Leading German automobile manufacturer Audi has announced the worldwide debut of the all-new Audi RS 5 DTM at the Geneva Motor Show this month.

“Motorsport is an integral part of the Audi DNA and is not an end in itself for our company,” said Wolfgang Dürheimer, member of the board for technical development of Audi. “At the end of the day, our customers benefit from the victories on the racetracks, because we attach great value to technology transfer between motorsport and production.”

“Our new Audi RS 6 Avant, which we will present here in Geneva, is a prime example: it combines downsizing of the engine with significantly less weight. And where do you learn this? In motorsport.”

The technical specification of the DTM cars was ‘frozen’ in accordance with the regulations as the checkered flag fell at the last race of the 2012 season. Further development was only possible in extremely limited form, a statement from the company said.

Over the winter, the Audi Sport DTM team concentrated on identifying if any of the 4,000 components in the racecar from the 2012 season offered any potential for optimisation. “Our technicians proved to be quite resourceful in the process,” said Dr Wolfgang Ullrich, head of Audi Motorsport.

The model name Audi RS 5 DTM is new. As a result, Audi establishes a direct reference in the DTM to the company’s successful production models. “The abbreviation ‘RS’ stands for the sportiest Audi models,” said Dr Ullrich. “The performance data of the current RS 5 and RS 5 DTM are very similar. This is why we are of the opinion that both fit perfectly to one another.”

The new DTM season starts on May 5 at Hockenheimring. Ten events are on the 2013 agenda, six of them in Germany. On top of these six come races in Austria, Great Britain and the Netherlands and on August 4 the debut event at the Moscow Raceway in Russia. Eight Audi RS 5 DTMs join the grid for the 2013 DTM, the statement said.

They are fielded by the three proven Audi Sport squads Abt Sportsline, Phoenix and Rosberg, which have reinforced in part by recruiting additional personnel. The allocation of the eight Audi factory drivers between the teams is also fixed, it said. Newcomer Jamie Green (Great Britain) is the new team-mate of two-time DTM Champion Mattias Ekström (Sweden) at Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline. – TradeArabia News Service