The coolest cars to win the Le Mans 24 Hours

The story of Ford versus Ferrari is popular because it’s that of an unlikely American outsider who defeated motorsport greats.

It started with an oral agreement between Henry ‘The Deuce’ Ford II and Enzo Ferrari that gave the American giant ownership of the Italian sports car company. When Enzo realized that with the deal, Ford would take control of the motorsport division, he canceled the deal at the last minute.

The Deuce responded by commissioning the construction of a car that would beat Ferrari in the most demanding race of the era. which was almost impossible considering that Ford had almost no racing experience until then. The collaboration of Carol Shelby’s engineers and racing drivers like Ken Miles brought the much-needed victory and cemented the glory of the GT40. Their racing car had a 7.0 liter V-8 engine that developed 425 horsepower and reached a top speed of 212 mph on the Mulsanne Straight. The GT40 took four wins in a row at Le Mans before being discontinued and later reborn as a GT in 2005.

1964-1965 Ford GT40 Mk. II

Read our full Ford GT40 review

The 917 was a prototype racing car that the brand developed after the FIA ​​announced it would allow 5.0-liter Group 4 cars to compete. The 917 had a 5.0 liter boxer engine with 630 hp.

Even with the five-speed manual transmission, the 917 could accelerate to 60 mph in 3 seconds and reach a top speed of 220 mph.

Although the first Porsche 917 did not catch on immediately due to instability, the brand hired the services of John Wyer, who had contributed to the successful GT40. The result was more downforce and the formula for success that gave the automaker its first Le Mans victory. Since then, Porsche has clinched 19 Le Mans victories with various models.

Read our full review of the 1970 Porsche 917

The McLaren F1 was considered the benchmark for super sports cars in the 90s. The GTR is worth remembering as it was the first time McLaren competed in the Le Mans 24 Hours, had no prior knowledge and won the race. After extensive tests, the GTR has changed to a limited extent compared to the production version. It had a 6.1 liter naturally aspirated V-12 engine and a sequential six-speed manual transmission. The power was 592 hp, which interestingly made the racing car less powerful than the road version, although it was more manoeuvrable due to its lower weight. In 1996, McLaren wasn’t in the top three, but they still had five places in the top 10. In 1997, the car received a new set of aerodynamic improvements, finishing in second and third place despite being the final year of production.

Read our full 1995 McLaren F1 GTR review

In 1991 the 787B was the first Japanese car to win the Le Mans 24 Hours. It was just right for Mazda too, considering it was their last chance to prove themselves. Regulations stipulated that rotary engines would phase out the following year, and Mazda had announced the benefits of rotary drive for the previous decade. The first model prototype was the 717 in 1983, which was contested in Group C-Class. Over the years, improvements have been made to the 1990 specification 787 to provide mid-range torque for better drivability and increased downforce.

The naturally aspirated Mazda 2.6-liter engine developed 700 horsepower at 9000 rpm and proved to be an advantage given its low weight.

The cars ran at 800 kg, while the competition weighed an average of one ton.

Read our full 1991 Mazda 787B review

Audi R8 LMP900

The R8 LMP900 was designed by Wolfgang Appel and Michael Pfadenhauer for the Le Mans race in 2000 as a redesign of the R8R. It quickly became successful, winning the event three times in a row by 2005 for a total of five times. Under the hood, the R8 had a 3.6-liter V8 with stratified injection and delivered 610 hp to the rear wheels. This was mated to a six-speed sequential gearbox and the car reached a top speed of 210 mph. The last win was remarkable, especially since driver Tom Kristensen was able to break the previous record of legend Jacky Ickx of six Le Man victories in his career. The R8 is still one of the fastest gasoline-powered Le Mans prototypes.