Production chronology2000–2006
Sourced production or model lifecycle range used by the main catalog timeline.
limited_edition_research ↗7 years
← Audi
Audi / Model record
AudiR8 (LMP)
Production2000–2006
Recorded originGermany
Power610 hp
Built16 units
Production
16
confirmed units built
every.autos editorialconfidence: high
The prototype that made serviceability, direct injection, and relentless consistency into a Le Mans dynasty.
Audi arrived at Le Mans with two different prototypes in 1999, then returned with a clean-sheet open car for the 2000 season. The R8 was designed not only to be fast but to be repaired under race pressure. Its rear transmission-and-axle assembly used quick-release connections so mechanics could exchange the stressed module within minutes, turning serviceability into part of the competitive design rather than an afterthought.
The next season brought FSI gasoline direct injection, improving response and fuel use while previewing technology that moved into Audi road cars. Across its career the R8 won 63 of 80 sports-car races. Five of those victories came at the 24 Hours of Le Mans—in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005—with Tom Kristensen in every winning driver squad. The later road-going Audi R8 inherited the name from this prototype, but the two cars are separate machines.
Written and fact-checked for every.autos · every claim checked against the sources below · 2026-07
Background
The Audi R8 is a Le Mans Prototype sports-prototype race car introduced in 2000 for sports car racing as a redevelopment of their Audi R8R and Audi R8C used in 1999. In its class, it is one of the most successful racing sports cars having won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005, five of the six years it competed in total. Its streak of Le Mans victories between 2000 and 2005 was broken only in 2003 by the Bentley Speed 8, another race car fielded that year by Volkswagen Group.
Text adapted from “Audi R8 (LMP)” on Wikipedia ↗ · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗ · retrieved 2026-07
Chronology ledger