Geneva Motorshow: Porsche 919 Hybrid Le Mans Prototype is here

Porsche used the Geneva Motorshow to show the world its new hybrid Le Mans prototype that will participate in the 2014 World Endurance Championship, which includes the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The new Le Mans prototype will compete in the LMP1 category of the WEC.

Porsche is not new to the world of endurance racing. Having won the 24 Hours Le Mans 16 times, the company knew exactly what they were facing in terms of hurdles when creating the LMP1 from scratch. With strong competitors like Audi and Toyota, Porsche had to pull out a rabbit out of the hat and the 919 Hybrid LMP1 is just that.

The engine used in the 919 Hybrid is a compact 2.0-litre V4 unit that also serves as a load-bearing member in the chassis. Thanks to direct-injection and turbocharging technologies this compact unit manages to produce close to 500bhp.

The 919 Hybrid also features two energy recovery systems. The system recovers thermal energy from exhaust gases via an electric generator driven by the exhaust gas stream. The second hybrid uses a generator on the front axle to convert kinetic energy into electric energy.

All this energy generated is stored in the lithium-ion batteries and the energy is transferred through an electric motor that drives the front axle.

Porsche will enter the endurance competition with two 919 Hybrids in the WEC. Drivers will include Romain Dumas, Neel Jani and Marc Lieb, while sharing time behind the wheel in the other car will be Timo Bernhard, Brendon Hartley and Mark Webber.

The first race of the new season is the 6 Hours of Silverstone, which gets underway in April and we can't wait to see the Porsche in action.