In case of an accident or incident, three safety cars spurt on to the track to slow down the cars, while two race control cars and five medical cars stand by to spring into action when necessary. All are Audis, generally with an ACO race driving instructor at the wheel.
“We need cars and drivers that can go fast,” explains Philippe Coutant, head of the ACO’s Mechanical Support Unit. “When the safety car goes out, it travels at 180-200 kph, except in the slow zones where the speed is restricted to 60 or 80 kph. If we don’t go fast enough, the racing cars heat up. When the medical teams are called into action, they obviously need to get the accident scene as soon as they can.”
The four emergency vehicles used to extract injured drivers from their car are specially equipped Audi Q7s. “In this particular case, we need large vehicles with six seats for the team members, plus enough space to take a stretcher when we need to keep the victim laid down,” Coutant explains.
Finally, the seven fire intervention vehicles are Amarok 4x4s produced by Volkswagen, a member of the Audi family. They are equipped with fire extinguishers, reservoirs and mats to mop up the track. They are also capable of towing away broken down cars.
Not only does Audi supply a brand-new set of “official” cars every year, the German firm also sends a team of eleven mechanics to the 24 Hours of Le Mans to take care of them “We cannot afford to have the slightest hitch during the race,” Coutant stresses. “Although the cars are new, they are fully serviced beforehand and everything is tested! The Audi mechanics come with a trailer full of spare parts!” At Le Mans, the official cars receive almost as much attention as the racing cars!
Céline Gualde/ACO