The LMDh challenger that Lamborghini plans on using to contend for the WEC and IMSA titles starting in the season that follows has been officially unveiled.
Lamborghini unveiled the SC63 Hypercar to be run in the 2024 World Endurance Championship at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The Italian manufacturer is one of many teams who have entered the endurance scene since the Hypercar class was introduced.
Lamborghini will now aim for the same success as rival Italian team Ferrari, who won the Le Mans 24 Hours in its inaugural Hypercar class season, after unveiling its new SC63 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
The SC63 hybrid will also join the GTP ranks of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, marking the brand’s first foray into the top tier class of endurance racing.
Therefore, Lamborghini will seek to win the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring in addition to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. What a fun and unusual way to mark the 60th anniversary of Ferruccio Lamborghini’s opening of his company in Sant’Agata Bolognese.
The Iron Lynx squad, which includes former F1 stars Romain Grosjean and Daniil Kvyat as well as Lamborghini mainstays Mirko Bortolotti and Andrea Caldarelli, will be running the cars which were created in collaboration with Ligier, known for its LMP2 technology.
The engine is a brand-new 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 with a redline as high as 10,000, which may very possibly make an appearance in the Huracan replacement. Although it’s not known if the Huracan will use one, the turbos are set up in a cold vee arrangement for simple maintenance and cooling of the turbines. In any case, Lamborghini claims that the setup finds the ideal balance for tire grip, weight balance, drivability, and longevity for the racing program.
The power output is restricted to no more than 500 kilowatts, or 670 horsepower, like all the other Hypercar class competitors, but how each team achieves it is totally up to them, so long as they all utilize the same gearbox and one of a very small number of approved chassis options.
When it comes to the monocoque, Lamborghini is the first manufacturer to use one created and manufactured by Ligier, which gave the Italian automaker freedom to specify a lot of the design, “including the creation of the pushrod front suspension design, overall weight distribution, and ease of service for critical parts of the car.”
One of these is the bell housing, which is located between the front and rear of the gearbox and serves to increase torsional rigidity as well as to house the electric motor.
Lamborghini’s Centro Stile design team was able to incorporate several famous design cues, such as the recurring Ypsilon Y-shaped design throughout the car, despite multiple rules and regulations controlling much of the car’s design.
The lower side NACA duct on the profile which is designed like the side intake of a new Countach is another nod to Lambo road cars.
Additionally, the Revuelto’s wheel arches are reported to have served as inspiration for the design of the Hypercar’s wheel arches and it also incorporates the Huracan GT3’s Verde Mantis and Nero Noctis liveries with elements of the Italian tricolore.
The SC63 which is Lamborghini’s most technologically advanced race car to date, will start testing in August 2023 and will make its track debut in January 2024.
Surprisingly, the Italians only want to send two cars with the Iron Lynx squad. One will compete in the whole 2024 World Endurance Championship season, and the other will compete in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Four drivers, including factory stars Mirko Bortolotti and Andrea Caldarelli, have been confirmed by Lamborghini for the SC63 program. The Italians will be joined by Daniil Kvyat and Romain Grosjean, both of whom have extensive Formula 1 experience. By the end of 2023, more drivers will be revealed.
