Written by Evan Veer, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
Alpine revealed their new Alpine A424_β (Beta) LMDh ahead of its debut for the 2024 WEC season. The car sports a pair of modern headlights, similar to those on the Alpine Alpenglow concept car, and the aggressive aero on the front is complemented by a number of sharp angles moving towards the rear of the car, along with various other unique features such as its ‘Alpine A-arrow’ shaped tail lights, and a rather large set of exhausts.
The car’s name is a reference to Alpine’s previous Le Mans victory, as the presentation took place 45 years after the Renault-Alpine A442B took victory at the 24 Hours, way back in 1978.
The A424 Beta will be the first LMDh to be powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.4L V6 engine instead of a V8. The engine will be supplied by Mecachrome, a French company also in charge of manufacturing engines for a variety of other cars, including the current spec Formula 2 and Formula 3 units. Like Acura, Alpine have opted to base its car off of an Oreca chassis, and on certain parts of the car, there definitely seems to be a similarity in shape between the two, though the two cars are largely distinct in their styling. The use of French engine and chassis partners also means Alpine has managed to keep as much of their development within France, in order to emphasise their French roots.
The two-car 2024 WEC program will be run by Alpine’s partner Signatech, the same team which has run its WEC efforts for several years.
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