Cadillac’s 5.5-litre LMDh racer gets not one, not two, but three liveries

Taking a break from ruffling feathers with its proposed F1 entry alongside Andretti, Cadillac has unveiled the liveries its 5.5-litre, V8-engined LMDh cars will use this year, starting with the 24 Hours of Daytona next month.

The gold 01 Cadillac Racing and red 31 Whelen Engineering entries will contest the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in 2023, while the red 02 will race in the World Endurance Championship.

Each of the three colours is drawn from the V-Series emblem, explains Cadillac, worn by the likes of the CT4-V and CT5-V, as well as their Blackwing editions. The company also says the design of the car was informed by last summer’s rather striking Project GTP Hypercar.

“Cadillac is ready to compete against the very best in North America and internationally — including one of the world’s toughest races, the 24 Hours of Le Mans,” said Global Vice President of Cadillac Rory Harvey. “As Cadillac builds toward an all-electric future, the all-new V-LMDh furthers our dedication to exploring new advanced performance technologies.”

Though the engine is of Cadillac’s choosing, the rules for LMDh dictate that maximum power should be 671bhp, with weight capped at 1,030kg.

The 02 car - a number inspired by Cadillac’s first “Le Monstre” entry way back in 1950 - will be driven by Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn and Richard Westbrook. Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande will pilot the 01 car - aided by Scott Dixon at Daytona - while the 31 will be entrusted to Pipo Derani and Alexander Sims, plus Jack Aitken throughout the year.

Cadillac has set itself a high bar, let’s not forget: it won IMSA outright in 2017, 2018 and 2021, as well as Daytona four years running from 2017.

How are we rating its chances with this effort?