Before last weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, McLaren shared information about its planned Le Mans Hypercar. In line with IMSA’s LMDh and WEC’s Hypercar rules, it will be built on a Dallara chassis and have a twin-turbo V-6 engine. As part of Project Endurance, McLaren stated that only a select few customers will be able to purchase their hypercar. McLaren shared information about its next endurance racer right before last weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The company that made the new hypercar gave us our first look at it and also stated that it would only sell a few to a select group of customers, similar to how Aston Martin does with the Valkyrie LM and Ferrari with the 499P. McLaren wants to give some clients the chance to try and develop the car as part of its Project: Endurance initiative. These clients will also have the chance to drive their race car. The real price is unknown, but McLaren claims it comes with two years of “arrive and drive” programs at some of the world’s best racetracks, complete with race engineers, a pit crew, and expert coaching. The “Triple Crown of Motorsports” refers to winning the Indianapolis 500, the Monaco Grand Prix, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a feat that car racing fans aspire to achieve. McLaren is the only car company that has done this so far. With Project Endurance, McLaren wants to win all three in the same season. What’s wrong with the car then? As you might expect, the cost of making a race car is high. In the top grades of Hypercars that IMSA and WEC offer, manufacturers can pick between LMH and LMDh standards. The first option, which Aston Martin, Ferrari, Toyota, and Peugeot have all chosen, is more expensive but allows for greater customization of your car. The latter, which the rest of the WEC field adopted, utilizes off-the-shelf parts, such as the chassis, which helps significantly reduce costs. McLaren chose to use an LMDh car and have its chassis made by Dallara, the same company that makes frames for IndyCars. It will run the cars with United Autosports in 2027. McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown owns a piece of United Autosports. No other information is available at this time, but the car’s maker has confirmed that it will feature a twin-turbocharged V-6 engine capable of producing up to 671 horsepower. The design limitations are one drawback of pursuing the LMDh route. You agree to use the base template provided by the chassis manufacturer you have chosen. McLaren was able to change the body parts, but the result is, at best, a mess. Even so, it seems better to have a boring hypercar than none at all.
