24h Le Mans
A new technical regulation for the LM P2 class will take effect in 2017 so as to replace existing prototypes. Four constructors were selected to design new cars, including Onroak Automotive, who conducted wind tunnel tests on the Ligier JS P217 in Switzerland.
After the Morgan, Onroak Automotive developed the Ligier JS P2 currently competing in the LM P2 class in the World Endurance Championship (WEC), as well as in the continental championships governed by the regulations of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest. With the adoption of the new technical regulations in 2017, the constructor based in Le Mans and in Magny-Cours has begun work on replacing the car that claimed a podium finish twice at the 24 Hours of Le Mans the last two years and which allowed the G-Drive Racing team to win the LM P2 title in the WEC in 2015.
Of course, the name of the Ligier JS P217 borrows the initials JS, for Jo Schlesser, the deceased driver and friend of Guy Ligier, founder of the marque, and retains the P2 for LM P2, to which Onroak Automotive added the date of the car's release, 17 for 2017.
As the market release date nears, wind tunnel tests at a partner's were conducted under the helm of Nicolas Clémençon, Design Office Manager-Chief Designer. Three engineers and two technicians set up in Switzerland to follow the results garnered in the wind tunnel by a 40% scale model created for the occasion so as to confirm the calculations reached in CFD.
Nicolas Clémençon, design office manager-chief designer: "The validation phase of the aerodynamics is always crucial in the design of a new sports prototype. The CFD studies and the work in the wind tunnel complement each other very well and enable us to analyse the maximum amount of data thanks to which we can validate optimal solutions. We’re lucky to be working with EXA for the CFD phase and with the RUAG wind tunnel: their professionalism and the quality of their services are a guarantee of the efficiency and safety of our cars."
Prior to seeing the Ligier JS P217 on the track, at least two models of its "big sister" JS P2 will participate in the WEC under the Extreme Speed Motorsports banner and therefore in the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans where they will joined by the model entered by the American team, Michael Shank Racing.
Cécile Bonardel / ACO (quotation from constructor press release) - Translation by Nikki Ehrhardt / ACO
