Peugeot picks Le Mans Hypercar for 2022 return

As part of the 88th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, PEUGEOT and TOTAL officially kick off their Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) project. A new regulation which foreshadows a new era for the premier endurance category and which embodies the energy transition of the two companies.

“Le Mans is the holy grail of the automobile, declares Jean-Philippe IMPARATO, Director of the PEUGEOT Brand. It is the race that designates its winner. For us, that represents 3 victories but also a lot of sweat, tears, joy and an incredible team spirit with Total with whom we are celebrating in 2020 the 25 years of collaboration of our two companies. ”

The choice of the LMH category was dictated by several criteria, including that of certain aerodynamic freedom. This thus makes it possible to integrate, with the support of Design PEUGEOT, the aesthetic codes of the Brand. This collaboration has already started and allows, on the occasion of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2020, to project sketches that reveal the first impressions of design and embody the fundamental regulatory principles, particularly in terms of dimensions.

PEUGEOT in association with TOTAL has therefore started to develop an electrified hybrid hypercar whose iconic design will signify the “Neo Performance”. Its power will reach 500 kW and it will have 4-wheel drive.

After launching the various study phases for the general architecture, the aerodynamic concept and the choice of engine architecture, the electrical architecture will be frozen, followed by that of the concept of the hybrid powertrain. All PEUGEOT Sport technical departments are involved in these phases.
PEUGEOT Sport is therefore taking a new energy turn, reinforced by the launch of its PEUGEOT SPORT ENGINEERED hybrid high-performance road line, powered by the new PEUGEOT 508.

Jean-Philippe Imparato, PEUGEOT Brand Director
“This category allows us to unite our entire company and all our entities, with features and technologies similar to our production cars. Through this commitment, PEUGEOT is opening a new register which is that of neo-performance. We are returning to endurance racing. because we have the opportunity to work on sport in another form with gasoline / electric hybridization. PEUGEOT Sport changes its identity, launches its label of electrified high-performance vehicles PEUGEOT SPORT ENGINEERED, with its first 508 model: 360 horsepower, 4-wheel drive, 46g of CO2. This endurance program allows us to enter fully into the energy transition. ”

Philippe Montantême, Director of Total Marketing & Research Strategy:
“PEUGEOT and TOTAL, they are 25 years of close collaboration. But it is also a great complicity in motorsport. Competition, strongly written in our DNA, represents a real technological laboratory for our respective brands. We work together in the perpetual search for performance and efficiency, in order to transfer the best solutions and products from top-level sport to our end customers. This “Le Mans Hypercar” project opens today new possibilities for joint development across the entire car’s energy system: on the efficiency of our fuels – in the same way as for all competitors as exclusive supplier – or for lubricants, specifically designed for hybrid vehicles. It will also enable the TOTAL and SAFT teams to study new opportunities in the battery sector with PEUGEOT. TOTAL is now a group made up of multi-energies which knows how to meet all mobility needs, while maintaining a pioneering spirit. This ‘Le Mans Hypercar’ project is the perfect embodiment of that. ”

Olivier Jansonnie, PEUGEOT Sport Technical Director, WEC program:
“The car will therefore be a 4-wheel drive, equipped – as the regulations require – an electric motor with a maximum power of 200kW on the front axle. The total power level will be identical to that of a 100 car. % thermal 2-wheel drive (500kW or about 680hp) but distributed between the 2 axles. In comparison with what we currently know in LMP1, the car will be closer to road vehicles, therefore with a higher mass and larger dimension (length 5m and 4.65m and width 2m and 1.90m).

This regulation is also very different because it incorporates a performance balance (BoP: Balance of Performance). It certainly sets limits but also opens up many technical possibilities for development, particularly on general shapes as long as a certain overall aerodynamic efficiency is not exceeded, which will be measured in a 1: 1 scale wind tunnel and which will be part of the BOP (balance of performance).

Today, we have validated part of the aerodynamic concept, the engine architecture is defined. The operation of the hybrid system and its main architecture were also chosen. So there are still a lot of steps left before our arrival in endurance racing in 2022, in the study, the production of prototypes and finally the validation on the bench and on the track is not. The rest of the project will be carried out in close collaboration between the two teams.

These sketches are the first design intentions to identify the strong elements on which we can concentrate. The three claws and the colors are symbols that we want to find on our Hypercar. Our light signature is one of the strong identity signs present on our production vehicles that we want to find in the race “.

Matthias Hossann, PEUGEOT Design Director:
“The new Le Mans Hypercar category offers an unprecedented and historic opportunity for collaboration between sports and design teams. The regulations fully meet PEUGEOT’s need and desire to embody its vision for the future in its next race car: that of electrified neo-performance.

The appearance of the vehicles will no longer only be the result of a purely technical optimization in the wind tunnel, we will truly have the space to create a unique, iconic object, combining performance and expressiveness. We intend to make the best use of the leeway offered and this is a project that promises to be very exciting! Currently, we are at the pre-project, study and concept stage.

We spoke with the PEUGEOT Sport teams on regulatory concepts to make sure we were fully aware of what is allowed and what is not. The rest of the project will be carried out in close collaboration between the two teams.