racer was turned into the Porsche Carrera GT instead. 2000: The R8 The Audi R8 is a sports-racing car prepared for the LMP900 class at Le Mans and in the American Le Mans Series. The car was developed by Audi Motorsport and Joest Racing, and debuted in 2000, winning the 12 Hours of Sebring. The R8 won Le Mans five times (2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005) and the overall season championship in the American Le Mans Series six times in a row (from 2000 to 2005). The R8 won a hat trick at Le Mans in 2000–2002, campaigned by Audi Sport Infineon Team Joest and driven by Tom Kristensen, Emanuele Pirro, and Frank Biela. First time out in 2000, the team won a 1-2-3 finish. Since then, the Audi R8 has won numerous championships and races, including further wins for "privateer" teams at Le Mans in 2004 and 2005. The R8 is powered by a 3.6 L Audi V8 with Fuel Stratified Injection (FSI), which is a variation on the concept of gasoline direct injection developed by VW; it maximizes both power and fuel economy at the same time. FSI technology can be found in products available to the public, across all brands in the Volkswagen Group. The power supplied by the R8, officially listed at about in 2000, 2001, and 2002, in 2003 and 2004, and in 2005, is sent to the rear wheels via a Ricardo six-speed sequential transmission with an electropneumatic paddle shift. Unofficially, the works team Audi R8 for Le Mans (2000, 2001, and 2002) is said to have had around instead of the quoted 610 hp. The numbers were quoted at speed, and were due to the car making 50 extra horsepower due to twin ram-air intakes at speeds over . Official torque numbers were quoted for this version of the engine at at 6500 rpm. The equation for horsepower (torque divided by 5250, multiplied by rpm) for these numbers produces a horsepower rating of at the same 6500 rpm (516/5250*6500=638). The Audi R8's structure was designed from the beginning to expedite parts changes during the race. The car's chassis has been likened to a Lego model — anything on the car can be changed and changed quickly. During its campaign, the Joest pit crew was able to change the entire rear transaxle of a damaged R8 — a process which usually takes between