Toyota Will Field Two New LMP1 Hybrid Racecars at Le Mans

Just the Facts:

• Toyota Racing confirmed plans for its new TS030 Hybrid sports prototype.
• Two cars will be entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year.
• Refinement of the racing hybrid powertrain is the focus and emphasis of the project.

COLOGNE, Germany — Toyota Racing will enter two of its new Le Mans Prototypes in this year's running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with the primary objective of development and refinement of the high-performance hybrid gas-electric powertrain.

The company unveiled the new TS030 Hybrid racecar and elaborated on its plans in an announcement Tuesday.

"Hybrid is a core technology of Toyota so it is important to demonstrate this in a motorsport arena," team President Yoshiaki Kinoshita said.

Alex Wurz, Nicolas Lapierre and Kazuki Nakajima are set as drivers for one of the two entries. The second car's driver lineup has not been confirmed.

The Toyota Hybrid System-Racing (THS-R) powertrain and new carbon-fiber chassis underwent extensive testing earlier this month at the Paul Ricard circuit in France. The new car is scheduled to make its competition debut May 5 in the Six Hours of Spa in Belgium, the second round of the FIA World Endurance Championship.

THS-R consists of an all-new 3.4-liter normally aspirated gasoline V8 and an electric motor, with capacitor storage developed by partner Nisshinbo.

Toyota returns for its third attempt in the historic Le Mans endurance classic at Circuit de la Sarthe in June.

The LMP1 field has been weakened by the recent withdrawal of Peugeot, which took on Audi in a titanic duel of cars powered by turbocharged diesel engines. Sanctioning body Automobile Club de l'Ouest continues to make rules changes to minimize the advantage of the diesels, but Audi remains the prohibitive favorite.

"Of course, we would love to win Le Mans," Kinoshita said. "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.

"Our target this year is to show the performance level of our car and particularly the THS-R powertrain."

Inside Line says: Porsche and Manthey Racing proved the potential of gas-electric hybrids in racing with the 911 GT3 R Hybrid last year. Toyota, which previously notched a GT class victory and 2nd-place overall in 1999 at Le Mans, is trying to take hybrid racing technology to the next level.