Cadillac unveiled its Project GTP Hypercar on Thursday morning, and authorities claim the brand is poised to battle against all challengers in the global arena and for the overall victory at the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The car will compete in both the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the World Endurance Championship, according to Cadillac. In January, the car will compete in the new IMSA GTP prototype class at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, where BMW, Acura, and Porsche are slated to compete.
With allusions to the past, such as vertical fin-like taillights, the car’s design looks to adhere to both form and function. Vertical blade-like LEDs in the front lighting elements are reminiscent of Cadillac’s street cars. A huge rear wing attached to a blade-like fin as well as flow-through fender parts let air to travel through efficiently at high speeds are among the aero aspects.
The car will be powered by a new dual-overhead cam 5.5-liter V-8 engine and the LMDh hybrid system, according to Cadillac as the system output is restricted to 670 horsepower.
The Cadillac’s chassis is supplied by Dallara, one of four companies that manufacture chassis for the LMDh class. The car must weigh at least 1,030 kg, according to the rules (2,270 lb).
“What’s been really great about this program is the spec system we’re all running,” said Laura Wontrop Klauser, GM sports car racing program manager.
“The hybrid system is being developed together and jointly. We have meetings regularly with the sanctioning body, some without the sanctioning body. The OEMs have worked together quite a bit.”
“In terms of the rest of it, our target, the aero window we have to meet, as well as the power target, are so well defined that you really try to be as creative as you can.”
“I think Cadillac has created the most beautiful car within the windows. But nonetheless, we’re all still in the same windows.”
The Cadillac will compete in the 2023 IMSA SportsCar Championship in the elite GTP (Grand Touring Prototype) class, which will be held at the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Both the new LMDh category and the current Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) category are welcome to compete in GTP. Cadillac intends to compete in the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans with the Project GTP Hypercar.
In 2024, Alpine and Lamborghini intend to compete in the new prototype classes with automobiles. Audi’s previously planned programme has been put on hold while the business reconsiders its present economics and the possibility of entering Formula 1.
