Downforce will restrict the top speed of Bentley's Le Mans car

Bentley is counting down to this year's Le Mans, its first attempt at the 24-hour race for 71 years.

It has already confirmed the name of its two-car team, known officially as Team Bentley, and it has released details of the racer it hopes to win with, the EXP Speed 8.

At the heart of the car are three hoops of carbon fibre. The largest surrounds the car behind the driver, the smallest goes around the pedal box and the third hoop roughly surrounds the driver's knees.

This forms the platform on to which the stressed carbon-fibre body is attached, resulting in a monocoque body that is strong, stiff and light, weighing only 70kg.

Team Bentley says the design doubles as a strong roll structure, meaning it can do away with a conventional steel cage.

"Not only does this save weight, it also means the size of the cockpit can be reduced, enhancing aerodynamic efficiency without compromising driver comfort," it says.

"The aim of the shape is to produce the maximum downforce possible with the minimum amount of drag. To achieve this, over 1000 configurations of the EXP Speed 8 have been tested in a wind tunnel to ensure that the race car has the best shape possible within the rules and confines of the latest technology."

The racing Bentley has been tested on tracks in Europe and it will complete at least one 24-hour run before the Le Mans race in June.

Lap times around the 13.6km circuit won't be known until the official pre-race test weekend on May 5 and 6, when the EXP Speed 8 and its twin-turbocharged 3.6-litre Audi V8 has its first public outing.

But Team Bentley says the car will reach speeds of more than 320 km/h at least four times every lap.

"The only factors preventing the EXP Speed 8 from going faster still is the geography of the circuit and the effects of downforce, which pushes the car towards the track surface and compromises top speed.

"It will never reach its potential at Le Mans, where even in the Mulsanne straight it will develop downforce equivalent to having a Bentley Arnage saloon bolted to its roof."