This Chrysler LMP was an unloved oddity with soul

Back in 2000, things were slightly different at La Sarthe. For one, Audi hadn't begun their dominance of the famous race yet, and the prototype class was split into two catagories based on weight, with each originally intended to be able to compete with the other.

It was into that melting pot, post the end of GT1's astonishing era (which we will celebrate at #75MM), that Italian motorsport manufacturing maestros Dallara decided to enter. The team from Parma in Italy had worked with Toyota on the astonishing GT-One and then with Audi, first on the conceptual R8-R that scored a podium in 1999 and then the astonishingly good R8 itself. Now it was time to try something different.

So they designed the SP1, a car you may have seen at FOS before, a very distinct looking prototype which attempted to take a different direction to the existing cars on show. The bulbous nose, use of extra diveplanes and repositioning of the air intakes (at least initially) were radical at the time, and Dallara hoped they had found the magic formula to beat the still early Audi project.

And then they got a bigger boost. Chrysler, who had been looking for another Le Mans project to follow the success of the Viper, decided that they wanted in on the act. In 2000 the American firm ran a pair of Reynard-made chassis at Le Mans alongside their Vipers, but now they wanted to go prototype-only.

When three of the newly-renamed Chrysler LMPs lined up at Le Mans for their first crack at the race, little did they know that it would also end up being their last. Now powered by a mighty MOPAR 6.0-litre V8, the Chrysler LMP sounded fantastic and looked very different to the mighty Audi R8s it faced up against.

But no matter how much we wanted the cars to create a real two-manufacturer battle at the head of the field, Chrysler found itself completely outclassed straight away. The trio managed to keep their place inside the top 10 for much of the race, before a fire and other mechanical woes took two of them out of the race. It was left to the remaining LMP to make to the finish – which it did – but its fourth place finish on debut was slightly tempered by the fact it was now 23 laps behind the winning R8.

That would be the end of the Chrysler effort at Le Mans. The American giant packed up its bags, stickers and that MOPAR V8 and headed off back to the states, not to return until another ill-fated attempt with the modern Viper in 2014.

Dallara and partners Oreca continued competing with the LMP until 2005, gradually developing the now Judd-engined SP1s. Several SP1s were competed across the globe by teams in the ELMS and ALMS and it even competed at the Daytona 24 Hours and back at Sebring. But it would never taste victory before it was retired when the ACO changed the regulations and the Dallara became obsolete.

But one is still competing in its original form, and it does still look and sound great. Now it's in the hands of owner and car collector Florent Moulin, who regularly competes at Historic Sportscar Racing events. The car underwent a full restoration in 2012 back to its original spec and was then returned to its splendid 2001 livery. Now powered by a screaming 750bhp 4.0-litre Judd V10, the Chrysler was paraded at Le Mans in 2016 before the start of the 24 Hours – a triumphant return for a car that promised and deserved much more than it got.

Photography by Ben Miles.