8 LMS this year. What’s more, he’s a great character and simply one of us: ABT has supported Kelvin since he first came to Germany from South Africa as a young man. He has lived near Kempten ever since and is extremely popular within the whole team. He is also an absolute asset for the DTM. The fans love him.”

The 25-year-old South African has taken four wins and five pole positions in his first DTM season so far. Before the last two races, he is in second place of the drivers’ standings, only 14 points behind championship leader Liam Lawson. “The DTM has always been my dream,” says Kelvin van der Linde. “ABT Sportsline has made this dream come true. To win a race straight away during my first weekend in the DTM at Monza was awesome. Although we had two difficult weekends at the Red Bull Ring and Assen, we are still in the title race. That shows how strong the team is. My guys at ABT are the best in the whole paddock. It’s great to already know before the finale how things will go next year. That gives me extra motivation. The DTM has exceeded all of my expectations. You get noticed much more than in all the other racing series I’ve competed in so far. The DTM weekends are very intense, and the level is extremely high.”

ABT Sportsline will field at least two Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II cars in the 2022 DTM season. “The DTM is a strong product with an attractive presence on SAT.1 and a large media reach,” says Thomas Biermaier. “We are working on the best possible package for 2022. It’s a shame that ‘Rocky’ is leaving Audi. Even though he will no longer be competing for us in the DTM, he will remain a good friend. We rate him very highly as a person and as a racing driver.”

Last year, ABT Sportsline introduced its first performance upgrade* for a plug-in hybrid vehicle: The combustion engine of the Audi Q5 with the 55 TFSI e quattro, which boasts a system performance of 367 HP (270 kW) and 500 Nm, has been boosted to deliver an impressive 425 HP (313 kW) and 550 Nm. Now the Kempten-based company has taken on another popular and established engine generation – the 1.4 TSI e.

The 1.4 TSI e is used, for example, in the extremely dynamic Cupra Formentor VZ E-Hybrid. In this variant, the Formentor has a system performance of 245 HP (180 kW) and 400 Nm. With the newly developed ABT Power New Generation performance upgrade, ABT Sportsline now makes it possible to increase the power of the petrol engine from 150 HP (110 kW) and 250 Nm to a remarkable 180 HP (132 kW) and 290 Nm. The Spaniard’s spec sheet now boasts a system output of 275 HP (202 kW) and 440 Nm. Impressive hybrid power, which is also available analogously for stable mates Leon E-Hybrid 180, Skoda Octavia RS and Golf VIII GTE. This upgrade is also available to owners of the Audi A3 45 TFSI e. There is also the 1.4. TSI s in various models with a lower system performance (204 HP/150 kW) depending on the electric motor – ABT Sportsline also offers an increase in performance for this version.

We mentioned previously that as a hybrid, the 1.4 TSI has a wide range of applications. Need more examples? The Skoda Superb iV, VW Passat GTE and Arteon GTE can also benefit performance-wise from the ABT Power New Generation from the Bavarian company. In these three examples, the engineers increase the performance of the petrol engine from 156 HP (115 kW) and 250 Nm to 180 HP (132 kW) and 290 Nm. The system output for the three cars is boosted from 218 HP (160 kW) and 400 Nm to 234 HP (172 kW) and 440 Nm.

As always, the world’s largest tuner of automotive aftermarket and performance parts specialist for vehicles from the Audi and VW Group also offers visual enhancements, such as sporty and classy rims. For all vehicle models and combination options, visit the ABT Configurator.

With a 14-point deficit, Kelvin van der Linde is second in the standings going into the eagerly awaited DTM finale at the Norisring (both races from 1 PM CEST on Saturday and Sunday, live on SAT.1 and on ran.de). Nevertheless, the South African, who lives near Kempten, perhaps has a decisive advantage in the title fight: of the four teams fighting for the prestigious drivers’ title, ABT Sportsline has the most experience at the Norisring.

The 2.3-kilometre short city street circuit between Dutzendteich and Max Morlock Stadium only has four corners. Nevertheless, the track is considered as one of the most difficult on the DTM calendar. Traction is just as important as maximum braking performance, good top speed as well as optimum handling in the chicane. The bumps, which change every year, also play a decisive role. And no other DTM race track puts so much strain on the components over the race distance.

Technical Director Florian Modlinger and his crew know exactly what is important at the Norisring and which adjustments they have to make, even though the Audi R8 LMS is competing on the street circuit for the first time and has completely different requirements to the racing cars that ABT Sportsline has previously used in the DTM at the Norisring.

The team has contested 25 DTM races at the Norisring since 2000, scoring twelve podium finishes and winning the DTM’s most prestigious race three times so far – on track even four times.

The first Norisring victory in 2002 is particularly unforgettable: Throughout the race, Laurent Aiello, in the Abt-Audi TT-R developed by ABT Sportsline, fought a gripping duel with “Mister DTM” Bernd Schneider in the factory Mercedes. In the last corner, Aiello managed the decisive overtaking manoeuvre to the cheer of the fans.

It was to be 14 long years before an Audi won another home race at the Norisring. Once again, the winning team was ABT Sportsline, and twice: Edoardo Mortara won on Saturday in 2016, Nico Müller on Sunday.

In 2013, Mattias Ekström had crossed the finish line as the winner and had the many Audi fans in the stands cheering. However, the Swede was retrospectively taken out of the classification due to the famous “water bottle gate” and there was – for only the second time in the history of the DTM – a race without a winner.

Ekström was always extremely strong at the Norisring, stood on the podium eight times for ABT Sportsline, but was never able to fulfil his big dream of winning at the Norisring.

For Kelvin van der Linde, this weekend is about a different dream: he wants to secure the drivers’ title at the first attempt in his first DTM season.

The mood at Team ABT Sportsline changed with the weather at Hockenheim: bright sunshine on Saturday was followed by gloomy clouds on Sunday.

On Saturday, the most successful active DTM team achieved a dream result: Kelvin van der Linde took his fourth win of the season and the maximum possible points score from pole position. He thus drew level with championship leader Liam Lawson in the Ferrari. The successful day for Team ABT Sportsline was completed by Mike Rockenfeller who, after a technical problem in qualifying (defective sensor), stormed from 17th on the grid to third and overtook Liam Lawson on the last lap.

Sunday started similarly well: Kelvin van der Linde again secured the three extra points for pole position. The South African, who lives near Kempten, thus took over the sole lead in the standings again. Mike Rockenfeller qualified sixth and thus also had a good starting position.

But the second race turned into a nightmare for Team ABT Sportsline: during Mike Rockenfeller’s compulsory pit stop, one of the mechanics suffered injuries to two fingers on his left hand. He was taken to the hospital in Ludwigshafen where he underwent surgery.

Kelvin van der Linde was without a chance in the second race with 25 kilograms of success weight on board his ABT Audi R8 LMS. After a contact with Liam Lawson, he collected twice a time penalty of five seconds. Finishing tenth, the ABT driver only scored just one point and is 14 points behind Liam Lawson in second place in the standings ahead of the finale at the Norisring next weekend.

Sophia Flörsch drove from 19th on the grid to twelfth on Saturday, narrowly missing out on points. On Sunday, she had to retire after a collision with Esmee Hawkey.

Lucas di Grassi finished 15th in his first DTM race. On Sunday, he had to retire his ABT Audi R8 LMS shortly before the end of the race due to a technical issue with the power train.

For many years, the fitment of a trio of Weber 40DCOE carburettors has been the performance modification of choice for the discerning Triumph TR6 owner; it may be to replace the power reducing carburettors fitted to the US models, or to replace the troublesome fuel injection system on the Euro spec models.

Webcon has superb quality manifold sets to suit both engines and these are supplied complete with full linkage sets appropriate for both left hand drive and right hand drive models.

The TR6 manifold sets are suitable for Weber DCOE carburettors and will also accept DCOE flange throttle bodies if a modern EFI conversion is being undertaken.

The manifold sets are available as below:

US 125bhp models Port Spacing 17mm MT3810 £699 plus VAT
UK 150bhp models Port Spacing 23mm MW0089 £699 plus VAT

or with 3 x genuine Weber 40DCOE carburettors as complete performance kits as below:

US 125bhp models Port Spacing 17mm PTR303 £1837.50 plus VAT
UK 150bhp models Port Spacing 23mm PTR302 £1837.50 plus VAT

Available directly from Webcon and from appointed Webcon dealers around the world.
For further details contact Webcon UK on +44 (0)1932 787100 or visit www.webcon.co.uk

During the 1970s and 1980s many high performance cars (such as the Ferrari 308, Citroen SM and Aston Martin V8) were fitted with the Weber DCNF carburettor and many of these applications used a custom made cast aluminium air horn.

This air horn has been out of production for many years, but now Webcon has made them available once again.

Part number 5284800100 is supplied as a complete kit including a cork gasket, mounting screws and washers and is available from stock at £56.14 plus VAT.

Available directly from Webcon and from appointed Webcon dealers around the world.

For further details contact Webcon UK on +44 (0)1932 787100 or visit www.webcon.co.uk