Gilmour was born in Dunedin in 1979. Her father and maternal grandfather were both mechanics. Before taking up motor racing in her early 20s, she was an equestrian representing Otago–Southland in eventing and participating in the New Zealand development squads.[3]
Gilmour runs a Suzuki car dealership in Dunedin outside of racing.[3]
Gilmour was signed by Veloce Racing as reserve driver for the inaugural season of the new electric off-road racing series in 2021, Extreme E in 2021.[6] She replaced regular driver Jamie Chadwick in two events.[7]
McLaren (2022–2023)
Gilmour moved to McLaren XE for the 2022 season,[8] becoming the first female factory driver to race for McLaren.[3] Partnering Tanner Foust, she achieved one podium finish at the season-ending Energy X-Prix and became the first female podium winner for McLaren.[9] Gilmour and Foust were retained for the 2023 season.[10] McLaren won its second podium by finishing second in Round 4 at the Hydro X-Prix.[11] In Round 7 at the Island X-Prix II, Gilmour suffered a fractured rib and a concussion following a crash during the first free practice session and was ruled out for the rest of the weekend. She was replaced by championship reserve driver Tamara Molinaro for Rounds 7 and 8.[12] For the final two rounds of the season, McLaren announced that Gilmour was still recovering from her injuries and was replaced by JBXE's Hedda Hosås.[13] At the end of the season, McLaren announced that Gilmour and Foust will leave the team after two seasons.[14]
