Lamborghini unveils hybrid endurance racecar prototype

Lamborghini Squadra Corse has revealed its first-ever hybrid prototype intended for endurance racing.

Dubbed the SC63, the newly-unveiled vehicle (showcased at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed) is set to compete in the numerous events such as the Hypercar class of the 2024 FIA (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile) World Endurance Championship, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and in the GTP class of the IMSA (International Motor Sports Association) WeatherTech Sports Car Championship Endurance Cup, comprising classic races such as the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring.

Per Lamborghini, the Le Mans Daytona h (LMDh) project will be manned by world-class drivers from the world of Formula 1 and endurance racing in the aforementioned competitions.

The company said that prototype embodies the Direzione Cor Tauri strategy presented in 2021.

To recall, the Direzione Cor Tauri is the marque’s roadmap for electrification that is focused on hybridizing the entire model range by the end of 2024 while enhancing driving emotions and performances at the same time.

“The SC63 is the most advanced racing car ever produced by Lamborghini and it follows our roadmap ‘Direzione Cor Tauri’ laid out by the brand for the electrification of our product range,” Lamborghini Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Stephan Winkelmann said.

“The opportunity to compete in some of the biggest endurance races in the world with a hybrid prototype fits with our vision for the future of high-performance mobility, as demonstrated for road legal cars with the launch of the Revuelto. The SC63 LMDh is the step into the highest echelons and into the future of motorsports for our Squadra Corse.”

Powering the SC63 is an all-new 3.8-liter twin turbo V8 engine developed by Lamborghini engineers particularly for the racing program. The engine turbos are mounted outside the vee angle of the engine, making them easier to cool and to service. Aside from that, the configuration optimizes the car’s center of gravity.

The output of the engine and hybrid system is limited to 680 horsepower to meet the standard across LMDh-category cars. Managing the power is Bosch electronic control unit. “The LMDh rule set specifies a standard gearbox, battery and motor generator unit (MGU), which helps to contain the development costs for the prototype,” Lamborghini explained.

“Motorsport is, to us, also a valuable and demanding proving ground for our technology,” Lamborghini Chief Technical Officer Rouven Mohr said. “Our LMDh car, the Lamborghini SC63, is an exciting challenge from both a technical and a human standpoint. The development of our internal combustion engine, aerodynamically efficient bodywork and the overall technical package is a process that has pushed us to constantly raise our own standards. Now, it is time to put the wheels in motion, literally, on track in order to be ready and competitive for the 2024 season. As we develop our LMDh car, we are also mindful of the technology transfer opportunities. We will take our learning experiences from motorsport and apply them where possible to our future production cars.”

Lamborghini selected Ligier as its partner to build the monocoque. The bodywork, on the other hand, has been designed by Lamborghini’s Centro Stile design department, in conjunction with the race design team. The vehicle comes with brand styling cues, including the iconic y-shaped lights at the front and rear.

“From the beginning, my personal briefing to the design-team was that the car needs to be highly functional, but we wanted to create a car that is immediately recognizable as Lamborghini,” Lamborghini’s Head of Design at Centro Stile Mitja Borkert shared. “The main recognition of the front and rear of the SC63 is driven by the y-shaped signature light. The size of the cabin and the main character of the car is driven by the sporting rules, but we have also implemented our own brand styling cues throughout the car. Integrated into the side panel of the body you can see a NACA duct that was inspired by the air intake of the Countach. When you look at the rear wheel arch, we gave the impression of acceleration towards the front, and this relates to the wheel arch design language of Lamborghini that can also be seen on the Revuelto.”

Further, the race cars will wear a livery similar to the one seen on the Huracán GT3 challenger. The SC63 race cars will run in Verde Mantis green, with a black Nero Noctis strip over the cabin, front hood, carbon diffuser, rear fin and wing. In addition, it will also have green, white and red Italian Tricolore hues, and will carry the branding of long-time partner of Lamborghini, Swiss watch manufacturer Roger Dubuis.

Moreover, the SC63 has been designed and developed to offer the widest “operating window” possible, to optimize performance while also being able to look after its tires even on the most aggressive track surfaces. Ahead track testing, intense development work has been carried out in the virtual world using a Driver in the Loop (DiL) simulator.

Providing additional inputs are Lamborghini factory drivers Mirko Bortolotti and Andrea Caldarelli, as well as drivers Daniil Kvyat and Romain Grosjean. The latter two have recent race experience of hybrids in Formula 1 and have been able to help the engineers to tune the LMDh system, in particular design the steering wheel controls to allow the driver to control the necessary functions of the hybrid system.

“This year marks not only the 60th anniversary of our brand, but also the tenth anniversary of Squadra Corse, Lamborghini’s motorsport division,” Lamborghini Head of Motorsport Giorgio Sanna. “Over the last decade we have achieved great results. Starting from scratch we have won some of the most prestigious endurance races in the GT category for our production-based racing cars. These include three class wins at the 24 hours of Daytona, and two wins in a row at the Sebring 12 hours. Now we are ready for what is our biggest step into the future of motorsport, measuring ourselves against the best manufacturers in the world.”

Lamborghini noted that starting next year, one of the two race cars will compete in the full FIA World Endurance Championship while the second car will contend in the North American Endurance Championship races of the IMSA series.

The Iron Lynx team, presented as a partner at the 2022 Lamborghini Grand Finals, will run the cars in both series, and the driving line up will include Bortolotti, Caldarelli, Grosjean and Kvyat. Other drivers will be confirmed later in 2023.

“Being involved in such an ambitious project is a once in a lifetime experience. We are honoured and extremely excited to be part of it and to start a new chapter for Iron Lynx with Lamborghini. It’s been amazing to see everything finally come together for the reveal of the SC63. Everyone at Iron Lynx is eager for testing to get underway. This is undoubtedly one of the biggest challenges we’ve ever faced as a team, and we are now looking forward to seeing the SC63 on track,” Iron Lynx Team Principal and CEO Andrea Piccini ended.

Photos from Lamborghini

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