Project Motor Racing looks to celebrate endurance racing throughout the decades - and its trailer showed a number of interesting cars that have not been confirmed yet. Here are ten we spotted!
Image: Straight4 Studios / GIANTS
With plenty of familiar faces from the GTR days in its rows, it was probably a foregone conclusion that Straight4 Studios would not aim to create yet another GT3 sim when developing Project Motor Racing. This was somewhat confirmed by the slew of early 2000s GT cars being confirmed to be on board prior to the offical reveal of the upcoming sim, with the studio being as specific as mentioning the 2004 and 2005 FIA GT seasons.
There will be a lot more in the title that will be published by GIANTS Software though, as it turns out. Keen-eyed observers could spot a number of cars in the official trailer that was also shown at the Zürich preview event. It features five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell, who tells the viewer about his love for motor racing.
This is accompanied not only by footage of Ben Collins, Straight4's test driver and handling consultant, getting into a rig and firing up PMR, but also real-life and in-game racing scenes. And those revealed a number of cars that have not yet been confirmed for Project Motor Racing. Here are the ten we spotted.
Real-life Footage
All of the following cars were not spotted as in-game models, but in real-life footage. While some of their appearances may be coincidental, these sorts of clips are rarely put into a on official trailer like this one by coincidence - so we could imagine these GT racers to end up in Project Motor Racing indeed.Image: Matthew Lamb via Wikimedia Commons, available for distribution under the SC BY-SA 2.0 Deed
McLaren F1 GTR
Starting off with the first member of a quartet of 1990s GT racers, the McLaren F1 GTR is one of the first car to be seen in brief clips of the 1996 BPR Global GT Series, or perhaps the 1997 FIA GT Championship - it's difficult to pinpoint.The racing version of the Gordon Murray-designed supercar with a big BMW V12 engine in the back probably needs no introduction to racing fans. Its distinctive look and sound make it iconic, and it actually managed to take the overall victory in the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans despite not competing in the top class, aided by rain.
The F1 GTR was a staple in mid-to-late 1990s GT racing, which went through a bit of a difficult phase. After the demise of the World Sportscar Championship, GT racing slowly emerged from its ashes in Europe via the BPR Global GT Series, which turned to FIA GT from 1997 onwards.
Lister Storm GTS
We know what you're thinking. "Hang on, the Lister has been confirmed already, right?" Well, yes, but not this one. The black wedge we witnessed Straight4 run (and laser-scan) at Silverstone in 2024 was the Storm GT - the GTS was the first version of that car introduced in 1995.Already very wedge-shaped and sporting a striking livery thanks to sponsorship by UK football (or soccer, if you prefer) team Newcastle United, the car competed in the BPR Global GT Series in 1995 and 1996, showing flashes of promise, but also was not the most reliable vehicle.
The GTS was replaced by the GTL for 1997, essentially a more streamlined version of the GTS. The bulging hood of the GTS was no more - and since that can be clearly seen in the trailer, it has to be the GTS that is shown.
Lotus Esprit GT1
A somewhat obscure GT racer of the 1990s, the Lotus Esprit GT1 (also referred to as the Esprit V8) can be spotted among the other 90s GT cars in a few brief shots. Its distinct boxy shape is almost hidden by its black livery, so you really have to look closely. The car started competing in 1996 and actually ran until 2002.It was not much of a match to the GT programs of bigger manufacturers, so the Esprit's endurance career was not exactly a very successful one, nor was it all that long. After its 1996 BPR campaign, the car was succeeded by the Lotus Elise GT1.
Image: Thesupermat via Wikimedia Commons, available for distribution under the CC BY-SA 3.0 Deed
Porsche 911 GT2 Evo
The final of the four cars seen in these BPR (or FIA GT) clips is the Porsche 911 GT2 Evo. A GT race without Porsches in it is hardly imaginable in 2025, and it was no different in the mid-1990s. The 1996 BPR Global GT Series saw nine of the cars entered in the GT1 class, plus three 911 Bi-Turbo and the works effort with the 911 GT1.It may be difficult to distinguish some of these rather similar-looking versions, but the giveaway in the clip is the teal-and-white livery of the car paired with the (rather blurry) Konrad Motorsport logo on the front bumper - the German team fielded a GT2 Evo that most notably saw endurance legends Henri Pescarolo and Bob Wollek behind the wheel at times.
1970 Le Mans winners Hans Herrmann (left) and Richard Attwood with their victorious 917 K. Image: Porsche Newsroom
Porsche 917 K
Do we even need to introduce this car? We feel like Steve McQueen did this at lenght already in his 1971 movie 'Le Mans', immediately elevating the Gulf-liveried 917 K to cult classic that racing fans around the world still adore to this day. It was Porsche's first overall Le Mans winner in 1970, too, albeit in the red-and-white colors of Porsche Salzburg and with Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood behind the wheel.The Group 5 racer with its big flat-12 engine is still impressive today, and it spawned a number of variants, including a longtail version that managed to run at over 380 kph on the Hunaudières straigth - in 1970, mind you! And who could forget the Can-Am Killer, the 917/30 - a 917 without a roof but copious amounts of turbo boost applied.
Derek Bell actually competed in sportscars at the time, having raced the 917 LH in 1971 after previously piloting a Ferrari 512S in 1970 - considering that he could have given valuable input to Straight4 Studios and the pedigree of the 917, we'd be surprised if it was not in PMR. Plus, it did compete alongside the Lola T70 Mk3B GT that we already got to drive in Zürich.
Image: Porsche Newsroom
Porsche 956
While the 917 did not compete very long in the World Sporscar Championship before the rules were changed making it obsolete, the Porsche 956 and its derivative 962 C were extremely successful throughout almost the entire 1980s. The trailer shows a Canon-sponsored 956 sliding around, and Bell scored a Le Mans win (1982) and a second place (1983) in a 956 - plus two more victories (1986 and 1987) in the 962 C in addition to P2 in 1988.So, the car should be a slam dunk, especially considering the importance of Group C in endurance racing. The 956, which evolved into almost indistinguishably-similar 962 C, was so successful that spin-off versions of the car even competed in the late 1990s still, with teams like Kremer or Joest creating their own open-top prototypes based on this platform. A proper legend - just like Bell.
In-game Footage
On to the cars that did appear in in-game footage, though. Considering they were visible withing PMR, it is safe to say that they will be in the sim - and there were quite a few gems among them.Image: Straight4 Studios / GIANTS
Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S
Back in the 1990s, Panoz wasn't quite feeling the whole mid-engine thing. Instead, they opted to plonk a big Ford V8 into the front of their Esperante GT1 racer, a concept that stayed for the manufacturer's LMP900 design from 1999 onwards. In my opinion, it ranks up there on the list of greatest-sounding race cars of all time with its thunderous noise.The car competed until 2001, and then again in 2003 as an Evo version after the successor LMP-07 disappointed. If there ever was a candidate for the most Batmobile-looking race car of all time, the LMP-1 Roadster-S would be a strong candidate - it just has that cool factor.
Image: Straight4 Studios / GIANTS
Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II
Audi's current (well, outgoing) GT3 competitor makes sense considering the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2: The cars share the same platform and engine, run in the same class and are familiar to a lot of sim racers - so why skip it?The R8 LMS GT3 Evo II (not the LMP900 R8 - confusing, right?) can be seen in a few clips and screenshots, so players can look forward to pushing the V10-powered racer to its limits once PMR releases.
Marcos LM600
This one is probably the hardest to spot, as the car itself does not actually appear, but it can be made out in the car selection screen Ben Collins goes through briefly. About 36 seconds into the trailer, the former Stig can be seen selecting the Morgan Aero 8, switching from the Gillet Vertigo Streiff. In doing so, the menu skips a car - and that is the Marcos LM600.Its distinctive colorful livery and shape - flat, but with bulging fenders and hood, give it away. The car competed in the GT2 class in the 1990s and would fit with the other four potential BPR Global GT Series cars, as all of them ran in the 1996 season, plus a few after that.
The Marcos started racing in 1995 and was particularly successful in British GT, taking the GT2 championship in 1995 and 1996. From 1999 onwards, an LM600EVO version appeared, which scored another British GT in 2000.
Image: Straight4 Studios / GIANTS
Lamborghini SC63
And finally, what looks to be the cover car of Project Motor Racing, the Lamborghini SC63, marking the most modern entry in the PMR roster. The Italian manufacturer's Hypercar competitor ran in both WEC and IMSA in 2024, which was reduced to just IMSA in 2025.With the presence of the car in the key art of Project Motor Racing, the Lamborghini SC63 will be in the sim without a doubt. Perhaps the more interesting question is which other Hypercar/GTP racers we can expect to appear alongside it.
Car Classes In Project Motor Racing
Based on the cars that have been confirmed and spotted, we believe that we have identified most of the 10 classes that will be in Project Motor Racing at launch:- Group 5 circa 1970 (Porsche 917 K, Lola T70 Mk3B GT)
- BPR Global GT Series/FIA GT GT1 1990s (Lister Storm GTS, McLaren F1 GTR, Porsche 911 GT2 Evo)
- BPR Global GT Series/FIA GT GT2 1990s (Marcos LM600)
- Group C (Porsche 956)
- FIA GT 2004/05 (Lister Storm, Saleen S7R, Lamborghini Murciélago R-GT)
- FIA GT 2004/05 N-GT (Mosler MT900 R, Morgan Aero 8, Gillet Vertigo Streiff)
- LMP900 (Audi R8, Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S)
- GTE (Aston Martin Vantage V8 GTE)
- GT3 (Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2, Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II)
This would make for nine classes - the final one is difficult to pinpoint, but we could imagine a late-90s GT1 class (think Porsche 911 GT1, Mercedes CLK LM or Toyota GT-One), or a 70s GT class to complement the Group 5 prototypes. We will keep digging, of course!
Six of these classes we found to have been confirmed on the PMR website already just after finishing this article. Project Motor Racing will have:
- Sports Car 70
- specifically refers to the 1970 World Sportscar Championship season
- GT (2004/2005)
- FIA GT
- N-GT
- GT3
- LMP
- Hypercar
There will be more than 70 cars in total when Project Motor Racing launches on PC, Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 this fall, so there will be quite a few to still be unveiled along the way.
Sim racers can preorder the PC version of the game already on the official website for $89.99, including a Year 1 Season Pass that includes the GTE DLC. Without the Season Pass (but WITH the GTE DLC), the preorder costs $59.99.
What cars are you hoping for in Project Motor Racing, and what do you make of what has been shown and spotted so far? Let us know in the comments below and join the discussion in our PMR forum!
