The European Le Mans Series is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The European Le Mans Series is similar to the former American Le Mans Series (ALMS) based in the United States and Canada that was running with ACO and IMSA between 1999 and 2013. ELMS team champions and runners-up receive an automatic entry to the following year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. Originally titled the Le Mans Endurance Series before becoming simply the Le Mans Series in 2006, the series was renamed once more in 2012, reusing a name previously utilized by IMSA in 2001.
A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is a type of sports prototype race car used in various races and championships, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series and Asian Le Mans Series. Le Mans Prototypes were created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The technical requirements for an LMP include bodywork covering all mechanical elements of the car. As of 2023, there are two classes within Le Mans Prototypes, designated LMP2 and LMP3.
The Ligier JS P2 is a racing car designed and built by French manufacturer Onroak Automotive and named in partnership with French former racing driver Guy Ligier. Designed for the Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) regulations, it is intended as a second option to Onroak's Morgan LMP2 that has been competing since 2012. As well as being the first closed-cockpit car offered by Onroak, it is also the first car they designed entirely in-house. The JS P2 debuted at the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans, and has been campaigned in the FIA World Endurance Championship, European Le Mans Series, Asian Le Mans Series and IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Ligier Automotive, formerly Onroak Automotive, is a French company which designs, manufacturers, and sells racing cars, specifically sports prototypes for various international series. Onroak was founded in 2012 by Jacques Nicolet who split the design, manufacturing, and sales divisions of his OAK Racing team into an independent company. Onroak has since formed an agreement with Philippe Ligier to develop new cars under the Ligier title. On 31 December 2018, it was announced that Onroak Automotive would be rebranded to Ligier Automotive as part of a rebranding and reorganization of Everspeed's automotive assets.
The 2017 European Le Mans Series season was the fourteenth season of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's (ACO) European Le Mans Series. The six-event season began at Silverstone Circuit, in conjunction with the FIA World Endurance Championship, on 15 April and ended at Algarve International Circuit on 22 October.
The Ligier JS P217 is a Le Mans Prototype built by Onroak Automotive and named in a partnership with French racing driver Guy Ligier. The Ligier JS P217 was built to meet the 2017 FIA and ACO regulations for 2017 for the LMP2 category in the FIA World Endurance Championship. The car also meets the regulations for the International Motor Sports Association’s (IMSA) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for the Prototype class. It was active in both of these championship series as well as the European Le Mans Series and Asian Le Mans Series. The prototype made its racing debut at the 2017 24 Hours of Daytona and its FIA World Endurance Championship debut at the 2017 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.
The 2018 European Le Mans Series was the fifteenth season of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's (ACO) European Le Mans Series. The six-event season began at Circuit Paul Ricard on 15 April and finished at Algarve International Circuit on 28 October. The series is open to Le Mans Prototypes, divided into the LMP2 and LMP3 classes, and grand tourer-style racing cars in the LMGTE class.
The Norma M30 is an LMP3-spec sports prototype. The car is built by French constructor Norma Auto Concept and designed by company co-founder Norbert Santos. The Norma M30 won the 2017 Michelin Le Mans Cup in its debut year entered by DKR Engineering.
The Ligier JS P3 is an LMP3 Le Mans Prototype. It was created by Onroak Automotive, and named in partnership with former French driver Guy Ligier. It was built to meet ACO LMP3 standards, and is active in various LMP3 championships worldwide, such as the European Le Mans Series, IMSA Prototype Challenge, and the Asian Le Mans Series. The car has proven to be immensely popular in the category, with over 100 cars being produced since 2015. It has also proved to be one of the most successful prototypes in the class, with a total of 103 overall wins and class victories from 132 races entered by the car. It is set to be succeeded in 2020, by the Ligier JS P320, when new LMP3 regulations are set to come into place.
The Ginetta-Juno P3-15, also known as the Ginetta-Juno P3 is a Le Mans Prototype LMP3 built to ACO Le Mans Prototype LMP3 regulations. It was designed by Ewan Baldry, and built by Ginetta Cars. The car was the first car to launch, and run in the class, with it making its debut at the 2015 4 Hours of Silverstone. It subsequently formed the basis of the G57 P2, and the later G58. A direct successor to the P3-15, the G61-LT-P3, was developed to meet the new 2020 LMP3 regulations, while retaining the original tub utilised in the P3-15.
The ADESS-03 is a Le Mans Prototype LMP3 built to ACO Le Mans Prototype LMP3 regulations. It was designed and built by ADESS AG. The car had its competition debut at the 2015 4 Hours of Fuji. The car also serves as a base for the GreenGT LMPH2G and H24 Hydrogen powered Le Mans Prototype.
The Ligier Nissan DPi, also known as the Onroak Nissan DPi is a Daytona Prototype car built by Ligier Automotive. The car is based on the Ligier JS P217, which was built to meet the 2017 FIA and ACO regulations for 2017 for the LMP2 category in the FIA World Endurance Championship. The prototype made its racing debut at the 2017 24 Hours of Daytona, with the Tequila Patrón ESM team, finishing 4th on its debut.
The Ginetta G61-LT-P3 is a Le Mans Prototype LMP3 built to ACO Le Mans Prototype LMP3 regulations. It was designed, and built by Ginetta Cars. The car is the successor to the original Ginetta-Juno P3-15, which was the first LMP3 Prototype. The car can be built from its predecessor, and is set to be eligible in a series of Championships worldwide, such as the European Le Mans Series, and the IMSA Prototype Challenge. The car was launched on the weekend of the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans, being publicly unveiled alongside its competitors.
The 2020 European Le Mans Series was the seventeenth season of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's (ACO) European Le Mans Series. The six-event season began at Circuit Paul Ricard on 19 July and finished at Algarve International Circuit on 1 November.
The Duqueine D-08 is a Le Mans Prototype LMP3 built to ACO 2020 2nd Generation Le Mans Prototype LMP3 regulations. It was designed, and built by Duqueine Engineering, which bought out Norma Auto Concept. The car is the successor to the Norma M30. The car can be built from its predecessor, and is set to be eligible in a series of Championships worldwide, such as the European Le Mans Series, and the IMSA Prototype Challenge. While the car was launched on the weekend of the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans, it was not physically seen until September 2019, with the car at Le Mans being a repainted M30.
A Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) is a type of sports prototype race car that competes alongside LMDh entries in the Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship. It will also compete in the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class of the IMSA SportsCar Championship from 2023.
An LMDh is a type of sports prototype race car that competes alongside Le Mans Hypercar entries in the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class of the IMSA SportsCar Championship from 2023. It also competes in the Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Inter Europol Competition is a Polish motorsports team that competes in endurance racing. The team contested the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, European Le Mans Series, Asian Le Mans Series and Le Mans Cup in 2023. They formerly competed in BOSS GP, V de V and Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup. As a reference to the focus of its owner and sponsor, the bakery goods producer Inter Europol SA, the team is often referred to as Turbo Piekarze.
The 2021 European Le Mans Series was the eighteenth season of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's (ACO) European Le Mans Series. The six-event season began at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 18th April and finished at Algarve International Circuit on 24th October.
The Ligier JS P4 is an entry-level sports prototype race car, designed, developed, and produced by French manufacturer Onroak Automotive, and named in partnership with former French driver Guy Ligier, and used for the top class of the Ligier European Series.
