The Porsche 919 is the reigning overall winner of the grueling 24 Hours of Le Mans, and here, finally, is the updated version for the 2017 season. Of note: it has the biggest eyes of any car I have ever seen.
This is giant squid levels of eye-openness. The front of this car is huge.
That’s really the big change of this car versus last year. The chassis is the same. The 500 horsepower, 2.0-liter V4 turbo engine is the same, and if there’s a difference in the top-level 400 horsepower, eight megajoule hybrid system, I can’t see it.
It’s the new front fenders, taller, wider, longer, that are the big change. It’s possible that this is for some aerodynamic gain, but it’s also possible that this is to help the car pass its mandated crash tests, as Racecar Engineering hypothesized this morning.
More small aero changes fit around the car, making it look even more like an F1 car with fenders and a roof. The drivetrain of this Porsche is more conservative than something you’d find in F1, more stout and economical to run a 24 hour race with as few fuel stops as possible, but otherwise we’re looking at one of the most technologically advanced cars in history.
I can’t wait for June.