The BMW M Hybrid V8 will race in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2024 after making its debut in the North American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
BMW M Motorsport will compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2024. The new BMW M Hybrid V8 will compete against the best opponents in the Hypercars category in the official FIA World Endurance Championship in 2024, one year after making its debut season in the North American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2023.
In 2023, the BMW M Hybrid will compete in IMSA’s new GTP category alongside Acura, Cadillac, and Porsche. Alpine and Lamborghini will follow in 2024.
Testing for the BMW M Hybrid V8 has already commenced as the model “successfully completed its roll-out at Dallara in Varano de Melegari.” It will compete in the Hypercar class. The head of BMW M Motorsport, Andreas Roos, stated that they are “working determinedly” towards a return to Le Mans, despite the early focus being mostly on their efforts in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
“The decision to run the BMW M Hybrid V8 in the IMSA series from 2023, and the WEC from 2024, is a milestone for the project,” said Franciscus van Meel, CEO of BMW M GmbH.”
“I sampled and marvelled at the extraordinary flair of the 24 Hours of Le Mans during my first term as CEO of BMW M so I am very excited to be challenging for overall victory as BMW M Motorsport again at this classic and in the whole World Endurance Championship for the first time for decades.”
“The BMW M Hybrid V8 represents a turning point towards electrification for BMW M. The IMSA series in North America and the WEC, which takes place all over the world, are the perfect platforms, on which to use our prototype to show how exciting electrified BMW M cars will be in the future.”
Some design elements borrowed from BMW M road cars set the BMW apart from its competitors. A Hofmeister kink is depicted in a window graphic on the side, along with two enormous kidney grilles, twin headlight strips, a ridged bonnet like the present M3, and “M Hook” mirrors.
The camouflage features photos of BMW race cars that have previously participated in North America, including the 1976 BMW 3.0 CSL, 1981 BMW M1/C, 1978 BMW 320i Turbo, 1986 BMW GTP, BMW M3 E36 GTS-2, BMW Z4 GTLM, and BMW M8 GTE. In honor of BMW M, the graphic “50 Jahre BMW M” is featured on the bonnet.
August will see more European testing before BMW M Team RLL and a team of BMW M Motorsport specialists begin IMSA-specific preparations with testing in the USA in September.
There will be a lot of BMW M works drivers behind the wheel throughout the testing period. The drivers in the cockpits for the 2023 IMSA season will be chosen later. The WEC operations team and the drivers for the 2024 season are both subject to the same rules.
In 2024, BMW M Motorsport will make their first appearance at Le Mans since 1999 with the prototype. In the 1999 24 hours of Le Mans competition, the BMW V12 LMR won in the hands of Joachim Winkelhock (GER), Pierluigi Martini (ITA), and Yannick Dalmas (FRA). The vehicle won the 12 Hours of Sebring (USA) in the same year and will participate there in 2023 alongside its successor, the BMW M Hybrid V8.
