This Porsche 963 LMDh should score the twentieth victory at Le Mans

We are almost contractually obligated to open with the fact that Porsche has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans outright a whopping 19 times, leaving them well ahead of Audi (13) and Ferrari (9). This is then the car that has to tap the magic number 20. You are looking at the prototype of the Porsche 963 LMDh.

The actual racing debut of the Porsche 963 LMDh is in 2023, but the team will hold a ‘non-competitive dress rehearsal’ for the hybrid prototype at the final WEC round in Bahrain later this year. So for bacon and beans, but don’t be surprised if this Porsche is going to make it quite difficult for the competition.

Specifications Porsche 963 LMDh

The only technical details that have been released are the power of 681 hp and that the chassis comes from Multimatic. The engine is a 4.6-liter biturbo V8 from Porsche itself, which is based on that of the phenomenal 918 Spyder. That engine itself shares DNA with the RS Spyder race car from the 1990s. The hybrid element of the powertrain comes from Bosch, Williams Advanced Engineering and Xtrac.

The design is inspired by ‘the victorious 956 and 962 classics of the eighties’. The continuous taillights on the Porsche 963 LMDh are a nod to the current 911. The Porsche 963 LMDh complies with WEC and IMSA regulations, which means that the car can compete in the 24 Hours of Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring and of course Le Mans. will defy. Four 963s are being built in collaboration with Team Penske and almost 8,000 test kilometers have already been driven in the first half of 2022.

Porsche is confident

“Our new Porsche 963 LMDh should continue the legacy of legendary models such as the 917, 935, 956, 962 and 919,” said Thomas Laudenbach, vice president of Porsche Motorsport. “I am sure we will be well positioned when it comes to technology and we have also created the relevant team structures to set us up for victories in the exciting competition between many manufacturers and different concepts.”