.png)
Toyota returns to endurance racing with the gas/electric hybrid TS030, unveiled at Paul Ricard circuit, Jan 24. (Toyota)
Toyota Racing officially introduced its 2012 World Endurance Championship contender, the TS030 Hybrid Le Mans Prototype 1, at France’s Paul Ricard test circuit on Jan. 24.
The new car, built by German-based Toyota Motorsport GmbH, the shop which built and operated Toyota’s F1 cars (and the GT-One Le Mans cars) is powered by a 3.4-liter gasoline V8 and a capacitor-storage electric motor recharged by braking. Tests are still underway to determine if the electric motor will ultimately power the front or the rear wheels.
The TS030 Hybrid has already successfully completed several hundred miles around the Paul Ricard test track in two days of testing in mid-January.
In a field dominated by turbocharged diesels, Toyota chose a hybrid gas/electric powertrain for both performance and publicity reasons.
“The regulations for hybrid powertrains allow us to recover energy under braking and release this to improve acceleration out of a corner, delivering lap-time benefit,” said Technical Director Pascal Vasselon on Toyota.co.uk. “For any given performance level, a hybrid powertrain will achieve this with less fuel so it is an extremely relevant technology and one we are excited to be bringing to endurance racing.”
Toyota has already sold more than 3.5 million road-going hybrids; this racing model emphasizes how important hybrid technology will be for the factory’s future models.
“Toyota has been working on hybrid systems for motorsport for several years, during which time we have made huge progress. Now we feel ready to bring our technology to the ultimate motorsport test: the Le Mans 24 Hours,” explained Hybrid Project Leader Hisatake Murata.
Nicolas LaPierre, Alex Wurz, and test driver Hiroaki Ishiura with the TS030 at Paul Ricard. (Toyota)
Toyota is no stranger to Le Mans, having finished second, and first in class, with its GT-One in 1999. The factory will be returning to the fray with a pair of TS030s, though only a single car will debut at the WEC Spa-Francorchamp round, driven by endurance aces Alex Wurz and Nicolas LaPierre. The pair will be joined by former F1 pilot Kazuki Nakajima. The driver line-up for the second car is being considered.
Team president Yoshiaki Kinoshita sets realistic goals for the new car. “Of course we would love to win Le Mans; that is the dream for all competitors in this race. But we are realistic and we know we need to develop and to learn in order to compete with some very strong competition,” he said in a press statement.
“Our target this year is to show the performance level of our car and particularly the THS-R powertrain. Hybrid is a core technology of Toyota so it is important to demonstrate this in a motorsport arena and we want to prove it can bring a performance advantage, both in terms of lap time and fuel efficiency.”
Drivers Alex Wurz and Nicolas LaPierre were impressed by the new car’s performance right out of the box. “My first impression from the roll-out was positive; the chassis is really advanced and the hybrid system works very well,” LaPierre said in a press release. “The TS030 Hybrid car has good reaction to the steering with quick and efficient response combined with an impressive base level of downforce, which is a nice feeling for a driver.”
“I think we have a good base and I think we can turn this into a really fast car,” Alex Wurz offered. “I am definitely very happy but my nature is to also be analytical and therefore I know there is still a lot of work to be done.”
The TS030 will continue to test in preparation for its racing debut at the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on May 5.
