BMW M Hybrid V8 Aims to Tackle the 2023 24 Hours of Daytona

BMW has revealed its prototype race car for the 2023 season, the M Hybrid V8, although it has cloaked it in a camouflage of sorts.Still, we can make out the massive kidney grille, large headlight housings with twin LED strips, and detailed taillight design. The M Hybrid V8 will be eligible to race at both the 24 Hours of Daytona and 24 Hours of Le Mans, although BMW will focus on the former and the accompanying full IMSA championship.

The battle in endurance racing is heating up. Major manufacturers—including Ferrari, Porsche, Cadillac, Acura, and BMW—are preparing prototype race cars for both the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, which includes the 24 Hours of Daytona, and the World Endurance Championship (WEC), which features the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Now BMW has given the first full look at its entry, still wrapped in a camouflage of sorts, as it begins testing on its top-class racer.

Dubbed the BMW M Hybrid V8, the car has traditional endurance-racing proportions with a low hood, narrow cockpit, flared wheel arches, and towering rear wing. But the gaping nostrils dominating the front end are distinctly BMW, and the two LED strips in the chunky headlight housings attempt to mimic the twin lights on production BMWs. The BMW Motorsport 50th Anniversary badge lies in a canyon on the hood between two extreme character lines, just like on 2023 M3s and M4s. The intricate LED taillights echo the units found on the latest M4 CSL, and BMW even designed the window shape with the iconic Hofmeister kink design.

The M Hybrid V8 is being developed for the GTP class (originally named LMDh) in the IMSA championship. Both the GTP cars and the LMH cars—being designed for WEC—will be eligible to race in IMSA and WEC, but there are some differences.

The GTP cars are rear-wheel-drive only, and will use a standard hybrid system, with teams mating it to a gas engine of their choice. As the name implies BMW has chosen a V-8, but no specifics have been provided yet. Each team must also choose a chassis from one of four suppliers, and BMW is partnering with Dallara.

The LMH cars allow for far more freedom but will also cost much more to develop. They can be rear- or all-wheel drive, and the manufacturers can design their own hybrid system if they choose to use one. The chassis is also up to each team. Since the LMH class is much more open ended, any LMH car that wants to compete in IMSA will have to be performance balanced to play on the same level as the GTP cars.

The M Hybrid V8 is set to make its competitive debut at the opening race of the 2023 IMSA season, the 24 Hours of Daytona, and its official livery will be revealed in due course.

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