FIA WEC: Toyota kicks off new era

Text: Rick Kiewiet

Images: Toyota

Toyota kicks off the new Hypercar-era in endurance racing with the reveal of their GR010 Hybrid Hypercar. The Japanese brands will enter two cars in the upcoming FIA WEC season with drivers Conway, Kobayashi en Lopez in the #7 car, and Buemi, Nakajima and Hartley in the #8.

The GR010 is the race-version of the Toyota GR Super Sport road car that was presented at the 24h of Le Mans last year.

The GR010, under the new WEC-hypercar regulations, weighs in 162kg heavier than the TS050 Hybrid LMP1 at 1040 kg. The powertrain consists of a 3.5 litre twin-turbo v6, delivering 680 horsepower and a 200KW electric power unit (272 horsepower). The v6 powers the rear wheels, while the electric motor (developed by Denso and Aisin) is connected to the front axle. The combination is 32% less powerful than the power unit in the TS050, mainly because only one electric power unit is permitted instead of the two under the previous LMP1-HY regulations.

The car will make its racing debut at the upcoming 1000 miles of Sebring on 19 march, where it is expected to compete with the new Glickenhaus and ByKolles hypercars, as well as the new Alpine LMP1 entry.