Toyota announces WRC plans

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30th August 2010, 14:47
Motorsportfun

Quote:

Originally Posted by N.O.T

Not long enough to fit the regulations.

Long enouth, IMHO. Bigger bumpers (like Peugeot 206 "GT" version) and go on... :p
30th August 2010, 15:02
navtheace

Quote:

Originally Posted by serial jeff

I wish rally cars would be based on legitimate sportscars :( I really don't want to see a Yaris WRC... seriously, the Yaris is made for parents to haul their kids to the grocery store. I have the same complaint about the Fiesta. If only they'd sell a higher powered 4wd version like the wrx.

If the FIA moved rallying to R1,2,3,4 classes only. ie like it was GpA and GpN before world rally cars.

Then we would see the rally cars based on sports cars from the manufacturer than you can buy.
30th August 2010, 18:17
Mirek

That's nice dream but quite very unreal in case of R4.
30th August 2010, 20:38
sollitt

The difficulty with Yaris will be the room under the hood/bonnet. Not so much the width but the depth.
Auris/Corolla is good and has worked very well in S2000 in this part of the world.
31st August 2010, 20:13
Ferjancz

Hi all,

Well it's great news about Toyota returning in the WRC. The first rumor that Toyota is about to be back in the WRC was that they are gonna do this with the support of Prodrive - http://www.crash.net/world+rally/new...newsletterlink

A mounth later there was an official statement that Prodrive will co-operate with BMW , preparing the new Mini. And now Toyota , maybe will make the car by themselves, which is something they can do for sure and they have done it before :D May be Prodrive have seen much bigger budget in BMW :) Afterall I'm not sure Toyota-Prodrive is the right combination. Anyway if they return to rally, nomatter how - alone or along with someone else, it will be great just great :) :D

P.S. If my English is not ok , well sorry :)
1st September 2010, 03:33
the_hatrix

Any chance of them using the Matrix?
1st September 2010, 21:56
S77wrc

Maybe the Yaris?... Same as the Pug 206.. Stick a set of large bumpers on it and your away.. Nice..
6th September 2010, 12:42

There is also in fact that huge infrastructure in KOLN (Cologne) with personel just sitting there and waiting for something to do.
The JAPANESE must be eager to give them work.
As far as rally is concerned, I can see a purely commercial outfit happening at best. Develop, build and supply to some importers and customers who want to compete.
6th September 2010, 13:49
I am evil Homer

Pug 206 production model was 3835mm then needed those bumpers. Current Yaris is 3750 so the new one had better be bigger to even get close.

Seems like another decision driven by the marketing team.
6th September 2010, 13:54
bluuford

Quote:

Originally Posted by I am evil Homer

Pug 206 production model was 3835mm then needed those bumpers. Current Yaris is 3750 so the new one had better be bigger to even get close.

Seems like another decision driven by the marketing team.

25 cm with bumpers would look like a iron :-)
30th September 2010, 21:54
sal

Toyota arnt coming to the party as they think the regs have gone the wrong way and that it was the European manufacturers who were pushing for 1.6 turbos. Toyota want(ed) to build a car to S2000 regs so that they could use the motor in a touring car as well.
30th September 2010, 22:28
Mirek

But touring cars (WTCC) are also going to use same 1.6T engine.
30th September 2010, 22:54
Motorsportfun

sal, source?
1st October 2010, 09:27
sal

The story is in this weeks Autosport magazine in the UK. Senior Toyota guy who's name I dont have with me here, is quoted as saying that after their experiences in F1 any future Toyota motorsport programme will have to generate income thru customer sales. He states that it is their view that the European manufacturers pushed for 1.6 turbo engines in the WRC as that suited the situation in their major markets i.e the move the small turbo engines for emmisions reasons but that this requirment was not mirrored in Japan. Toyota wanted to build a car to S2000 regs so that the engine could also be used in a future touring car project The article goes on to mention that a sportscar programme is looking more and more likely.
1st October 2010, 16:37
bt52b

Quote:

Originally Posted by sal

The story is in this weeks Autosport magazine in the UK. Senior Toyota guy who's name I dont have with me here, is quoted as saying that after their experiences in F1 any future Toyota motorsport programme will have to generate income thru customer sales. He states that it is their view that the European manufacturers pushed for 1.6 turbo engines in the WRC as that suited the situation in their major markets i.e the move the small turbo engines for emmisions reasons but that this requirment was not mirrored in Japan. Toyota wanted to build a car to S2000 regs so that the engine could also be used in a future touring car project The article goes on to mention that a sportscar programme is looking more and more likely.

Hiromi Hayashi General Manager Toyota Motorsport "one condition is that the programme has to be profitable"

The article also says Cologne prefers a S2000 rally/touring car project, Japan favour a GT2 programme.

Decision due end of October.

Its really odd Toyota would barf on the thought of a 1.6l turbo engine, but might prefer a V8 or V10 sportscar programe. This coming from the manufacturer of the holier than thou Pious ecobox.
1st October 2010, 16:50
Sulland

Quote:

Originally Posted by bt52b

Hiromi Hayashi General Manager Toyota Motorsport "one condition is that the programme has to be profitable"

The article also says Cologne prefers a S2000 rally/touring car project, Japan favour a GT2 programme.

Decision due end of October.

Its really odd Toyota would barf on the thought of a 1.6l turbo engine, but might prefer a V8 or V10 sportscar programe. This coming from the manufacturer of the holier than thou Pious ecobox.

If profit is a part of the deal, rally will win. GT2 can never make the nubers produced as in rally.
2nd October 2010, 19:16
bt52b

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sulland

If profit is a part of the deal, rally will win. GT2 can never make the nubers produced as in rally.

GT2, GT3 and GT4 are pretty strong. They could sell shedloads of cars to customers of these classes. Just look at the sales of Porsche and Audi GT3 cars.
2nd October 2010, 19:30
AndyRAC

Quote:

Originally Posted by bt52b

GT2, GT3 and GT4 are pretty strong. They could sell shedloads of cars to customers of these classes. Just look at the sales of Porsche and Audi GT3 cars.

Yeah, exactly, and remember the US market, especially for the ALMS. Up against Corvette, Porsche, Ferrari.......
2nd October 2010, 20:15
Josti

I don't know, in my opinion, F1 or Sports car racing doesn't suit the image of Toyota at all (same goes for VW). Both one of the worlds biggest brands of masses production cars.

Therefore I think they should relate their road cars to motorsport, instead of these kind of projects where the customer can't identify with at all.
3rd December 2010, 14:24
Tom206wrc

Official partnership between Toyota Motorsport(engine supplyer)and swiss team Rebellion Racing the the 2011 endurance racing program !!!! Smells a future coming back of Toy' at Le Mans some year...cool :cool:
11th December 2010, 16:13
OldF

I don’t see it impossible for Toyota to run both sportscar and WRC as Ford do in GT1 series. Or maybe in the new WRC GT.

http://www.gt1world.com/cars/spec/ford-gt
11th December 2010, 17:58
AndyRAC

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldF

I don’t see it impossible for Toyota to run both sportscar and WRC as Ford do in GT1 series. Or maybe in the new WRC GT.

http://www.gt1world.com/cars/spec/ford-gt

Ford have very little to do with the GT1 cars - they are all run by Privateers.
22nd December 2010, 07:28
wrcnut

VW have said they're coming to the WRC. They just don't know when.
22nd December 2010, 08:21
nzabevAMSM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wrcnut

VW have said they're coming to the WRC. They just don't know when.

When? Source?
22nd December 2010, 08:29
N.O.T

words cost nothing and its free publicity....
22nd December 2010, 11:34
rallyfiend

Quote:

Originally Posted by N.O.T

words cost nothing and its free publicity....

Well, they're certainly not going to announce it until after Dakar. Why kill one programme until it's finished? That's negative publicity.
22nd December 2010, 12:54
Bruce D

Maybe so, but I do find it interesting that Gineal de Villiers is competing in the South African Rally Championship next year in a Polo S2000. Getting some rally experience before they go into the WRC maybe?
22nd December 2010, 19:38
Gard

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce D

Maybe so, but I do find it interesting that Gineal de Villiers is competing in the South African Rally Championship next year in a Polo S2000. Getting some rally experience before they go into the WRC maybe?

The South African Polo programme had been going since the start of S2000. to my knowledge it's a private project.
22nd December 2010, 19:41
urabus-denoS2000

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce D

Maybe so, but I do find it interesting that Gineal de Villiers is competing in the South African Rally Championship next year in a Polo S2000. Getting some rally experience before they go into the WRC maybe?

Surely de Villiers wouldn't be their WRC choice ... That's as if an rally manufacter interested in rally raid sends Duval to training :D
22nd December 2010, 21:49
Mirek

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gard

The South African Polo programme had been going since the start of S2000. to my knowledge it's a private project.

No, it's works project of VW Motorsport South Africa.
22nd December 2010, 23:10
Bobcat

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndyRAC

Ford have very little to do with the GT1 cars - they are all run by Privateers.

All the teams of the new GT1 World Championship are run by privateers.
5th February 2011, 05:02
Rally Hokkaido

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rally Hokkaido

Only a larger one of the same photo on the front cover. It's not a prototype - just a photoshop job based on a photo of the standard next generation Auris.
There's a photo of a standard next generation Auris at the same angle in the article.

Recent posts on this thread have discussed two more points that were in the article. Best Car sugggested that while the Toyota brand would be used in WRC, the Lexus brand would be used in any racing programme (FIA-GT, DTM or Le Mans Series). However, the Toyota spokesman they met stated that the idea of joining the FIA-GT (DTM? Le Mans Series?) had been dismissed as it was not a well known category (by their customer base).

The article then continued about the target market for the Auris (=mainly Europe) and their main rival there, which is VW and its Golf model. It speculated that VW could announce its own WRC programme as early as next week's Rally of Germany. And while the new downsized WRCar regs would seem to suit VW's Polo model, from a marketing point of view the Golf would make better sense as their WRC base car, according to Best Car.

In summary, we have seen before where a car maker's marketing people decide the choice of WRC car (307CC!), not their engineers or competition department and it looks like it will be no different in Toyota's (and VW's?) case.

Since I saw the first article about Toyota's return to WRC in the August issue of Best Car, the magazine has had follow-up articles nearly every month. I hadn't bothered quoting them all here as it started to appear to me like the magazine was simply pushing an idea they would like to see happen. That is, more like a dream than a rumour!

However, recently two happenings have made me think that Best Car's inside information might be genuine.

As per their August article, VW have indeed announced their WRC entry. IIRC, in the September article they stated that Toyota would use the soon-to-be-released Yaris as their base WRCar, not the Auris. The reasoning given was that VW would use the Polo, which is the Yaris' market rival. (OK, that is yet to be confirmed by VW).

Last week, I was told by a reliable source that a well-known Japanese rally driver was doing secret suspension testing here for Toyota in a Yaris WRC test mule. I will be checking the next issue of Best Car to see if they know about this!
5th February 2011, 09:06
HaCo

The Yaris Hybrid will be presented in March in the Geneva Auto Show:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_fSvarQSvbd...ris-Hybrid.jpg
http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes....pt-teaser.html

That's the left upper car on this image:
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog....ius-family.jpg
http://www.autoblog.com/2011/01/12/v...ural-of-prius/

Looking forward to have (much) more manus in WRC again!
5th February 2011, 09:13
Rally Hokkaido

Here is a bit more fuel for the rumour. It would be useful to have an off-the-shelf-engine to
further develop for use in your new WRCar!

http://www.automobilsport.com/btcc-d...e---87416.html
5th February 2011, 09:23
HaCo

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rally Hokkaido

Here is a bit more fuel for the rumour. It would be useful to have an off-the-shelf-engine to
further develop for use in your new WRCar!

http://www.automobilsport.com/btcc-d...e---87416.html

These are 2lTurbo engines, not 1.6T?
5th February 2011, 12:49
Rally Hokkaido

Quote:

Originally Posted by HaCo

These are 2lTurbo engines, not 1.6T?

Yes, you are correct!
Sorry I confused the new BTCC engines (NGTC) with the new WTCC engines, which are 1.6 litre turbo.
6th February 2011, 00:05
NaBUru38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rally Hokkaido

The reasoning given was that VW would use the Polo, which is the Yaris' market rival.

That reasoning is unreasonable. Both are B-segment cars indeed, but Yaris' direct rivals are Asian, not European like the Polo and Fiesta, much less the DS3.
6th February 2011, 15:39
Walach

Just a photoshop....:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qmwdM_8Ln-...9+WRC+2012.jpg
11th February 2011, 16:48
Mise

http://www.facebook.com/#!/notes/wwwrallyreportnewsworldcom/toyota-mulls-return-to-le-mans-wrc-2012/180931955275310

Is this artcle just a romer or could it be true.
11th February 2011, 22:16
Barreis

It would be nice..

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