The 24 Hours of Le Mans is always for MissionH24 the most important moment of the season.
The program jointly developed by the Automobile Club de l’Ouest and GreenGT to prepare for the arrival of a category reserved for electric-hydrogen powered cars at the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans presented this afternoon at the press conference of the 24 Hours a new car and new partners.
Jean-Michel Bouresche, Operations Manager of MissionH24 and Team Principal of the H24Racing team which operates the vehicles of the program in competition, and Norman Nato, the team’s performance development driver, have lifted the veil on a new prototype, the H24. It succeeds the LMPH2G which, after two years of private testing and two participations in race weekends (Spa and Portimao in 2019 in the Michelin Le Mans Cup), gives way to this new car.
The H24 is a new electric-hydrogen propulsion prototype that shares few characteristics with the LMPH2G.
Externally, its bodywork, still developed by the company Adess, is a complete break with its predecessor. Its shapes reflect the gains obtained: increased aerodynamic performance and better cooling for the propulsion system.
Mechanically, the H24 is also reaching a milestone. GreenGT has designed and developed a new powertrain whose heart, the electric-hydrogen generator, equipped with new Symbio bipolar plates, offers increased performance. The new battery, equipped with Saft cells used in Formula 1, stores and delivers more energy. The number of electric motors is reduced from four to two, which turn twice as fast and can deliver more power while offering a very substantial weight saving.
The set is completed by a new gearbox – more exactly a reduction gearbox – more compact and lighter than the previous one and an electronic braking system. In the end, increased performance thanks in particular to a weight gain of 150 kg which brings the H24 closer to the mass of a GT3.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans press conference was also an opportunity for MissionH24 to unveil two new partners. Alongside Total and Michelin-Symbio, the H24 now displays the colors of a watchmaker passionate about automobiles, competition and innovation, Richard Mille, and those of one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, Plastic Omnium . Thanks to the MissionH24 program, the French giant will have the possibility of developing the first tank of competition cars at 700 bars.
Despite the appearance of H24, the light is not yet extinguished on LMPH2G. Tomorrow, Saturday September 18, at 2:12 p.m., she will set off for a lap of honor, alone on the track on the grand circuit of Le Mans, a few minutes before the start at 2:30 p.m. for the competitors qualified for the 88th edition of the 24 Hours.
After a first phase of bench tests, the H24 will for its part begin in November a major cycle of private tests on several circuits in preparation for its 2021 season.
Source: MissionH24
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