TOKYO, Feb 7, 2020 - (JCN Newswire) - TOYOTA GAZOO Racing (TGR) is TOYOTA's racing company positioning motorsports activities as the basis of our quest to make ever-better cars. From products developed through these activities to the establishment of the GR Garage, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing's motorsports activities have been promoted as a comprehensive method of increasing numbers of car fans.

TGR began 2019 by achieving overall victory at the Dakar Rally. In the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), we secured both the team and the driver's championships, and we won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the second consecutive year. In the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), we won the drivers and co-drivers championships. In Japan, we won the championships in SUPER GT and Super Formula, and the class championship in the Japan Rally Championship. 2019 was a successful year in which TGR impressed the strong association between Toyota and motorsports in both Japan and countries abroad. However, we will not rest on our laurels. In order to deliver the dreams and excitement of driving to a wider audience, in 2020 we will continue to engage in a variety of motorsports activities both in Japan and overseas.

The WEC 2019-2020 season will be the last for the TS050 HYBRID, and we intend to secure a third successive victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. For the WEC 2020-2021 season, which begins after the 24 Hours of Le Mans, we intend to participate in the Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) Class using a racing car based on the GR Super Sport that is currently under development; we will announce the team setup at a later date. In the WRC, we intend to overhaul our driver and co-driver line-up. The WRC will return to Japan for the first time in 10 years, with Rally Japan to be held across Aichi and Gifu Prefectures in November. In SUPER GT, the Supra will return to the GT500 Class for the first time in 15 years. In SUPER GT, the Supra will return to the GT500 Class for the first time in 15 years. As far as driver development is concerned, in order to nurture Japanese racing and rally drivers capable of competing on the world stage, we intend to promote the TGR Driver Challenge Program (TGR-DC), which integrates and extends our various existing programs. In addition, we will offer vehicles for ROOKIE Racing so that we can gain expertise from the viewpoints of this private team, which is composed of various drivers, and feed it back into our product development.

With regard to products, we gave the new GR Yaris its world premiere at the Tokyo Auto Salon last month. It is the second model in the GR series to be launched globally. The GR Yaris was developed out of a desire to "once again create a genuine Toyota sports car." Master Driver Morizo, the motorsports alias of President Akio Toyoda, was involved in evaluating and testing the car from its initial development. Incorporating knowledge accumulated by TGR through its participation in the WRC, the GR Yaris was designed to deliver to customers the excitement of a sports 4WD. Going forward, TGR will continue to take advantage of its motorsports expertise in product development, and seek to further expand the GR line-up.

About Toyota Motor Corporation

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is the global mobility company that introduced the Prius hybrid-electric car in 1997 and the first mass-produced fuel cell sedan, Mirai, in 2014. Headquartered in Toyota City, Japan, Toyota has been making cars since 1937. Today, Toyota proudly employs 370,000 employees in communities around the world. Together, they build around 10 million vehicles per year in 29 countries, from mainstream cars and premium vehicles to mini-vehicles and commercial trucks, and sell them in more than 170 countries under the brands Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu and Hino. For more information, please visit www.toyota-global.com.

Copyright 2020 JCN Newswire. All rights reserved. www.jcnnewswire.com