The Lamborghini SC63 Is Slated to Compete in the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Events
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The covers have come off the entry for the fifth manufacturer joining Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) competition in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and it was worth the wait. Earlier today at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England, Lamborghini Squadra Corse unveiled the Lamborghini SC63 LMDh car that will join the hybrid-electrified GTP class for the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup events in 2024.
Lamborghini has partnered with the Iron Lynx team to run the program, along with Ligier to build the chassis. The Italian marque will join Acura, BMW, Cadillac and Porsche – the four manufacturers competing this year in the reborn GTP class – beginning next season. Lamborghini plans to run one car each in the WeatherTech Championship and FIA World Endurance Championship.
“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,” said Stephan Winkelmann, Lamborghini chairman and CEO. “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.”
The SC63 will be powered by a Lamborghini 3.8-liter, twin-turbo V-8 internal combustion engine (ICE) featuring a “cold V” configuration where the turbochargers are mounted outside the engine’s vee angle, making them easier to cool and service. The “cold V” design also lowers the mass and optimizes the car’s center of gravity.
The ICE will be mated to the standard WAE Technologies battery and Bosch motor generator unit that all current GTP manufacturers use to generate, store and recover the electric power to add to the car’s performance. The SC63 also will utilize the Xtrac gearbox required for all LMDh race cars.
“Motorsport is, to us, also a valuable and demanding proving ground for our technology,” said Rouven Mohr, Lamborghini chief technical officer “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.”
With manufacturers free to develop their own unique bodywork designs, Lamborghini’s Centro Stile design department came up with the look of the SC63 in conjunction with the race design team. It features clear Lamborghini styling cues, including the iconic Y-shaped lights at the front and rear, as well as the familiar Verde Mantis green livery on the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 car, a black Nero Noctis strip over the cabin, front hood, carbon diffuser, rear fin and wing, the green, white and red colors of the Italian flag, and branding of long-time partner Swiss watch manufacturer Roger Dubuis.
“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,” said Mitja Borkert, Lamborghini’s head of design at Centro Stile. “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.”
Lamborghini factory drivers Mirko Bortolotti and Andrea Caldarelli, along with former Formula 1 drivers Romain Grosjean and Daniil Kvyat, were previously named to make up the base of the driver lineup. The SC63 will begin on-track testing soon, with development thus far taking place using a Driver in the Loop (DIL) simulator.
“Now, it is time to put the wheels in motion, literally, on track in order to be ready and competitive for the 2024 season,” said Mohr, the marque’s chief technical officer. “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.”