Aston Martin will return to 24 Hour Le Mans at La Sarthe with two cars

Posted on January 27th, 2009 by Robert Adams | Posted under: Aston Martin, motorsports

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2009 Aston Martin Le Mans LMP1 In 1959 Carroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori won the 24 Hour Le Mans. Now 50 years later Aston Martin hopes to bring the 24 Hour Le Mans title back to Britain.

Over the weekend of 13-14 June at La Sarthe, Aston Martin will have two Works LMP1 cars on the 24 Hour Le Mans bearing the iconic blue and orange livery of Gulf Oil.

The new car which is based on the 2008 Charouz Racing System Lola will be powered by the same production-based Aston Martin V12 engine which, last year, helped Aston Martin secure its second successive Le Mans GT1 title with the DBR9. It also powered the Charouz car to a new La Sarthe lap record for a petrol car.

Aston Martin Racing is developing the car in conjunction with Lola, Michelin, Koni and BBS and continues its relationship with major partner Gulf Oil and official clothing partner Hackett.

In 2009, the ACO is introducing new regulations aimed at balancing the performance of petrol and diesel engined prototypes making the LMP1 category more appealing and relevant to Aston Martin.

Dr Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin Chief Executive Officer commented: “Racing has been, and still is at the heart of Aston Martin. Our cars today are subtle, elegant and handcrafted but they still have the genes for competition. I am happy that we have found partners who, with their support, will enable us to compete at the highest level of endurance racing. We will put all our heart and skill behind this project to demonstrate the essence of Aston Martin: Power Beauty and Soul.”

Signalling ongoing commitment to motorsport, in addition to the Le Mans 24 hour race, the team will also compete throughout the year in the Le Mans Series (LMS), which opens with the 1000 km de Catalunya on the 5th of April.

Source: Aston Martin