Peugeot is working on a hybrid race car to participate in the World Endurance Championship. Peugeot Sport has now revealed the first details.
Earlier this year, Peugeot announced that it will participate in the WEC again. It will enter the hypercar class of the championship by 2022. To do this, one must come up with a hybrid crack sample that must of course comply with certain rules. For example, the car may be a maximum of 4.65 meters long and 2 meters wide, it must weigh at least 1,100 kilos and the engine must weigh at least 180 kilos. The drivetrain must not deliver more than 681 hp (500 kW) of power. In that respect, Peugeot scrapes neatly against the limits, because in its LMH car the system power comes out at 680 hp.
The lion’s share of the power comes from a brand new 2.6-liter biturbo V6 that Peugeot puts right behind the driver. The ‘Motor Generator Unit’, which can both contribute power to the propulsion and recuperate energy, has a maximum output of 200 kW (272 hp) towards the front wheels. Shifting is done with a seven-speed sequential transmission, and power (if the MGU is involved) goes to all four wheels. The drivetrain is, as can be seen in the photo above, nice and low in the car.
Peugeot reports that the combustion engine on its own is also able to deliver the full 680 hp, but that in conjunction with the MGU, the system power does not exceed 680 hp due to the regulations. The moment the MGU steps in, the power of the V6 is limited to 408 hp. Due to the regulations, the MGU only delivers power above 120 km / h, so it is purely down to the combustion engine. Should the battery eventually be empty, the combustion engine may also temporarily do it all by itself and deliver 680 hp, while the Saft battery is recharged by means of energy recovery by the MGU. Incidentally, it is allowed to pull even up to 700 hp from the V6 on the straights of Le Mans with an empty battery.
It all sounds very promising. Now the question is what kind of coach Peugeot places on this basis. Earlier this year we already got to see the above prototype. It will probably not differ much from that. Incidentally, it will also be interesting what the LMH car means for any other Peugeot creations. After all, there is a homologation obligation for the powertrain. We will see!
Peugeot also competed in the highest prototype class, then called LMP1, in the past and won the 24 Hours of Le Mans three times. That was in 1992, 1993 and most recently in 2009. That last time was with the Peugeot 908.