Peugeot eyes new Le Mans Hypercar as part of long-term WEC focus

Peugeot has aspirations to build a new Le Mans Hypercar as part of a long-term commitment to the World Endurance Championship.

The French manufacturer is known to have opened a dialogue with the rulemakers, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest and the FIA, about replacing the 9X8 that came on stream in the second half of the 2022 WEC and then underwent a major overhaul during last season.

Peugeot’s plans for a new LMH, most likely in 2027, have emerged after the top brass from parent company Stellantis stressed that it is in the WEC’s Hypercar class for the foreseeable future.

New Peugeot CEO Alain Favey insisted that Peugeot would be competing in the WEC “for the long-term”.

Stellantis group motorsport boss Jean-Marc Finot, who confirmed that Peugeot’s current commitment runs through to the end of 2026, added that “it is very likely that we will keep on [in the series]”.

Favey wouldn’t elaborate on what long-term means for a marque that has a rich history in sportscar racing, including three wins at the Le Mans 24 Hours.

“We are here to demonstrate the strength of the brand over a long period,” he said.

#94 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9X8: Loic Duval, Malthe Jakobsen, Stoffel Vandoorne

Photo by: Paul Foster

“We are looking for step by step improvement that will lead to success: our wish is to stay in the championship until we reach a performance that is one that we think conforms with our expectations.”

So far Peugeot has failed to win a race and registered only two podiums, one with the original version of its LMH at Monza 2023 and one at Bahrain last year with a car known as the 9X8 2024.

It made wholesale changes to the car under the evo joker rules, which are designed to limit development and keep costs under control in Hypercar.

These updates are required to be signed off by the rulemakers and it appears that if Peugeot wants invoke a clause in the regulations allowing an all-new car over the lifecycle of LMH, it would require the same official approval.

Peugeot has refused to be drawn, however, if its long-term plan could involve developing a new LMH to take advantage of an extension of the life of the current Hypercar regulations.

They are confirmed to the end of 2029 after a two-year extension announced this time last year, but it appears likely that a further prolongation of the Hypercar category will be announced at Le Mans next week at the traditional ACO press conference on the eve of the 24 Hours.

#94 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9X8: Loic Duval, Malthe Jakobsen, Stoffel Vandoorne

Photo by: AG Photo - Daniele Paglino

Olivier Jansonnie, Peugeot Sport’s technical director, said: “We don’t want to discuss our technical strategy. It depends pretty much on the regulations, which are going to move at some point.”

But he pointed out that the performance of the current version of the 9X8 is still improving, stating in Peugeot’s pre-Le Mans press statement that it remains on an “upward trajectory”.

Finot suggested, however, that Peugeot remains compromised during the design phase of the 9X8 by the changes to the rules.

They resulted from the process of convergence that followed the announcement in January 2020 of the LMDh category as a second route in the Hypercar division.

“It would be fair to have the possibility to adapt the car,” he said.

“If you compare a car that was designed at the beginning — if you remember all the changes of regulations — to a newcomer entering in 2026 or ’27, it is easier to design a car with frozen regulations than with the regulations we had to adapt around.”

This shift over the course of 2020 and ’21 ultimately led Peugeot to introduce the 9X8 2024 at the Imola round in April of last year.

#93 Peugeot Totalenergies Peugeot 9X8: Paul Di Resta, Mikkel Jensen, Jean-Eric Vergne

Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images

The second-generation 9X8 represents a change of concept on the original and incorporates a conventional rear wing unlike its predecessor.

The 9X8 was designed to run equal size wheels and tyres all round as per the original LMH regulations, but it followed the move Toyota made with its GR010 HYBRID LMH for 2022 by swapping to larger rear tyres and narrower fronts.

Both Toyota and Peugeot argued that they were compromised by a reduction in the minimum weight in LMH to bring it in line with LMDh.