Following the 2015 debut of the three.0 CSL Hommage R idea, BMW’s kidney grilles have been steadily rising. A few of its smaller sedans nonetheless have pretty subdued kidneys, certain, however for essentially the most half, BMW has embraced large grilles, notably on autos just like the iX, 4 Sequence, and seven Sequence. One new BMW is bucking the pattern, however sadly for big-kidney haters, it’s one you possibly can’t purchase.
For the 2026 racing season, BMW is shrinking the kidney grilles—imagine it or not—on its M Hybrid V8 LMDh race automobile in the hunt for higher aerodynamic efficiency. This, together with a brand new splitter, will assist the M Hybrid V8 carry out extra persistently at various kinds of tracks and enhance cooling effectivity. The kidney grilles will nonetheless mild up across the perimeter, so the M Hybrid V8 will nonetheless be very recognizable.
BMW’s M Hybrid V8 has competed within the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship since 2023 and the World Endurance Championship since 2024. Its report has been spotty, with a handful of wins in IMSA, however solely a few 2nd locations in WEC and disappointing outcomes on the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Italian agency Dallara supplies the chassis for the M Hybrid V8, whereas BMW supplies a bespoke racing V-8 engine. This pairs with the spec LMDh hybrid system, which consists of a motor and electronics from Bosch, transmission from XTrac, and battery from Fortescue Zero. It competes with different LMDh vehicles from Acura, Alpine, Cadillac, and Porsche, and Le Mans Hypercars from the likes of Ferrari and Toyota.
Photograph by: BMW
Subsequent 12 months, BMW will cut up with its long-term US motorsports companion Rahal Letterman Lanigan (RLL) racing, and our colleagues at Motorsport.com report that Europe’s WRT racing could run the M Hybrid V8 in America. The automobile has proven promise, and the #24 presently sits third within the IMSA standings, however BMW desires extra. Particularly at Le Mans, the place its finest end is a lowly sixteenth.
So maybe shrinking the kidneys will do BMW some good. We’ll see what occurs come the Rolex 24 at Daytona subsequent January.
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