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Nissan Returning To Le Mans Next Year With Electric Racer
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Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has announced that the company will return to the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours in 2014 as the Garage 56 entry for innovative concepts with an all-new race car incorporating electric technology.
The entry will test innovative new powertrain technology and provide the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) with data to enable all parties to evaluate the incorporation of this breakthrough technology ahead of a potential return to LMP1 in the future.
“We will return to Le Mans with a vehicle that will act as a high-speed test bed in the harshest of environments for both our road car and race car electric vehicle technology,” said Ghosn.
Further details will be released as the project progresses, but the company is focusing on innovation and excitement, continuing the pioneering spirit of the Nissan DeltaWing; the award-winning experimental entry at Le Mans last year.
More conventional Nissan power will continue to be seen at Le Mans in the meantime. The 2013 Le Mans entry list displays 17 Nissan-Nismo-powered cars, the highest entry by a manufacturer for 15 years. The Nismo-tuned Nissan VK45DE V8 engine is now firmly established as the powerplant of choice for the majority of the LMP2 teams. All cars will carry the designation ‘powered by Nissan Nismo’.
The entry will test innovative new powertrain technology and provide the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) with data to enable all parties to evaluate the incorporation of this breakthrough technology ahead of a potential return to LMP1 in the future.
“We will return to Le Mans with a vehicle that will act as a high-speed test bed in the harshest of environments for both our road car and race car electric vehicle technology,” said Ghosn.
Further details will be released as the project progresses, but the company is focusing on innovation and excitement, continuing the pioneering spirit of the Nissan DeltaWing; the award-winning experimental entry at Le Mans last year.
More conventional Nissan power will continue to be seen at Le Mans in the meantime. The 2013 Le Mans entry list displays 17 Nissan-Nismo-powered cars, the highest entry by a manufacturer for 15 years. The Nismo-tuned Nissan VK45DE V8 engine is now firmly established as the powerplant of choice for the majority of the LMP2 teams. All cars will carry the designation ‘powered by Nissan Nismo’.
