LMGT3 Confirmed for 2024; Premium Kits “Not Mandatory”

The new GT3-based class that will be introduced to the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2024 will be known as LMGT3, while the so-called premium kits will be “permitted but not mandatory.”

The principles of the new class were approved during the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting at Bologna on Wednesday, with the new category taking over as a replacement for GTE-Am, which will contest its final season in 2023.

As part of the new rule package, torque meter sensors will be mandatory in order to enable live monitoring of powertrain performance. This is in line with the regulations of the Hypercar class.

Furthermore, the ACO stated that LMGT3 “will be a customer racing class based on Pro-Am-type sporting regulations and will use off-the-shelf tires produced by a single supplier.”

Notably the bodywork conversion kits, previously dubbed ‘GT3 Premium’, will be part of the regulations, but the FIA emphasizes that the kits will be permitted but not mandatory.

The kit was announced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June and was aimed to produce elongated versions of the cars through bodywork modifications that could have helped increase top speeds, most notably at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The decision to include the kits had been the topic of discussion between stakeholders as recently as the WEC finale in Bahrain in November.

The FIA and ACO have now stated that “manufacturers will be able to modify the body for promotional reasons and/or to achieve an aerodynamic performance window suited to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.”

The kit’s ability to achieve greater aerodynamic performance for the French endurance classic is a notable deviation from previous comments made by FIA and ACO personnel, who previously indicated to Sportscar365 that the purpose of the proposed premium kit was not performance-based.