Lamborghini Mulls Le Mans Racer

Volkswagen AG’s Lamborghini unit is considering joining the hypercar category in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) series with a new model based on the supercar maker’s one-off SC18 project car.

Such a vehicle could be ready to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race in 2021, Lamborghini boss Stefano Domenicali tells Autocar. Domenicali, who previously headed Ferrari SpA’s Formula One team, took the helm at Lamborghini in early 2016.

Noting that Lamborghini doesn’t have the budget to develop an all-new race car, Domenicali says reworking the SC18 (pictured) could be an “interesting approach.” The SC18, which was commissioned by a customer last year, is derived from the Aventador SVJ and shares that car’s 760-hp V-12 engine.

Due to start with the 2020/2021 season, the hypercar class will replace the current LMP1 designation as WEC’s premier category. The race cars must share the design and powertrain of a street model with a production run of at least 20 units over a two-year period.

Aston Martin and Toyota already have announced plans to compete with a race version of the Valkyrie hypercar and the Gazoo Racing Super Sport concept, respectively. Scuderia and Koenigsegg also are said to be considering entries.