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What is the fastest LMDh car?

On raw lap time in our archive, the fastest LMDh car is the Cadillac V-Series.R: its 1:24.498 at Interlagos in 2025 is the quickest race lap any LMDh has set in the WEC, six hundredths ahead of the best from the Porsche 963. But the honest answer is that Balance of Performance keeps the LMDh field inside a window where "fastest" changes hands by circuit and by season, and the gap from best to fourth-best is under a second.

What counts as an LMDh

The Hypercar class runs two rulesets side by side. LMH cars, like the Toyota GR010 and Ferrari 499P, are bespoke prototypes built from a clean sheet. LMDh cars are built on one of four spec LMP2-derived chassis (Oreca, Dallara, Ligier or Multimatic) with a standardized hybrid system on the rear axle, which cuts cost at the price of design freedom.

Six LMDh models have raced in the WEC: the Porsche 963 (Multimatic chassis), the Cadillac V-Series.R (Dallara), the Alpine A424 (Oreca), the BMW M Hybrid V8 (Dallara), the Lamborghini SC63 (Ligier) and, from 2026, the Genesis GMR-001 (Oreca).

What the stopwatch says

Filtering our lap archive to race sessions from 2024 through the first three rounds of 2026, the fastest single lap by each LMDh model reads:

Cadillac V-Series.R: 1:24.498, set at Interlagos in 2025. Porsche 963: 1:24.563, same race. Alpine A424: 1:25.344. BMW M Hybrid V8: 1:25.726. Lamborghini SC63: 1:27.097, from its single WEC season in 2024. Genesis GMR-001: 1:33.090, from a part-season sample in 2026.

For context, the fastest LMH lap in the same window is the Toyota GR010's 1:24.801, which lands between the Cadillac and the Alpine. That is the BoP working as designed: both rulesets converge on the same performance window, and the spread across the four established LMDh models is about 1.2 seconds over a 1:24 lap.

Why "fastest" is a moving target

Three things make a single ranking misleading. First, Balance of Performance adjusts weight and power per car per event, so a model that tops the charts at one round can be mid-pack at the next by regulation rather than by merit. Second, lap times only compare cleanly at the same circuit in the same conditions: the Interlagos numbers above are comparable to each other, but not to a Spa or Le Mans lap. Third, race best laps depend on traffic and tyre offset as much as car speed.

Top speed tells a slightly different story from lap time. At the 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans, the fastest Hypercar through the speed traps recorded 351.8 km/h, the highest figure in our archive for the class; the low-drag Mulsanne configuration rewards different design choices than the lap-time charts do.

Fast is not the same as successful

The lap-time crown and the results table disagree in an instructive way. The 963 is the most successful LMDh in the WEC on wins, with four across 2024 and 2025 while no other LMDh took more than one, and Cadillac's single-lap pace only converted into a race win in 2025. The 2026 standings so far have BMW as the leading LMDh manufacturer after its Spa win, second overall behind Toyota.

If you want a one-line answer for the pub: the Cadillac has the fastest lap, the Porsche has the trophies, and BoP makes sure neither fact settles the argument for long.

Last updated · lmdh · porsche 963 · cadillac v-series.r · bmw m hybrid v8 · alpine a424 · lap times

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Related questions

Regulations

What is the difference between LMH and LMDh?

LMH (Le Mans Hypercar) and LMDh (Le Mans Daytona h) are the two platform types that share the top class of the WEC, the Hypercar class. LMH cars are designed from scratch by their manufacturer, including the chassis, hybrid system and engine. LMDh cars are built around one of four spec LMP2 chassis (Dallara, Ligier, Multimatic, Oreca) with a manufacturer-developed engine bolted on top of a single mandated spec hybrid kit. Both platforms race each other through a system called Equivalence of Technology, designed to make them lap at the same pace.

Regulations

Why are Hypercars slower than LMP1 cars?

Hypercars are roughly four to seven seconds per lap slower than the fastest LMP1 cars, and they are slower on purpose. The Hypercar rules cap power at about 520 kW, raise minimum weight to 1,030 kg, and use Balance of Performance to hold every car inside a target performance window. LMP1 had double the power-to-weight ambition and no BoP, and it nearly killed the championship: the class was down to one factory by 2018. The WEC traded outright speed for a grid.

Manufacturers

Which manufacturer has won the most Hypercar-era WEC races?

Toyota has won the most Hypercar-era WEC races with 21 overall victories since the class debuted in 2021. Ferrari sits second with 7 wins, all in the 2023-2025 stretch. Porsche has 4 wins, Alpine has 3, with single victories for Cadillac and BMW. Six different manufacturers winning in five seasons is the deepest top-class spread the WEC has had since the championship started in 2012.

What is the fastest LMDh car? · WEC Engine