Toyota boss Akio Toyoda thinks cars should be fun for the next 100 years. Especially fast cars. Toyoda is a big fan of endurance races. And he is pushing the subject of sports cars in the group forward. In the long term, a super sports car comes at the level of the Mercedes-AMG Project One.
In Tokyo, Toyota shows what it might look like. The Super Sports Concept is based heavily on the Le Mans Renner TS050. The concept looks like a LMP1 car with license plate holders and no sponsor stickers.
GAZOO RACING SUPER SPORTS CONCEPT: 1,000 HP AND A LOT OF TORQUE
The Super Sports Concept has a 2.4-liter V6 with two turbochargers and direct injection. Together with the hybrid system of the Le Mans Renner ("THS-R") it makes 1,000 hp. The concept got 13 x 18 inches rims with 330 full-size tires. The pictures without the body show: monocoque and chassis is from the race car.
Shigeki Tomoyama, head of Toyota's Motorsport department Gazoo Racing, says: "Le Mans is not just about winning races. It's about development. In Toyota's case, especially the hybrid strand."
He wants to take over a large part of the technology in a production car. But it should be easier to drive and consume less. But that would take some time. For prices and exact details it is too early.
Gazoo Racing used to be a racing team. Meanwhile, it has become a sub-brand of Toyota. It is responsible for the Yaris GRMN and the GR Series equipment line for most Toyota models in Japan.
The new Supra and Supersport will also wear a GR logo. But that does not make the cars fundamentally different. Tomoyama is considered a car fool with a sense of Toyota history. According to a report by "Car and Driver", he privately drives a 1997 Supra with 600 hp.
MOTORSPORT: LEXUS LC AND TOYOTA YARIS
In addition to the production cars, motorsport remains an important topic for Gazoo Racing. In Tokyo, in addition to the Super Sport Concept, a Toyota Yaris WRC parked with a Lexus LC for the Nürburgring 24-hour race. Both cars are scheduled to compete in 2018.
