News

Ferrari has confirmed multi-year contract extensions for two of its 499P Hypercar drivers, Nicklas Nielsen and Yifei Ye. Coming after a similar deal for Phil Hanson, the renewals show Ferrari intends to keep its Le Mans-winning WEC line-up together rather than break up a winning team. Since returning to the top class in 2023, Ferrari has won every 24 Hours of Le Mans it has entered, and continuity is clearly part of the plan.

Fernando Alonso has been filmed driving a polished-aluminium Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse through Monaco. The one-off, listed by Mechatronik since June 2024 with 750 km on the clock, has body panels milled from solid aluminium that cost more than the car. It is his second one-off from the same dealer in four months, after the Pagani Zonda Diamante Verde.

General Motors has revealed two sixth-generation small-block V8s for the 2027 Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500: a 5.7-litre with 402 hp and a 6.6-litre with 481 hp, both without a dipstick. The 6.2-litre L87 they replace was recalled on 597,630 vehicles in April 2025, and since 20 August NHTSA has been analysing 997,743 of them after 499 engines failed post-repair.

The Asian Le Mans Series new Hypercar class, part of a rebranded “Winter Le Mans Series” opening in November at Paul Ricard, is reportedly in jeopardy with only two cars entered. The organisers deny there is a problem, but the field is a long way short of the three to six Hypercars the ACO expected, and even some LMP2 teams would rather the class did not run. A Europe-only calendar and a rules quirk that removes any Le Mans invitation are to blame.

California has signed Senate Bill 1392, known as Jay Leno's Law, exempting collector cars from model years 1976 to 1985 from the state smog check. Pre-1981 cars qualify from 1 January 2028, one model year follows each year, and 1985 arrives in 2033. Owners need collector insurance or fewer than 1,000 miles a year. California repealed a rolling 30-year exemption in 2005; this restores ten years of it.

The FIA is reportedly examining whether to replace the ACO as promoter of the World Endurance Championship, after the contracts underpinning the arrangement expired in June and renewal talks stalled. According to Auto Motor und Sport, the standoff could ultimately strip the 24 Hours of Le Mans of its world championship status, even though the race itself would continue under ACO ownership. Nothing is confirmed, but the stakes for endurance racing are huge.

Toyota Gazoo Racing shows the DKR GR FC Hilux, a fuel cell version of its Dakar truck, and signs Jameel Motorsport, Denso, Toyo Tires and IAV as partners for the rally on 1 to 15 January 2027. Developed near Brussels and assembled at Toyota's European headquarters, it enters the 1,000 km Mission 1000 class, not the 5,320 km main event. No output, range or tank capacity has been published.

Opel shows the Astra GSE Line at the Paris Motor Show and sells it from spring 2027 as a styling trim for every engine, replacing GS. A 206 kW (280 hp) top version follows later in 2027, which would make it the most powerful Astra ever. Until then the range peaks at the 195 hp plug-in hybrid.

The FIA has cancelled the November WRC round of Rally Saudi Arabia after Toyota and Hyundai told it their staff cannot travel to the Middle East. The season now ends at Rally Italia Sardegna on 1 to 4 October, where Elfyn Evans leads by 17 points with 35 available. Formula 1's Qatar and Abu Dhabi rounds and the 1 January Dakar remain undecided.