Toyota has re-confirmed its commitment to the Le Mans 24hrs, and endurance racing, by showing off a prototype of its new racing hypercar.
Based on the current TS050 racer
The new GR Super Sport is actually based on the same chassis and hybrid powertrain as the TS050 racing car but has been built to the new Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) regulations. Covered in the same camouflage wrap famously used on prototypes of the new Supra, the new car was driven for a ceremonial lap of the Le Mans track ahead of this year's race. Behind the wheel was racing driver, and Le Mans winner, Alexander Wurz, and along for the ride were Toyota boss Akio Toyoda and the Le Mans 24hrs trophy, won for the past two years on the trot, by Toyota.
Roof removed to carry the trophy
In fact, it's the sheer height of that trophy that explains why this particular GR Super Sport doesn't have a roof. It had to be removed so as to fit the huge trophy in - the actual racing versions will have a fixed roof in place, as per Le Mans regulations.
Alex Wurz: "It was an honour to drive this development version of the GR Super Sport for the first time in public, and especially at a circuit like Le Mans which is so closely connected to this car. The GR Super Sport was born at Le Mans so this felt like a homecoming. This was my first time to drive the car, so a demonstration lap doesn't allow me to push the limits but I could already feel that the GR Super Sport has the potential for incredible performance. I could feel the similarities between the GR Super Sport and the TS050 Hybrid in terms of performance, particularly the four-wheel drive and the hybrid system. But the engineers tell me this was only a small taste of the GR Super Sport's true performance so I am super excited to drive it again one day in the near future."
More competitors for Le Mans' top class
As per the new regulations, the GR Super Sport will have total power (from both a petrol engine and electric motors) of 670-680hp and will weigh around 1,100kg. That's a big drop from the circa-1,000hp of current top-flight Le Mans prototypes, but the reduction in the cost of development is expected to draw more carmakers and teams back to endurance racing's top flight. Along with Toyota, others who've confirmed that they're joining up under the new regs are Peugeot, Alpine, the independent ByKolles team, the American Glickenhaus squad, and with the possibility of Aston Martin still entering a racing version of its Valkyrie hypercar.