French automotive manufacturer and race outfit, Alpine, has been spotted testing its upcoming A242 hypercar in a development blitz ahead of its planned return to the world of WEC racing.
The company says that the A424 has clocked up 1500km across two days of testing at the Motorland Circuit in Aragon, Spain, with drivers Nicolas Lapierre and Matthieu Vaxiviere at the helm for the shake-down.
Key amongst its goals was testing degradation of the Michelin WEC 2024 tyres, thermal behaviour under the bonnet and the overall aerodynamic balance on the circuit, as well as the behavior of the hybrid system.
We reported on Alpine’s plans to get back into the World Endurance Championship (WEC) earlier this year when it unveiled the A424 hypercar, which is set to take part in the WEC’s LMDh category.
The A242 rides on a carbon fibre monocoque spanning 5000mm long, 1998mm wide and has a wheelbase measuring 3148mm, with power supplied by a 3.4-litre turbocharged V6 pushing out 500kW alongside a Bosch-supplied hybrid system throwing 50kW into the mix.
Ahead of its 2024 WEC arrival, Alpine has plans for two more days of grueling testing at the Circuito de Jerez, Spain, later this month, ahead of its first endurance session in mid-November.
It will then make its way back to HQ for the final round of tuning, before the homologation process starts in December.
The first race of the 2024 WEC season will come in the form of the 6 Hours of Qatar in Doha, which takes place in March, 2024.
“All shakedown stages are now behind us, and we’ve got down to the nitty-gritted at Aragon, with the fine-tuning of the car’s different systems and the aero work,” says VP of Alpine Motorsports, Bruno Famin.
“Things are moving in the right direction, but we’re only at the beginning of the process, and there’s still a tremendous amount to do in all areas,” he added.
“We’re focusing on the upcoming phases, specifically, the first endurance test and preparations for homologation,” Famin concluded.
