WEC 2020 Tech Regulations - Hypercar Regulations

[Morteza]

[Scorpaguy]

Personally, I have always pondered (silently of course) if WEC should be the auto industry's test bed/proving ground for cutting edge tech...instead of F1. Of course, it is hard to get the super rich and super models to maintain their attention/interest for more than 90 minutes at a time...so maybe not.

[FW17]

Is LMDH need factory support or anyone can throw in a road car engine and go racing?

[Morteza]

[NL_Fer]

I really doubt if the LMH will survive. It seems allot of manufacturers are interested in LMDh. The car is cheaper, probably very competitive and they can still distinguish their brand with a own built bodywork and engine. Even Peugeot had their doubts to chose for LMH. Probably soms persuaded by ACO/Fia to compete with Toyota.

Honestly, I don’t see Peugeot & Toyota as real hypercar brands, just big car manufacturers.

Who knows, will there still be a LMH class in 2023?

[JordanMugen]

I really doubt if the LMH will survive. It seems allot of manufacturers are interested in LMDh. The car is cheaper, probably very competitive and they can still distinguish their brand with a own built bodywork and engine. Even Peugeot had their doubts to chose for LMH. Probably soms persuaded by ACO/Fia to compete with Toyota.

Honestly, I don’t see Peugeot & Toyota as real hypercar brands, just big car manufacturers.

Who knows, will there still be a LMH class in 2023?

LMDh is in effect making LMP2 + free choice of engine the top class -- which is what ACO should have done in the first place IMO!

[Scorpaguy]

I think LMh was a great concept...but the numbers just do not seem to work. Actually, the numbers seem a bit askew even when compared to the "recently" current LMP1 hybrids (scrapped in part due to high costs). I just do not think that the current generation of hypercar manufacturers have racing in their blood...particularly WEC/IMSA-style racing.

While LMDh may offer a bit of cost reprieve...not sure why a larger number of manufacturers have interest in the branding potential of what is essentially a spec series. BTCC is really interesting...at least to us old folks that enjoyed diversity of machinery. I hope LMh works and thrives...we will just have to wait and see.

[Stu]

I really doubt if the LMH will survive. It seems allot of manufacturers are interested in LMDh. The car is cheaper, probably very competitive and they can still distinguish their brand with a own built bodywork and engine. Even Peugeot had their doubts to chose for LMH. Probably soms persuaded by ACO/Fia to compete with Toyota.

Honestly, I don’t see Peugeot & Toyota as real hypercar brands, just big car manufacturers.

Who knows, will there still be a LMH class in 2023?

LMDh is in effect making LMP2 + free choice of engine the top class -- which is what ACO should have done in the first place IMO!

This is what they should have done as LMP anyway, customer chassis, ‘stock-block’ engine formula and factory aero. BoP would be able to equalise for differing engines and aero packages, but it would make an excellent platform for manufacturers to showcase their products/technology.

[JordanMugen]

This is what they should have done as LMP anyway, customer chassis, ‘stock-block’ engine formula and factory aero. BoP would be able to equalise for differing engines and aero packages, but it would make an excellent platform for manufacturers to showcase their products/technology.

Yep! Why not just add Toyota, Peugeot, Glickenhaus (and Ferrari) as "LMP2h" chassis constructors, on the basis they must sell their chassis (and engine + spec hybrid system) to privateers at the fixed commercial LMP2 rate.

That would fix the concern that Ferrari have about an Oreca (etc) chassis under the LMDh rules not having a Ferrari chassis number too.

It would be great to see works teams and privateers alike, all with the same equipment!

[JordanMugen]

While LMDh may offer a bit of cost reprieve...not sure why a larger number of manufacturers have interest in the branding potential of what is essentially a spec series.

Because it is cheap and they are guaranteed to be competitive.

I guess the concern with bringing a highly developed Toyota chassis/aero to LMP2 could be that it would be too good compared to the Oreca, Ligier etc, and that all the privateers would pick it, while it would be untenable for rival works teams to use it. Then all of a sudden Audi, Acura etc would need to plough lots of money into their chassis and aero, with the Oreca no longer being competitive.

[Scorpaguy]

Because it is cheap and they are guaranteed to be competitive.

...if in fact that is the (or "a" reason), stick a fork in LMh, as it will be over before it even begins

I feel sorry for those that did not get to witness the motorsport industry in the 1970's...big innovation, big balls, and small budgets (and yes unfortunately, lots of deaths). Today, I suppose racing teams are ran by 3 tiers of authority:

First - the corporate suits

Second - the accountants

Third - the corporate suits

Forth - those that actually have a passion for the sport

Sad, I was hoping that LHh could be a renaissance for WEC.

[Big Tea]

Because it is cheap and they are guaranteed to be competitive.

...if in fact that is the (or "a" reason), stick a fork in LMh, as it will be over before it even begins

I feel sorry for those that did not get to witness the motorsport industry in the 1970's...big innovation, big balls, and small budgets (and yes unfortunately, lots of deaths). Today, I suppose racing teams are ran by 3 tiers of authority:

First - the corporate suits

Second - the accountants

Third - the corporate suits

Forth - those that actually have a passion for the sport

Sad, I was hoping that LHh could be a renaissance for WEC.

Ah, you will like telegraph road then

https://www.google.com/search?client=op ... 8&oe=UTF-8

[Stu]

While LMDh may offer a bit of cost reprieve...not sure why a larger number of manufacturers have interest in the branding potential of what is essentially a spec series.

Because it is cheap and they are guaranteed to be competitive.

I guess the concern with bringing a highly developed Toyota chassis/aero to LMP2 could be that it would be too good compared to the Oreca, Ligier etc, and that all the privateers would pick it, while it would be untenable for rival works teams to use it. Then all of a sudden Audi, Acura etc would need to plough lots of money into their chassis and aero, with the Oreca no longer being competitive.

Good point, but in such a case the cost capping of the chassis must continue.
However....
Ferrari didn’t seem to mind running a Dallara chassis/concept badged as a Ferrari 333SP for a decade!!

[JordanMugen]

Because it is cheap and they are guaranteed to be competitive.

...if in fact that is the (or "a" reason), stick a fork in LMh, as it will be over before it even begins

The reason for LMDh (Daytona hybrid) not LMh (hypercar), I assume you mean?

Sad, I was hoping that LHh could be a renaissance for WEC.

A renaissance of manufacturers lining up to throw money into a endless money pit, with no guarantee of (not even success but) even being remotely competitive at all!?

BOP and standardisation works, Formula E shows it, IMSA shows it, Formula E shows it. Series with expensive development like DTM are not popular with manufacturers.

Endless money pit regulations just don't work:



These manufacturers have gone away in embarrassment before they even started.

Meanwhile you could sprinkle a little BOP dust and still have Nissan and Aston Martin works teams racing for outright victory (or at least within a lap or two of the leaders and not slower than LMP2!), at a sensible cost...

In DTM with open regulations, you saw the same result as LMP1: Aston Martin quitting almost immediately.

To the contrary LMDh allows Nissan to come in, allows Aston Martin to step up from GTE to prototype for the same cost, allows Alpine to step up from LMP2 to outright for the same cost, allows Porsche to step up from GTE to prototype for the same cost, allows all the IMSA manufacturers like Honda/Acura to race at Le Mans etc... Surely it's a good thing, and the questionable part is why you would build a LMH car that costs 5x as much (confused announcement of regulations, with LMDh not being announced until later, being the culprit there)?

[jjn9128]

I'm sure I've said this before, but we have LMhypercar, LMh, and LMDh all competing as top class with some BOP formula to equalize them!!?! Is anyone cool with that? Seems so arbitrary and pointless to enter because you do too well and the BOP your advantage out. It's not a proper competition.