LM GTE

Grand Touring Endurance, shortened to GTE or LM GTE (due to its use in the 24 Hours of Le Mans), is a set of regulations maintained by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) for grand tourer racing cars used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and its associated series. The class was formerly called GT2 when it was used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans to distinguish it from faster GT1 cars.

The class, derived from the former 'GT3' class in 1998, debuted in 1999 under the name of 'GT' in 24 Hours of Le Mans, American Le Mans Series and Le Mans Series, and as 'N-GT' in the FIA GT Championship. In 2005, the class was renamed GT2, below the faster GT1 class (formerly known as GTS).

Originally it was dominated by the Porsche 911 GT3 in its R, RS and RSR versions, but the Ferrari 360 Modena, Ferrari F430 and Panoz Esperante were also successful, as well as the BMW M3 in the United States. Other models entered were the Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Morgan Aero 8, Spyker C8 and TVR Tuscan.

Since the GT1 class was dropped from ACO competitions for the 2011 season, the GT2 class was renamed LM GTE in Europe and GT in the United States. The new main rivals for the Porsche 911 were the Ferrari 458 Italia, Aston Martin V8 Vantage, Chevrolet Corvette, BMW M3, BMW Z4 and SRT Viper. Other less successful models in the early 2010s were the Jaguar XKR, Lamborghini Gallardo, Lotus Evora and Ford GT.

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