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McLaren has completed a 30-hour endurance simulation with its MCL-HY LMDh prototype as preparations continue for its entry into the World Endurance Championship Hypercar field next season.
The test, held at MotorLand Aragon in Spain in July, was designed to replicate the distance of the Le Mans 24 Hours. The hybrid prototype, developed with Dallara Automobili, ran for more than 30 hours without any major interruption, an important early validation point for a programme still in its formative stages.
The Aragon simulation came less than three months after the car’s shakedown at Varano in Italy. It was only the MCL-HY’s third full test, following earlier running at Imola and Magny-Cours. Testing continued with three further days at Silverstone last week.
James Barclay, executive director of McLaren Endurance Racing and team principal of the United Autosports-run WEC operation, said the test produced no “show-stoppers”.
“There were things we stopped to check, but we didn’t stop for three hours and go back out,” Barclay explained. “We ran it as though we were running a race: if there were things we wanted to stop and check because we didn’t want to damage something, we would do a quick stop, and check and go.”
McLaren has not disclosed the mileage completed at Aragon, with Barclay saying the organisation did not want to “give too much away”. However, he confirmed that the MCL-HY had already covered the typical distance of a six-hour WEC race before arriving in Spain.
“The fact that this early in our test programme we have been able to do our first 30 hours is really positive, with lots of great learning from it,” he said.
Further endurance simulations are planned, although McLaren has not detailed its forthcoming schedule. Barclay said the early test was intended to identify any fundamental issue while there was still time to address it. The task is particularly significant because the car uses an all-new three-litre twin-turbo V6 developed with Italy’s AutoTecnica Motori, rather than an engine derived from an existing powerplant.
That development effort is taking place within a growing operation involving United Autosports personnel alongside staff from Formula 1 and Formula E. Barclay said the Aragon test also strengthened the group’s cohesion, describing the camaraderie as exceptional despite the programme being only in its fifth test.
For wider context on the category’s technical landscape, Michelin’s WEC Hypercar tyre supply deal has been extended until 2032.
The MCL-HY’s aerodynamics are not expected to change significantly before homologation at the end of the season. Mikkel Jensen and Laurens Vanthoor are the first two announced drivers, with Grégoire Saucy, Richard Verschoor and Ben Hanley also undertaking testing duties.
McLaren has signed more drivers but will delay announcing them because of existing contracts. The team is also assessing whether to use two drivers per car in six-hour WEC races, while running three at Le Mans and the scheduled 10-hour events in Qatar and Bahrain.
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.