Last update: March 20, 2025
It took a while before Hypercars, the successor of LMP1, took off. But now we are in a new peak era of sports car racing. When we speak about Hypercars, we must not forget that half of the contenders come from a slightly different concept of LMDh prototypes (Le Mans Daytona hybrid) that run as GTP in the USA. In this topic you will find many cars of both categories, but also some rare LMP1 or Daytona Prototypes that paved the way.
The LMP1 that was a LMP2 first and became a Hypercar
2013 Le Mans 24h, Lotus T128 – Praga. The Lotus T128 has been developed by German company Adess. The cars were entered in LMP2, run by Kodewa, another Colin Kolles initiative. The Judd engines were rebadged ‘Praga’ to show the Czech Republic roots of Kodewa team.
#32 Thomas Holzer (D) / Dominik Kraihamer (A) / Jan Charouz (CZ) – DNF
Kolles Lotus T128 – 3.6 liter Praga Judd HK V8 90° injection, approx. 510 hp. Dunlop tires. Weight 830 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Adess #01
- SPARK S3752 (resin)
2015 Le Mans 24h, CLM P1/01- AER. byKolles tried his luck in LMP1 in 2014 when the cars were renamed Lotus P1/01 which failed. In 2015 the car is rebadged CLM P1/01 and used the AER engine. This is somewhat underpowered and the car isn’t very fast, but during the FIA WEC season the reliability improves. At Le Mans the team manages to get to the finish but was disqualified for being under weight.
#4 Pierre Kaffer (D) / Simon Trummer (CH) / Tiago Monteiro (POR) – DISQ.
byKolles CLM P1/01 – 2.4 liter AER P60 V6 twin turbo, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 900 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Adess #01
- SPARK S4632 (resin)
2020 Le Mans 24h, Enso CLM P1/01 – Nissan. In 2017 the same car was renamed Enso CLM P1/01 and received a Nissan V6 turbo engine. It came into the 2018-2019 super season relatively unchanged, but a dispute with Nissan caused the team to switch to the Gibson GL458 engine mid-season. After Le Mans, byKolles adapted the car to the new Hypercar regulations by adding weight and altering the aerodynamics, just as Alpine did. In 2020 the ACO put the entry on the reserve list and it was only allowed to participate because the garage-56 entry withdrew.
#4 Tom Dillmann (F) / Bruno Spengler (CAN) / Oliver Webb (GB) – DNF
byKolles CLM P1/01 – 4.5 liter Gibson GL458 V8 90º, approx. 625 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 900 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Adess #01
- SPARK S7903 (resin)
2023 Sebring 1000 km, Vanwall Vandervell 680. byKolles announced he would participate in the World Endurance Championship with an actual Hypercar in 2021. The intention was to debut the car during the 2021 season, however, the project was delayed to the 2022 season. In that year, the entry was rejected because byKolles was no car manufacturer, which he solved to recreate the name Vanwall and design a road going version of the Hypercar (which probably hasn’t been built yet). The new car only ran decent in Sebring and after that retired in almost every race and has been refused in the 2024 world championship.
#4 Tom Dillmann (F) / Esteban Guerrieri (RA) / Jacques Villeneuve (CAN) – 30th / 8th Hypercar
byKolles Vanwall Vandervell 680 – 4.5 liter Gibson GL458 V8 90º, approx. 625 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1030 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. #LMH-101
- SPARK S8660 the model is from testing in 2022 (resin)
The LMP2’s that became Daytona Prototype‘s & LMP1
The Daytona Prototypes International (DPi) were based upon LMP2 chassis, but manufacturers were able – unlike in LMP2 – to fit their production based engines and alter the front bodywork to give it an own brand identity. Nissan, Acura, Cadillac and Mazda were contenders.
2017 Petit Le Mans, Nissan DPi. The Nissan DPi was in fact a Ligier PS2 LMP2 car with the powerful V6 turbo engine from the Nissan GTR. It had already won Daytona and Sebring in 2016 when it still was still called a Ligier and Honda-powered., in 2017 the green and black car took victory in the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta.
#2 Scott Sharp (USA) / Brendon Hartley (NZ) / Ryan Dalziel (USA) – 1st
NISMO Nissan DPi – 3.8 liter Nissan VR38DETT V6 twin turbo, approx. 600 hp. Continental tires. Weight 930 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Onroak Ligier #OR05-02
- SPARK US033 #072 / 300 pcs (resin)
2018 Daytona 24h, Cadillac DPi-V.R. The Cadillac DPi was based on the LMP2 Dallara P217 chassis but fitted with a V8 related to the engine that is used in the Corvettes. The Mustang Sampling Cadillac won the 24-hour race, just 1 second in front of the Whelen Cadillac. This Wayne Taylor entry had pole-position but retired. It would take revenge and win the 2019 and 2020 events.
#10 Renger van der Zande (NL) / Jordan Taylor (USA) / Ryan Hunter-Reay (USA) – DNF
Wayne Taylor Cadillac DPi-V.R. – 6.2 liter Cadillac LT1 – V8 90º, approx. 600 hp. Continental tires. Weight 930 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Dallara P217 #002
- SPARK US039 #271 / 300 pcs (resin)
2021 Daytona 24h, Acura ARX-05. In 2021, Wayne Taylor Racing switched from Cadillac to Acura and took the Konica sponsorship with them. It was an instant hit because the Acura ARX-05 won the Daytona 24-hour race. The Acura is based on the Oreca 07 which is the leading car in LMP2 at Le Mans and the world championship. The main difference with the Oreca is the front of the car with the high-placed spoiler and of course the V6 twin-turbo engine from the Acura / Honda NSX.
#10 Ricky Taylor (USA) / Filipe Albuquerque (POR) / Alexander Rossi (USA) / Helio Castroneves (USA) – 1st
Wayne Taylor Acura ARX-05 – 3.5 liter Acura (Honda) AR35TT V6 60º twin turbo, approx. 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 920 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Oreca 07 #unknown.
- TRUE SCALE MINIATURES TSM 430552 (resin)
2019 Le Mans 24h, BR1 – Gibson. Italian specialists Dallara developed a new LMP1 car based on the 217P LMP2 car. It is dubbed the BR1 in reference to the first customer, Boris Rotenberg’s BR Engineering. While BR Engineering backed the initial development, Dallara does offer the car to other customers as well. DragonSpeed is one of those and races at Le Mans in the famous Gulf livery.
#10 Renger van der Zande (NL) / Ben Henley (GB) / Henrik Hedman (S) – DNF
DragonSpeed BR Engineering BR1 – 4.5 liter Gibson GL458 V8 90º, approx. 650 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 900 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Dallara BR1 #07
- SPARK S7905 (resin)
LMP2 manufacturers build Le Mans Daytona hybrids
The regulations of Hypercars and LMDh prototypes are different but the categories race together in the Hypercar category at Le Mans or in GTP as it is called in the IMSA Championship. Le Mans Daytona hybrids have much similarity with the DPi’s. Their chassis are built by homologated LMP2 producers, the car manufacturers use their own production based engines. Some components such as gearbox and hybrid system are standard components.
2021 Le Mans 24h, Alpine A480-Gibson. Alpine enters the Hypercar category with a car which is neither a Hypercar nor an Alpine. The car is based on a LMP2 Oreca 07 fitted with a Gibson 458-engine and ran as Rebellion in the previous years. It is allowed to run in Hypercar after some adjustments such as an increase of weight and decrease of engine power.
#1 Rebellion R13 (LMP1) #1 Bruno Senna (BR) / Gustavo Menezes (USA) / Norman Nato (F) – 2nd (2020)
#36 Alpine A480 (legacy LMP1) #36 Nicolas Lapierre (F) / André Negrão (BR) / Matthieu Vaxiviere (F) – 3rd (2021)
Alpine A480 – 4.5 liter Gibson GL458 V8 90º, approx. 625 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 90 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Oreca 07 #01
- SPARK S7955 & S8232 (resin)
this model has been posted before in #044 Alpine & Renault and #020 Rebellion
2023 Daytona 24h, BMW M Hybrid V8. BMW chose Dallara for the chassis and added a twin-turbo V8 that was based on a DTM-engine. The BMW’s lacked some speed and reliability in the beginning of the season, but developed well. The IMSA cars are raced by Rahal Letterman, in 2024 the BMW M Hybrids are also present in FIA WEC by Belgian WRT team.
#25 Connor de Phillippi (USA) / Colton Herta (USA) / Sheldon van der Linde (SA) / Nick Yelloly (GB) – 48th / 8th GTP
BMW M Hybrid V8 – 4.0 liter BMW P66/3 V8 90° twin turbo hybrid – approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Dallara #unknown.
- TRUE SCALE MINIATURES TSM430704
this model has been posted before in #035 BMW Motorsport
2023 Le Mans 24h, Cadillac V-Series. Cadillac also chose Dallara as its chassis supplier, not a surprise as the DPi prototype also was built in Italy. Chip Ganassi Racing also run a double program with the red car racing in the FIA WEC including Le Mans and the yellow and blue in IMSA GTP and in Le Mans. The V-Series is probably the fastest Hypercar in qualifying but the American brand still have to score a win in the FIA WEC. They were successful in IMSA already a few times.
#3 Renger van der Zande (NL) / Sébastien Bourdais (F) / Scott Dixon (NZ) – 4th
Cadillac V-Series – 5.5 liter Cadillac LMC55R V8 90° hybrid, approx 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Dallara #unknown.
- TRUE SCALE MINIATURES TSM430756
2023 Le Mans 24h, Porsche 963. The Porsche 963 is an LMDh sports prototype racing car designed by Porsche and built by Multimatic, and uses a twin turbo version of the V8 that powered the RS Spyder. Porsche is the first manufacturer that supplies cars to client teams such as JOTA, Proton and Miller. The factory cars are in the hands of Penske Motorsport.
#75 Mathieu Jaminet (FRA) / Felipe Nasr (BRA) / Nick Tandy (GB) – DNF (Penske)
#38 Antonio Felix Da Costa (POR) / Will Stevens (GB) / Yifei Ye (CHN) – 40th / 13th HY (JOTA)
Porsche 963 – 4.6 liter Porsche 9RD V8 90º twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnrs. Multimatic #122 (Penske) and #109 (Jota)
- SPARK WAP 020 0024 0R0 LM & WAP 020 5030 R963 (resin)
these models have been posted before in #046 Porsche LMP / HY
2024 Le Mans 24h, Porsche 963. Proton Competition, a long time Porsche customer team entered a 963 for the entire FIA World Endurance Championship. The livery looks a bit like the old FAT color schemes. The first picture I took at Spa-Francorchamps in May and I must say that I liked that livery much better as it was almost identical to the 1994 Dauer GT1. For Le Mans, Proton changed the look with less red and more green.
#99 Neel Jani (CH) / Harry Tincknell (GB) / Julien Andlauer (F) – 45th
Porsche 963 – 4.6 liter Porsche 9RD V8 90º twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnrs. Multimatic #119
- SPARK S9128 (resin)
2024 Le Mans 24h, Lamborghini SC63. Another manufacturer that joined the Hypercar category is Lamborghini. The Italians decided to make use of the LMDh ruleset. That means a chassis built by one of the LMP2 homologated makes. Lamborghini choose Ligier as partner and mounted a V8 twin-turbo engine with the standard hybrid components. One car (#63) raced the entire FIA WEC in 2024 including Le Mans, a second car (#19) participated in a number of IMSA races and also in Le Mans.
#63 Mirko Bortolotti (I) / Daniil Kvyat (RUS) / Eduardo Mortara (CH)
Iron Lynx Lamborghini SC63 – 3.8 liter Lamborghini P66/3 V8 twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Ligier SC63 #004
- SPARK S9124 (resin)
Hypercars!
The Balance of Power between LMDh and Hypercar is managed carefully so both concepts race in the same category and have a chance to win. Main difference that distinguishes the Hypercars is that the hybrid system in a Hypercar is allowed to drive not only the rear- but also the front wheels. Hypercar manufacturers are allowed to design and build their own chassis, but dimensions and weight are similar to LMDh. Both Hypercars and LMDh are much heavier and less powerful than the LMP1 category, but also much cheaper to run.
Toyota
2021 Le Mans 24h, Toyota GR010. After Peugeot, Audi and Peugeot all quit, Toyota was the sole manufacturer in LMP1 and took four victories in ow with their TS050. The Hypercars are bigger and heavier which could be noted in the qualifying times; the GR10 was about 8 seconds slower than last year. It had no impact on the result as Toyota won again. The only competition came from Alpine (that drove last year’s Rebellion, adjusted to the new rules…) and privateer Glickenhaus.
#7 Mike Conway (GB) / Kamui Kobayashi (J) / José Maria López (RA) – 1st
Toyota GR10 Hybrid – 3.5 liter Toyota H8909 V6 twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. #20-03
- SPARK Le Mans Winners 43LM21
these models have been posted before in #032 Toyota hybrid
2024 Le Mans 24h, Toyota GR010 Hypercar. The Hypercar and LMDh catagory is booming in 2023 and 2024. The GR010 by now is the oldest car on the grid, but still very competitive. It won in 2021 and 2022. In 2023 it finished second behind Ferrari. In 2024 the Toyotas had a new livery. Both cars fought for the win in a very exciting race. The #8 car lead the race for many hours but had to settle for 5th in the end. The #7 car qualified only 23rd but managed to reach the podium only 14 seconds behind the winning Ferrari.
#7 Nyck de Vries (NL) / Kamui Kobayashi (J) / José Maria Lopez (RA) – 2nd
#8 Sébastien Buemi (CH) / Brendon Hartley (NZ) / Ryo Hirakawa (J) – 5th
Toyota GR10 hybrid – 3.5 liter Toyota H8909 – V6 90º twin turbo hybrid, approx 670 + 270 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1040 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnrs. TMG #22-07 & TMG #22-08
- SPARK S9115 & 9116 (resin)
these models have been posted before in #032 Toyota hybrid
Glickenhaus
2021 Le Mans 24h, Glickenhaus SCG 007 LMH. The small American manufacturer Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus has designed and built a real Hypercar. The SCG 007 LMH was powered by a Pipo Motors developed V8 twin-turbo, an engine that was derived from two 4-cylinder Hyundai WRC engines which is a Pipo design also. Glickenhaus participated in three world endurance championships. In Le Mans 2021 they finished 4th and 5th. In 2022 both cars would even de better: 3rd and 4th.
2021 Pipo Derani (BR) / Olivier Pla (F) / Franck Mailleux (F) – 4th
Glickenhaus SCG 007 LMH – 3.5 liter Pipo Moteurs P21 V8 90º twin turbo, approx 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. #SCG 008
- SPARK S8233
2023 Le Mans 24h, Glickenhaus SCG 007 LMH. The small team from Scuderia Glickenhaus did an outstanding job. In all three Le Mans’ they scored a 100% finish rate. In 2023, the competition in Hypercar was much bigger than in previous years but still the team finished in 6th and 7th places.
2023 Franck Mailleux (F) / Nathanaël Berthon (F) / Esteban Gutiérrez (MEX) – 7th
Glickenhaus SCG 007 LMH – 3.5 liter Pipo Moteurs P21 V8 90º twin turbo, approx 600 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. #SCG 009
- SPARK S8733
Ferrari
2023 Le Mans 24h, Ferrari 499P. More than 20 years later, different kind of prototypes raced at Le Mans; Audi, Bentley, Peugeot, Porsche and Toyota all won at Le Mans without a Ferrari in sight. But with the introduction of the Hypercars as replacement of the LMP1, manufacturers got interested in endurance racing again. At first only Toyota and some small independents, but in 2023 we suddenly also saw teams from Porsche, Cadillac, Peugeot and … Ferrari at Le Mans. AF Corse Ferrari took Ferrari’s first Le Mans victory in 58 years, after a hard battle with Toyota.
#51 Antonio Giovinazzi (I) / Alessandro Pier Guidi (I) / James Calado (GB) – 1st
AF Corse Ferrari 499P – 3.0 liter Ferrari Tipo F163 V6 120° twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Dallara 10P #12
- Looksmart LSLM 162
2024 Le Mans 24h, Ferrari 499P. Italian team AF Corse is closely related to the Ferrari factory and they operate the official Ferrari entries in FIA WEC and Le Mans as Ferrari AF Corse. And not without success; the Ferrari 499P Hypercar surprisingly won the 24-hour race at Le Mans in 2023. In 2024 the Italians are back to defend their title and again one of the red Ferrari’s takes victory. This year, also a third car is entered by AF Corse as ‘private team’. The beautiful yellow and red car led much of the 2024 race, before retiring with an engine failure.
#83 Robert Kubica (POL) / Yifei Ye (CHN) / Robert Shwartzman (RUS) – DNF
AF Corse Ferrari 499P – 3.0 liter Ferrari Tipo F163 V6 120° twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. Dallara #12 18P
LOOKSMART LSLM 184 (resin, produced by SPARK)
Peugeot 9X8
2023 Le Mans 24h, Peugeot 9X8. Peugeot stopped the 908 project at the end of 2011, in 2022 the French returned to endurance racing with the 9X8 Hypercar and decided for an unusual design without a rear spoiler. Downforce is generated through ground effect and the lack of a spoiler should give a higher top speed. Peugeot proves that theory and practice are sometimes different; only one podium is reached in 2023 and at Le Mans it finished in 8th and 11th position. The evo version in 2024 does have a rear spoiler and hopefully is more competitive.
#93 Paul di Resta (GB) / Mikkel Jensen (DK) / Jean-Eric Vergne (F) – 8th
#94 Loic Duval (F) / Nico Müller (CH) / Gustavo Menezes (USA) – 11th
Peugeot 9X8 – 2.6 liter Peugeot F163 Hybrid4 V6 90° twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. 2022 #07 & 2022 #08
- SPARK S8729 & S9730 (resin)
2024 Le Mans 24h, Peugeot 9X8. Peugeot was having a hard time in their first year in Hypercars, the design without rear spoiler brought the French no success yet. After homologation, manufacturers have limited possibilities to develop their car. Peugeot chose for a revised bodywork with a rear wing where the downforce shifted more towards the rear. In that process, the concept of equally wide front and rear tires has gone. Both Peugeots finished 2 laps behind the winner. In any year this would be a great result and probably a podium, but because of the great competitiveness they only finished 11th and 12th.
#94 Loic Duval (F) / Nico Müller (CH) / Stoffel Vandoorne (B) – 11th
Peugeot 9X8 2024– 2.6 liter Peugeot F163 Hybrid4 V6 90° twin turbo hybrid, approx. 680 hp. Michelin tires. Weight 1050 kg. Carbon fibre monocoque, chassisnr. 2022 #12
- SPARK S9127 (resin)
I hope to add more models to this topic in time such as the Lamborghini SC63 LMDh and the Isotta Fraschini Tipo6-C hypercar that both raced in 2024 and the Aston Martin Valkyrie that will join the pack in 2025.
Thanks for visiting 😉