One out of two Panhard LM64 racecars created specifically for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race 59 years ago will cross the auction block in Paris in a few days. Advertised as a technological revolution of its era thanks to a record-low drag ratio of 0.12, it could fetch up to €1.2 million.
Like the Panhard CD production car it was based upon, the LM64 was sketched up and designed by aerodynamicist Lucien Romani. Compared to the mass-market model, the racer boasted suspension upgrades, a boosted engine and a revised body. Romani gave it sealed headlights, a flat undercarriage, large sway stabilizers at the rear end and a diffuser of sorts – the first time someone in the car industry tried to use the so-called ground effect to improve drag.
The chassis received coil springs instead of the leaf springs that were standard at the time, and the 848cc engine ended up with extra carburetors. Forced induction enabled squeezing 20 extra horsepower (15 kilowatts) out of it for a total of 78 PS (77 hp / 57 kW). It may not seem like much, but the drag ratio of 0.12 let the car easily hit 230 km/h (143 mph) even with an engine like that.
Both cars hit the Le Mans circuit in 1964, but neither made it to the end of the race. One had a critical gearbox failure while the other one – the one going to the Paris sale in a couple of days – blew its engine. The seller does not reveal any more details about the car except for the fact that it had been exhibited at the Museum of the 24 Hours of Le Mans for a while.