The 88th running of the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours takes the starters flag on 19 September, delayed from its traditional mid-summer slot due to the Covid19 pandemic. Due to health restrictions, the race will be run behind closed doors with only essential team and support personnel in attendance along with a limited number of journalists.
Xtrac’s traditional support team will be in attendance, based in the main Le Mans and Road to Le Mans paddocks, albeit with a reduced number of crew members, all strictly following the essential Covid19 protocols. They will have the remote backup of Xtrac’s highly skilled engineering and manufacturing staff from our UK and North American bases available 24/7.
59 cars will be taking the start at Le Mans, of which an impressive 78% or 46 cars will be fitted with Xtrac gearboxes. Not only that but the Road to Le Mans race which is part of the thriving Michelin Le Mans Cup series for LMP3 and GT3 cars, sees 90% or 45 of the 50 cars, also using Xtrac transmissions, an achievement built on years of experience and knowledge gained operating at the highest level of motorsport. The LMP3 category sees all cars using identical Xtrac P1152 gearboxes as mandated by the series regulations.
Using experience gained over decades of endurance racing, Xtrac have continually launched gearbox designs which are suited to the technical and commercial demands of all Sportscar categories including LMP1, DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTE/GTLM, GT3/GTD and GT4.
With 2020 being the final year of the current Le Mans homologation period, the LMP gearboxes in use are the same specification as the 2019 units. New Xtrac transmissions have already been designed and deliveries have commenced for the first LMH Hypercars, marking the start of a new era of endurance racing which is planned to start racing in 2021.
