How Much Power Can the R8 / Huracan DL800 DCT Transmission Handle?
As the Audi R8 and Lamborghini Huracan platform becomes more and more popular in the aftermarket tuning world, people are naturally starting to find the limits of the various components of the DL800 DCT Transmission that comes fitted to this amazing mid-engine v10 platform. Although it has been recently announced that it is the end of the line for the v10 moving forward in new production versions of this vehicle, we feel that racers will be modifying the very capable platform for years to come.
How did we get here?
For years the R35 Nissan GT-R was king of the streets and the drag strip when it came to big power numbers and mind blowing accerleration resulting record breaking ET and MPH at the drag strip. Now, I can’t over look the fact that there was one company out there pushing the v10 platform from the beginning, Underground Racing. The team over there were pioneers in developing twin turbo systems, and billet transmission parts that could compete on the same level and in some cases exceed the R35 Nissan GT-R in competition, all while retaining full-weight street car status, truly impressive! The UGR team made some strategic partnerships while developing their Lamborghini Huracan and Audi R8 builds, but most importantly finding an exclusive partner for the engine and transmission computer tuning. For years they had a strangle hold on the market for this platform as they were the only game in town and built a legendary brand off of that. Enter MoTeC Australia…. With their newly developed plug-n-play (PNP) Dual M142 Kit for the Huracan and second generation R8.
As you may know, developing turbo systems, built engines, billet transmissions, and stronger driveline components don’t mean much if you are not able to tune the ECU and TCU to be able to take advantage of those upgraded components. In my opinion, when MoTeC made this PNP kit available to the public, is when the flood gates opened for the rest of the tuning market to jump in and develop their own twin turbo systems, build engine programs, and upgraded billet DCT transmission parts. Other OEM ECU tuning solutions have also been developed in this space and have also become viable solutions. While Underground Racing held this market for years unchallenged by other shops, with the tuning solutions being now open to the rest of the world we now have seen this platform make leaps and bounds of progress due to competition. Shops like Boost Logic, T1 Race Development, and AMS Performance who built a large portion of their brand racing the R35 Nissan GT-R, have seen their clientele begin to migrate to the next big thing and the natural progression for the R35 GT-R racer is to look to the Audi R8 or Lamborghini Huracan. These shops have quickly developed complete racing solutions to bring the 7 second barrier within reach all while retaining the full weight street car aspect that owners are striving for.
The DL800 Dual Clutch Transmission
As the high-performance sports car industry has evolved so has the transmission of choice for these applications. The Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) is the evolution of the manual transmission that typically has even and odd gears on separate shafts to allow for 2 gears to be selected at once. The dual clutch aspect is controlled by the transmission computer (TCU) and based on the inputs it receives from the driver as well as the engine computer it will apply hydraulic pressure to the clutch with the desired gear. Changing the gears is as simple as switching the fluid pressure to the opposite clutch which provides lightning quick changes due to the gear already being selected. This process is constantly changing by the TCU to always have the correct gear preselected so when the user or computer requests a gear change it is just a matter of switching the fluid pressure from one clutch to the other. The Graziano DL800 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is ideally suited for high-performance sports car applications. It features a mechanical limited-slip differential with a high-efficiency, single-oil solution for the transmission, bevel gear, clutch, and hydraulic unit. The dual-clutch transmission is installed in both the Audi R8 and Lamborghini Huracan. The base transmission is equipped with a Volkswagen mechatronic unit and dual wet clutch module, and it has been developed with several variants of ratios and an all-wheel drive option to meet all vehicle performance needs. The quality of this transmission perfectly matches the handling of a high-performance super sports car.
Twin Turbos and the DL800
Once the tuning solutions were made available to the public, naturally the various shops around the country started to develop way to make more power. While there are supercharging options out there, the preferred method for making power on this v10 is twin turbo charging. As we are learning, horsepower comes quite easily even on a completely sealed stock engine and it is not uncommon to see power numbers well above 1400 wheel horsepower and many examples over over 1700whp in builds that are pushing for records. With a powertrain that can make numbers like that, naturally you might ask how far can you push the transmission? Turns out…. not that far without some well executed upgrades. Enter our partners at Dodson Motorsport. With years of DCT experience in multiple platforms like the R35 GT-R they have developed proven solutions through racing that allow you to push the transmission as far as the engine will allow. At what power levels do you need to change various parts out in the DL800? Let’s dive in a little deeper below.
Horsepower vs Torque on the DL800
Something we should get out of the way before we dive in to the numbers is the HP vs TQ debate. All too often we here people say they want their transmission to be able to handle XXXX HP. That is not what you should be basing your transmission build on, Torque is what breaks parts and that could not be more true when considering what parts your DL800 transmission will need. Torque refers to the capacity to do work, while power is the rate of completing work in a given amount of time. The primary use of torque is to make the car accelerate in the initial stages of movement, while the horsepower determines the rate of the acceleration of the vehicle. Torque is the force that is applied to the gears, clutch discs, etc and that is what we will find as the determining factor in upgrading your Audi R8 or Lamborghini Huracan DCT transmission.
550ft/lbs of Torque Limit
The v10 engine in this platform is awesome, sounds amazing, and can make a ton of horsepower; what it isn’t known for is its torque production. The high-reving short stroke engine only produces a little over 400ft/lbs of torque to the wheels in stock form, so naturally the clutch will be the first thing to require upgrading when pushing for more power with your twin turbo build. In our experience, if you are looking to make roughly 800whp, the tuning of the power delivery can limit the toque to roughly 550ft/lbs of torque and the OEM clutch assembly can survive at those power numbers. This is good for your entry level twin turbo systems and helps keep cost down for the client that wants to grow with their build.
Want More Clutch Torque Capacity?
As with most builds, as you drive them you get somewhat use to the power and inevitably want more…. While the OEM clutch assembly can handle over 700ft/lb of torque to the wheels we do not typically recommend that to our clients. There are a lot of stamped steel parts in the OEM clutch assembly and are not designed for prolonged usage at these elevated power numbers. Our partners at Dodson Motorsport have several solutions for this including their Sportsman clutch kit which upgrades the inner clutch baskets as well as increases the number of frictions and steels inside the clutch to 9 on both clutch stacks. While this is a great solution, we recommend to our clients that they just make the jump to the Promax 9/9 which is a complete solution that addresses all of the components that have the potential to fail inside the clutch. In addition to the inner clutch baskets, frictions, and steels the Promax includes the clutch cover, drive gear, and outer cage which will support well over 900ft/lbs of wheel torque and pushed to 1100ft/lb or torque with proper TCU tuning. 10 and 11 plate versions of the Promax are also available, however these are saved for the most extreme builds.
What About the OEM Gears?
Now that we have solved the clutch torque holding capacity, we need to move to the next place the power gets transmitted which is the gear set. The OEM gearset can handle a good bit of power when tuned properly. When we say proper tuning we are referring to how much torque is delivered to each gear, how fast it ramps in, and how quickly the gear change is completed. All of these are factors with the DL800 that needs to be taken into consideration. For stock gear sets you will find that tuners limit the power in 1st and 2nd gear to prevent a gear failure. 2nd gear being the weakest link in the transmission the power is brought in once 3rd gear is engaged. This is why before there were proven solutions, most Audi R8s and Lamborghini Huracans were not found at the drag strip unless it was a roll racing competition. One of the more common failures seen when making over 900ft/lbs of torque (over 1000whp) is the OEM second gear stripping teeth due to the high level of torque the engine is putting out if not restricted by the tune. Dodson Motorsport has provided a solution with a second gear-only upgrade unit that matches your existing gearbox’s ratios.
How About a Full Billet Gear Set…
Ok, now that we have a clutch that can handle just about anything we can throw at it, we want to be able to let that v10 twin turbo engine eat. With the OEM sealed engine being able to produce over 1400whp with ease and 1700whp when pushed we need to consider the amount of torque the all of the gears can handle, not just 2nd gear. Additionally, if you plan on building that v10 engine to be able to produce even more power (1800+whp),you’re probably not into restricting power on your R8 or Huracan. One of the best upgrades you can do is replacing the factory gears with a full billet set.
With well over 1000ft/lbs of torque holding capacity, Dodson Motorsport developed a complete billet machined 1-7 gear set, including shafts. With massive improvements in strength, the Dodson full billet gear set significantly reduces the chance of tooth failure or seperation. This solution is proven in some of the quickest and fastest R8s and Huracans in the world.
What do you need launch your big power DL800?
As awesome as the DL800 is it is somewhat known for being fragile when being launched. We have seen failures of the Ring and Pinion, Stub Axles, and Rear Differential even at moderate power levels on OEM gear sets. If you plan on launching your car it is strongly recommended to upgrade each of these parts to support the repeated abuse of heavy drag launches. Flexing of the DL800 casing is also a contributing factor to failing the ring and pinion among other components. Dodson has developed comprehensive billet solutions for both the rear differential cover and transmission sump to provide additional strength where needed in the casing.
Conclusion
Now that the tuning industry has unlocked the power of the Audi R8 and Lamborghini Huracan, there are several proven solutions for your DL800 Dual Clutch Transmission to be able to reliably and confidently handle that added power the v10 twin turbo systems can put out. Depending on your power (torque) aspirations for your build, there are supporting parts and packages that will help you achieve your goals.