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(Reuters) - Nissan will power a revolutionary DeltaWing car that will enter this year's Le Mans 24 Hours endurance race, the Japanese manufacturer said on Tuesday.

 

The V-shaped car will not be classified at Le Mans, taking the number 0 with a place in the pitlane reserved for experimental cars because it does not conform to existing regulations.

 

However, the team behind DeltaWing intend to use the vehicle, which has half the weight and half the aerodynamic drag of conventional racers while being powered by a 1.6 litre turbocharged petrol engine, to showcase pioneering technology.

 

"This announcement gives Nissan the opportunity to become part of a ground-breaking motorsport project and one which could shape the future of the sport," said Nissan executive vice-president Andy Palmer in a statement.

The sleek DeltaWing, built by American Dan Gurney's Californian-based All American Racers, has a long thin 'fuselage' extending to two narrow front tyres aligned close together.

The driver sits well back, almost over the rear axle.

The team expect it to use half the amount of fuel as conventional racers while setting lap times between the Le Mans LMP1 and LMP2 categories despite having only half the power.

The first two confirmed drivers are Britain's Marino Franchitti, younger brother of Indy 500 winner and four-times IndyCar champion Dario and a cousin of Formula One racer Paul Di Resta, and Germany's FIA GT1 champion Michael Krumm.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Ed Osmond)

Source: uk.reuters.com