24h Le Mans
In just 3 days the traditional scrutineering ceremony on Place de la République in the town centre of Le Mans will kick off the hectic Le Mans 24-Hours week on Sunday 11th June. Over a day and a half the 180 drivers and 60 cars entered for the Le Mans 24 Hours will go through scrutineering and administrative checks. It provides a unique opportunity for all the fans as well as ordinary spectators to get a close-up look at the cars, the men and Christina Nielsen, the only woman driver in this year’s event, who will be on the grid for the start of the most mythical endurance race in the world.
Scrutineering will take place on Sunday 11th June from 14:00 to 19:00 and will continue on Monday 12th June from 09:30 to 18:00. The 60 cars and the 180 drivers will turn up one after another to be checked by the scrutineers and officials to see if the cars comply and the drivers are fit to drive them.
During scrutineering the cars follow a clearly marked-out route with three posts. The first is where the main dimensions are measured (width, length, overhangs, wheelbase, height of the wing and the fin, dimensions of the holes over the wheels, etc). The cars pass onto a horizontal platform equipped with lasers and mounted on scales on which they are weighed.
When the car goes through the second post it is placed on a hoist to enable the officials to check the underbody.
At the final one the bodywork is partially removed for the inspection of the safety equipment (extinguishers, belts, circuit breakers, indicators, safety measures for the hybrids’ electrics, etc) the fuel tank and the engine oil recuperation tank as well as the conformity of certain key elements like the adhesives and the timing devices. The data acquisition system in each car is scrupulously tested as is the marshalling system which, via a special black box, tells the drivers in the cars about what’s going on on the circuit and the actions carried out by the track marshals. In total the operation lasts around 50 minutes per car.
The Graff team, which has entered two Oreca 07-Gibsons for the race in the LM P2 category, will open the festivities at 14:30 this Sunday in the scrutineering bay and bringing the day to a close will be the no. 86 Gulf Racing LM GTE Am Porsche 911 RSR. On Monday the Slovak team ARC Bratislava’s no. 49 Ligier JS P217 (LM P2) will be the first to undergo scrutineering and the last car to run the gauntlet of the men in white coats will be the no. 82 Risi Competizione Ferrari GTE ending the 2017 scrutineering saga.
The front-runners in the top category, LM P1, Porsche and Toyota will be checked on Sunday and Monday respectively.
During scrutineering the drivers in their driver suits go though administrative checks during which their licences, helmets, driver suits and all their equipment, which must comply with the FIA standards, are inspected. They are also weighed to define the average weight of the line-up and to respect the current sporting regulations. They then snapped up to take part in various communications operations (individual photos, team photos with the cars, press interviews, etc).
This exceptional free spectacle organised by the ACO together with the Le Mans metropolitan services is always a big hit with the spectators. They are right in the thick of the action thanks to the grandstands installed around the scrutineering bay and the two giant TV screens which show the effervescence enlivening the event.
Numerous activities/entertainment take place at scrutineering in the different stands in the village which will be installed on the square.
Scrutineering is a convivial event and everybody joins in as it’s based on sharing passion and it gets the hectic Le Mans week off to a flying start!
List of entries for the 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours
