Lamborghini is developing a brand-new twin-turbo V8 for its LMDh prototype ahead of its debut in the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
This comes after a further teaser image of the Lamborghini LMDh, which is being created in collaboration with the French builder Ligier Automotive, was released on Monday along with the first information about the internal combustion components of the hybrid powertrain.
Unlike the production-based V10 that drives its Huracan GT3 and Super Trofeo one-make cars, the LMDh engine is a first-of-its-kind creation by Lamborghini Squadra Corse, which is the manufacturer’s own motorsport division created in 2013.
The Italian manufacturer has stated that the engine would be a 90-degree V8, but failed to mention its exact capacity, which is thought to be around four liters. It will weigh 180 kg, which is the minimum required by the regulations.
Lamborghini rated the overall power output of the new V8 and the hybrid system jointly developed by Bosch, Williams, and Xtrac as 500kW (670bhp), the middle value in the 480 to 520kW range specified in both the LMDh and Le Mans Hypercar regulations.
The Lamborghini prototype will adhere to the class maximums for width, length, and height, which are 2000mm, 5100mm, and 3148mm, respectively. The listed weight is 1030 kg, which is the bare minimum approved by LMDh.
Until images of the car are made public in the first quarter of 2023, it is not anticipated that more technical information will be available about Lamborghini’s as-yet-unnamed challenger. The commencement of testing, is slated to begin in the spring of 2023.
Mirko Bortolotti and Andrea Caldarelli, two veteran Lamborghini factory GT drivers, have been named the program’s inaugural drivers and will lead the vehicle’s development.
It is yet unknown which team(s) will operate the new Lamborghini LMDh in the WEC and IMSA, where it will race in the GTP and Hypercar classes, respectively.
In its most recent statement regarding the LMDh program, which Lamborghini unveiled in mid-May, the automaker emphasized Volkswagen’s efforts to hybridize its line of road vehicles as part of a plan known as Cor Tauri, which is Latin for “heart of the bull.”
The manufacturer claimed that Lamborghini’s transition to hybrid technologies is the ideal choice for its move into a motorsports environment powered by hybrid propulsion.
