Porsche unveils 919 Hybrid for the return to Le Mans

Porsche has had an illustrious motorsports history, most notable for its unbeaten record of 16 wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The race at Circuit de la Sarthe is regarded as one of the toughest, even by endurance racing standard. And after a long absence of 16 years, the Stuttgart marque has finally unveiled the 919 Hybrid to mark its return to the top fight at the legendary motorsport.

Making its world debut at the Geneva Motor Show, the 919 Hybrid will not only contest at Le Mans, but also race in the top LMP1 category of the World Endurance Championship (WEC).

Benefitting from the knowledge and experience from the making of 918 Spyder, the 919 Hybrid is also the most complex race car that Porsche has ever developed.

The drivetrain stars a compact four-cylinder petrol engine, with a V-angle construction that performs load-bearing functions within the chassis. This design also offers thermodynamic advantages. The 2.0-litre unit can reach up to 9,000rpm, and features direct injection and single turbocharging technologies.

The race car sports not one, but two different energy recovery systems. On top of the conventional system which translates kinetic energy into electric energy during braking, a second recovers thermal energy from exhaust gases, which uses an electric generator powered by the exhaust gas stream.

Adhering to the basics of race car building, the 919 Hybrid has been designed with lightweight and aerodynamics as priorities. The carbon fibre monocoque combines low weight with a very high degree of torsional rigidity. The car's aerodynamics have also been fine tuned with over 2,000 hours of wind tunnel testing. 

Porsche will field two 919 Hybrids at the WEC and 24 Hours of Le Mans, alongside with the 911 RSR race car that will contest in the GTE classes.