24h Le Mans
Hypercars under the microscope | Eight illustrious manufacturers will line up in the top class at the 93rd 24 Hours of Le Mans (11-15 June 2025). The BMW M Hybrid V8 has just one mission – to propel the German manufacturer back to the top of the international endurance tree.
At 4.00 pm on Sunday 13 June 1999, the #15 BMW V12 LMR took the chequered flag as winner of the 67th 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Bavarian carmaker left its imprint on the history of the French endurance classic by winning this iconic edition. Fast forward to Thursday 10 June 2021 when the BMW Group board rubberstamped plans to return to endurance in the LMDh Hypercar class. The future car was not only to win the IMSA championship in North America, but also the FIA World Endurance Championship and, of course, the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Once the partnership with Dallara was signed in late summer, the teams quickly got down to business. Just over a year later, on Monday 25 July 2022, the BMW M Hybrid V8 began initial testing in preparation for its début race six months later: the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
The German prototype is driven by a V8 turbo that goes by the name of P66/3. It has the same hybrid system as all Hypercars built to LMDh regulations. Ulrich Schulz, the Chief Drivetrain Engineer on this project, and his team had to take on board a raft of sustainable development aspects, all within a short timeframe. Starting from a blank page was therefore out of the question.
The BMW P66/1 naturally aspirated eight-cylinder engine used in DTM by the 2017 and 2018 BMW M4 DTM offered the best platform in Schulz’s view. The stressed engine offered the advantage of slipping directly into a monocoque chassis. The bulk of the work involved adding two turbos. Thorough work was conducted on sustainability, increased performance and engine temperature management. As development progressed, the engine was adjusted to the Dallara chassis and its electrical environment.
“It’s a huge plus that we were able to make use of existing materials such as steel and aluminium from BMW’s time in Formula 1 […] That saved us time and a lot of money,” says Schulz. “Efficiency was a critical factor for this project, as we had a very short period of time available between getting started and the first racing appearance. Converting the normally aspirated P66/1 engine into a bi-turbo and then working with the electric drivetrain colleagues to turn it into a hybrid drive system was very complex. Thanks to the expertise, the great collaboration and the high level of motivation of all departments, we managed to complete the fire-up of the complete drive unit just a few weeks before the roll-out of the car,” he adds.
A BMW engine in a Dallara chassis was a promising start. However, the new Hypercar prototype still had to be given a BMW identity. This was the job of Michael Scully, BMW Motorsport’s Head of Design: “My team's job was to make the BMW M Hybrid V8 look like a BMW,” Scully says, “and embrace every opportunity to make it also perform like one on the race track. The design is rooted in BMW’s DNA of purposeful, efficient performance, and the exterior’s bold, determined character invokes BMW's frontiersmanship of turbo power, now united with an optimised hybrid electric powertrain.”
The Bavarian manufacturer’s Hypercar is especially recognisable from the front with the large symmetrical nostrils – the famous “twin kidney” – edged with a luminous strip at night. Easy to spot in the dark at Le Mans!
Robin Frijns (#20 BMW M Hybrid V8): “I love the fact that I’m so low down in the car. I’m the one with the lowest driving position, so it’s very good from my point of view. If I’m sat higher, I don’t get the same sensations.”
Dries Vanthoor (#15 BMW M Hybrid V8): “What I really like is that you can have a really incisive front axle on this car. However, I’m the most extreme in that respect so I have to bow to my teammates’ preferences.”
The BMW M Hybrid V8 has showed constant progress since its first competitive outing. Car and team alike are making ground on the class leaders in terms of speed, reliability and strategy. The German Hypercar has notched up two wins across the Atlantic and put together a string of pole positions at the start of this season in the IMSA SportsCar Championship. However, it has yet to pop the FIA WEC champagne corks. For its return to the top class of the 24 Hours of Le Mans last year, the team suffered a serious setback with neither car classified. Vanthoor, Frijns & Co will be banking on a more successful outcome at 16:00 on Sunday 15 June.
Don’t miss the next episode in our “Hypercars under the microscope” series in which we shall continue our analysis of the prototypes in the high-quality field.
Next up: Peugeot 9X8
In case you missed them: Cadillac V-Series.R, Alpine A424 and Aston Martin Valkyrie
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