Overview
- Ford’s in‑house 5.4‑litre naturally aspirated Coyote V8 was started for the first time installed in an ORECA LMDh chassis at ORECA’s southern France facility on Thursday, confirming the engine runs in its intended car.
- The engine was designed, developed and built by Ford Racing in Dearborn after an extensive dyno programme that tested performance and durability prior to chassis installation.
- Ford paired the bespoke V8 with the class spec hybrid system during the fire‑up to validate mechanical and electronic integration between the combustion engine, hybrid unit and chassis.
- The programme will move into driver‑led on‑track shakedowns in August across European circuits with six confirmed factory drivers, followed by further testing in the United States as the team prepares for 2027 racing.
- Ford says it chose a normally aspirated V8 to simplify installation and improve serviceability for endurance racing, and it plans to use lessons from the programme to speed development and feed back into production technology.