919 Hybrid: even stronger in 2015

At the Paul Ricard Circuit in France, Porsche has presented the second generation of its Le Mans Prototype 919 Hybrid race car as a technical evolution in a three-colour concept.

919 Hybrid, Le Mans, 2015, Porsche Ag

The Porsche team will use two of its extensively further developed technology platforms in all eight races of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). The cars will be white and will also carry the "Porsche Intelligent Performance" motto on their bodywork. This also applies to the team’s third 919 Hybrid, which will race at Spa-Francorchamps on May 2. However, for the high point of the season – the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 13–14, 2015 – the team will send a white, a black and a red Porsche 919 Hybrid onto the circuit.

Wolfgang Hatz, board member for research and development at Porsche AG, stated the following at the presentation of the LMP1 prototypes in southern France: "The LMP1 programme at Porsche focuses on extensively networked cooperation between the engineers who work on our innovative drive system concept." The WEC regulations are designed to ensure that the most efficient car wins. The automotive industry in general must adopt exactly this approach to remain viable. Porsche already offers three plug-in hybrid production sports cars today. “This sets us apart from the competition and we plan to grow even stronger in this segment," said Hatz.

"To this end, we need substantial expertise within the company. The tremendous pressure to perform in the top LMP1 category means our development specialists for production cars learn a lot in a very short time. On the other hand, young engineers receive top-quality training at turbo speed, and this knowledge can later be applied very effectively in series production. Learning from the race track for everyday roads is a tradition at Porsche. Therefore it makes perfect sense to create at least a partial link between our Le Mans prototypes and our motor racing history by means of the colours we use."

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