History
At the 2007 24 Hours of Le Mans, all eyes were on the duel between Audi and the returning Peugeot works team. But one privateer entry carried a secret no other team before or since could claim: a works Audi engine in a non-Audi chassis. Chassis B07/18 HU01 — the Swiss Spirit Lola-Audi — is that car, and it is offered for sale today.
The Swiss Spirit Lola-Audi
For the 2007 season the Swiss Spirit team replaced its Courage LC70 with a new Lola LMP1 chassis and secured an official engine supply from Audi Sport: the 3.6-litre twin-turbo V8 from the very engine family that had powered the Audi R8 to outright victory at Le Mans in 2005. The installation required only minor modifications to the Lola design, and the unique combination received its own designation — B07/18.
True to the team’s philosophy of flying the Swiss flag on the international stage, the driver line-up was all-Swiss: Iradj Alexander, ex-Formula 1 driver Jean-Denis Délétraz and Marcel Fässler, who would go on to win the Le Mans 24 Hours three times. The car finished third on its race debut at the 1000 km of Valencia and started the 75th 24 Hours of Le Mans, where an electrical issue ended its race after 62 laps.
Later Career
The car was subsequently acquired by Robinson Racing (USA) and returned to Lola, where it was converted to Judd V10 5.5-litre power. It raced in US historic events from 2011 to 2013 and again from 2016 under new ownership, regularly finishing on the podium, with all major electrical systems upgraded to Motec specification. In 2019 it returned to Europe at the Monza Masters Endurance Legends round — immediately competitive as the fastest LMP1 on the grid. Since then it has been campaigned by Race Performance in Europe’s leading historic endurance series.
