Bosch inks multi-year partnership with FIA WEC, 24 Hours of Le Mans

Following the 100th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and to support the fast growing development of WEC (World Endurance Championship) following the participation of major manufacturers, Bosch and Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) announce a multiyear partnership.

"By teaming up with ACO, we continue to invest in our brand presence and will be able to expand it further worldwide," said Ingo Mauel, Head of Bosch Motorsport. In addition to boosting Bosch’s brand presence along selected racetracks, the Bosch logo will also appear on the official safety car. Together with the sponsoring partnerships with ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Japan’s Super GT500, and IMSA, Bosch Motorsport states that it is building yet another strong presence with ACO, thereby securing the high global visibility of its brand in various race series.

FIA WEC CEO Frederic Lequien commented: “Bosch has a long-standing tradition of competing in motorsport and their knowledge and expertise will greatly benefit the WEC – most specifically the hypercar category, where they are actively involved on the technical side. We are looking forward to working with the team at Bosch more closely and developing this relationship further."

Focus on electrified drives

As the motorsports industry increasingly focuses on sustainability and conservation of resources, Bosch is pushing the development of components and systems for electrified drives that supplement its portfolio of components and services for conventional internal-combustion engines.
Starting this season, in the new LMDh series, a prototype race car with a standardised hybrid powertrain is competing for the overall victory in the WEC's hypercar class. In this series, Bosch Motorsport is an exclusive partner for the hybrid powertrain in each LMDh car. The special highlight is that the vehicles in this category compete in the endurance races of both the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) and the U.S. IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship (IMSA GTP).

"Bosch has a motorsports tradition that goes back more than 120 years. In all that we do, we are driven by the deep passion we put into developing components, systems, and technologies, such as our electronics and telemetry systems that allow data-based monitoring of vehicles on and off the racetrack or our new LMDh technology. I am therefore even more thrilled that we are involved in this year's 100th anniversary of the endurance classic at Le Mans and that we are playing a key role in shaping the future of motorsports here as well," explains Ingo Mauel. After a successful debut at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, Florida, the teams and cars also delivered an impressive performance at the races in Portimao and Spa-Francorchamps. The highlight of the racing season is the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

All components of the LMDh system, including the software for the hybrid control unit, were developed in-house by Bosch. This required close collaboration not only with chassis designers and battery and transmission partners, but also with both racing series and all manufacturers. The hybrid system is highly flexible and can be combined with various vehicle and engine concepts while still offering an impressive level of performance. In line with current LMDh regulations, the system delivers a permanent output of 50 kW in drive mode and up to 200 kW in recuperation mode. However, the hybrid system has been designed for scalability and is also capable of higher levels of performance.

All pictures: courtesy Bosch