Toyota Le Mans 2012

[martins]

A confirmação dos pilotos para o 2 carro (Anthony Davidson/Hiroaki ishiura/Sebastien buemi)

TOYOTA Racing Finalises 2012 Driver Line-Up

TOYOTA Racing can confirm that Anthony Davidson, Hiroaki Ishiura and Sébastien Buemi will drive its additional TS030 HYBRID car (#8) at the Le Mans 24 Hours.

The team’s full-time entry in the FIA World Endurance Championship is for one car (#7), with an additional TS030 HYBRID confirmed for Le Mans on 16-17 June.

Anthony Davidson, from Great Britain, is a winner of the Sebring 12 Hours and the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, bringing significant recent experience of manufacturer participation at Le Mans.

Hiroaki Ishiura joins following a promising career in the competitive Super GT series in his native Japan, while he has also experienced European endurance racing having participated in the 2011 Nürburgring 24 Hours.

Swiss driver Sébastien Buemi, an accomplished single-seater racer, will make his debut in endurance racing at the wheel of the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID whilst remaining third driver for Red Bull Racing in Formula 1.

The driver line-up for the regular TS030 HYBRID which will participate in the FIA World Endurance Championship from the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (5 May) onwards is already confirmed as Alex Wurz, Nicolas Lapierre and Kazuki Nakajima. Andrea Caldarelli is the team’s junior driver.

Yoshiaki Kinoshita, Team President: “This is an exciting driver line-up for our additional car. Anthony, Hiroaki and Sébastien are talented and intelligent drivers who have achieved plenty already in motorsport, so we are very confident they can make a positive contribution to TOYOTA Racing. Our drivers are selected on the basis not only of their speed and consistency, but also their ability to work well within a team and it’s been great to see the positive attitude all three have already brought to our project. Combined with our regular line-up of Alex, Nicolas and Kazuki, I believe we have a really strong team of drivers who will fly the TOYOTA Racing flag with pride during the Le Mans 24 Hours.”

Anthony Davidson: “I’m really happy to be a part of the TOYOTA Racing team, and delighted to be returning to Le Mans this year. Competing at the Le Mans 24 Hours is always hugely exciting, but to be joining a team like TOYOTA Racing and competing with a hybrid powertrain makes this particularly special. I’ve heard a lot about the TS030 HYBRID and the technology behind it, and I’m looking forward to experiencing hybrid power for the first time in my career. I know this is a learning year for the team but I believe TOYOTA Racing has huge potential, and I hope we can prove that at Le Mans.”

Hiroaki Ishiura: “This is a big opportunity for me to achieve one of my lifetime ambitions: to race in the Le Mans 24 Hours. Over the last few years I have done a lot of endurance racing so I am familiar with this style of motorsport but I expect the scale and speed of Le Mans to be something else. The TS030 HYBRID is already quite familiar to me because I tested the car at the roll-out; in fact I was the first person to drive it! It’s a great-looking car and seems to have strong potential so I am looking forward to contributing to its development. More than anything, I am looking forward to getting behind the wheel at Le Mans; I can’t wait!”

Sébastien Buemi: “I am really proud to be a TOYOTA Racing driver at Le Mans; it’s a huge event and one of the biggest in motorsport. It’s particularly great to be going there as a TOYOTA driver because my grandfather has been a TOYOTA dealer for over 40 years so I’ve basically grown up with the brand. It’s also exciting to be driving a hybrid car; I think this is the future and it’s nice to see TOYOTA pushing a lot in that direction. I’ve driven hybrid cars in the past – the first and second generation Prius – but the TS030 HYBRID is something else. I’m looking forward to racing it; LMP1 cars are fast and it’s a professional environment so it is going to be a very positive experience for me.”

[Rui Monteiro]

Bati mal o davinson veio para toyota.... o buemi n sei nao.... esse rapaz ainda tem que se adptar bem as corridas de endurance.

A toyota esta a apostar bem! se nao ganhar este ano .... o que é pedir muito... ganham no proximo ano... é que é certo!
eles estao com grandes pilotos de topo (basicamente 2 ex-peugeot) que são top e tem muito para fazer crescer a equipa! já para não falar do carro que é um diesel-killer
aposto que no primeiro round de le mans a toyota vai por em sentido os cromos do alemães!
quero ver :fixe

[Pine]

Fico com pena, pois pensei mesmo que iria surgir uma oportunidade para o Lamy, no 2º Toyota...paciência!

[martins]

Terminou hoje o segundo teste da toyota,mais uma vez usaram o circuito Paul-ricard !!
Pela primeira vez fizeram um teste de 30h non stop e o carro aguentou :) , o proximo teste ja com uma aerodinamica melhorada esta previsto em abril !!



First Endurance Run For The TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID.

February 17, 2012


TOYOTA Racing completed its first long-distance endurance test during a three-day session at Paul Ricard in France, which ended this evening. In just its second full test, and its third time on track including a roll-out, the TS030 HYBRID was faced with the tough challenge of a 30-hour endurance run.

The long-distance test began on Thursday afternoon following initial sessions to evaluate various performance developments. Sébastien Buemi, in his first test as an official TOYOTA Racing driver, started the marathon session, followed by his team-mate in car #8 at Le Mans, Hiroaki Ishiura. Car #7 team-mates Alex Wurz, Nicolas Lapierre and Kazuki Nakajima also took turns behind the wheel of the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID. The test ended with TOYOTA Racing having achieved its primary goal of completing a significant number of laps to evaluate the car over very long distances.

TOYOTA Racing will now concentrate on preparing and updated package for the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, its first race of the 2012 FIA World Endurance Championship season. The next tests are scheduled for April.

Pascal Vasselon, Technical Director: “We have done some valuable tests and this has contributed to our ongoing development of performance, reliability and organisation. The endurance test was an interesting experience; we were expecting challenges for everyone in the team and we weren’t disappointed! It’s not easy on the car or the people but we are all passionate about this project so a strong team spirit saw us through to the end. We are content with the results and the conclusions we have been able to draw, which will accelerate our preparations for our first race.”

Hisatake Murata, Hybrid Project Leader: “This was the first time we have run the TOYOTA HYBRID System – Racing over such a long test session so we never expected a trouble-free week and we did experience a few issues, but nothing major. Thanks to a large amount of data and the detailed feedback of all the drivers, we have a lot of information about how the THS-R powertrain behaves. We have been able to use this already to refine our systems and before the next tests we will work more on some of the issues raised. We have achieved our primary goals for this test and I am happy with how it has gone.”

Alex Wurz: “The test has been interesting and we have gained valuable experience. In terms of development, we continue to optimize the interaction between all components, including the hybrid system. As a result, the car is progressing. During our endurance test we did encounter some issues but that is why we are testing. The team sprit here at TOYOTA Racing really strong and it has again been a pleasure to work with the guys; we know and understand each other better and better with each day. Overall I would say I am generally pleased with this test.”

Hiroaki Ishiura: “It was a really exciting experience to drive the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID during an endurance run for the first time. Actually, this was my first time to drive this lay-out of Paul Ricard and I had to do it in the dark, so my first task was to find my way around! We don’t drive much at night in Super GT so I don’t have a lot of experience of this; it was a very useful test for me in that sense. It was good to complete a lot of laps and I’ve enjoyed working with the team again.”

Kazuki Nakajima: “Overall the test was good. It was the first time for me to participate in an endurance test and it allowed us to prepare in circumstances much closer to race conditions. This meant running in some very cold conditions but even then the car and tyres were working well. I did a lot of stints so I was really busy and we put plenty of mileage on the car. We have a sound basis and the car shows good potential but we now need to work on the details and develop some areas. We are on the right track and things continue to go well.”

Nicolas Lapierre: “I did some development work and also participated in the endurance test. I am quite positive about how it went for a first long-distance simulation with the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID. We can see how the car reacts to various different conditions, such as the cold track temperatures we may encounter during the night at Le Mans. The car felt pretty good in these conditions, which is not always easy here at Paul Ricard. The package is evolving and improving; we have fixed some issues, corrected some little details and overall we are moving forward.”

Sébastien Buemi: “It was nice to discover more about the endurance racing environment. I have been in the driving simulator at TMG so I had an idea of what to expect but the reality is always a bit more complex. From a technical point of view the car is very impressive although we still need to make progress in some areas, which is normal at this stage of testing. I did some long stints and learned about new aspects of endurance racing, like driving at night, managing fuel consumption and adapting my driving style. I can see that every detail is important in order to be fast in this discipline.”

---------- Mensagem adicionada em 10:27 PM ---------- Mensagem anterior em 10:16 PM ----------
















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[Rui Monteiro]

se estivermos a ver 30H de treino é coisa normal para testar a fiabilidade ao mais alto nivel... mas tipo 30H a rolar com o mesmo motor é obra .dass
a ver vamos.. nas ultimas le mans a peugoet perdeu o ultimo carro devido a uma fenda invisivel que se espandia quando o motor passava os 110c ... tipo basta uma pequena coisa para o objectivo ir desta para melhor... mas quem aposta alto ou ganha tudo ou perde tudo... mas haja aquela esperança de toyotista que um toyota é sempre um toyota :fixe

[Rui Monteiro]

Toyota TS030 Hybrid completou 'maratona' de 30 horas seguidas

prontos o Martins põe as noticias em 1ª mão em inglês e eu ponho aqui 5ª mão mas em 1ª mão em português :lolA Toyota mantém o ritmo de desenvolvimento do seu novo TS030, protótipo LMP1 com o qual vai participar no Mundial de Endurance e Le Mans, tendo o novo competidor da formação cumprido o primeiro grande teste de resistência ao longo de um três dias de ensaios em Paul Ricard, em França.



Naquele que foi apenas o segundo ensaio a sério do híbrido TS030, este cumpriu o exigente desafio de 30 horas de competição, numa sessão que começou na tarde de quinta-feira e terminou na noite de ontem. Sébastien Buemi, naquele que foi o seu primeiro teste com o Toyota, começou o teste de resistência, seguindo-se Hiroaki Ishiura, Alex Wurz, Nicolas Lapierre e Kazuki Nakajima.No final do ensaio, a equipa conseguiu cumprir o objetivo primário de rodar uma grande distância sem problemas de maior, avaliando o carro nesse processo e em condições mutáveis de temperatura e da pista."Fizemos algums testes importantes e isso contribuiu para o nosso desenvolvimento da performance, fiabilidade e organização. O teste de resistência foi uma experiência interessante. Esperávamos desafios para todos na equipa e não ficámos desapontados! Não é fácil para o carro nem para as pessoas, mas somos todos apaixonados por este projeto, pelo que um forte espirito de equipa levou-nos até ao fim", referiu o diretor técnico Pascal Vasselon.Hisatake Murata, responsável pelo projeto híbrido, explicou que "foi a primeira vez que usámos o sistema híbrido numa sessão tão longa pelo que não esperávamos uma semana isenta de problemas e tivemos alguns, mas nada de grave. Graças à grande quantidade de dados recolhidos e ao contributo detalhado de todos os pilotos temos uma grande quantidade de informação acerca do funcionamento do grupo propulsor. Já a pudemos utilizar para afinar os nossos sistemas e antes dos próximos testes vamos debruçar-nos mais alguns problemas deste teste".

---------- Mensagem adicionada em 12:57 PM ---------- Mensagem anterior em 12:55 PM ----------


Sébastien Buemi: "Aprendi muitos aspetos novos acerca das competições de resistência"

Sébastien Buemi teve na passada semana o seu primeiro contacto com o novo Toyota TS030 Hybrid, protótipo LMP1 com o qual a marca nipónica vai competir no igualmente novo Mundial de Resistência (WEC) e nas 24 Horas de Le Mans. O piloto suíço demonstrou-se satisfeito com esse primeiro ensaio, tendo cumprido também parte do longo ensaio 'maratona' de 30 horas do TS030.



"Foi bom descobrir mais acerca deste ambiente de competição de resistência. Estive no simulador da TMG pelo que já tinha uma ideia do que esperar, mas a realidade é sempre um pouco mais complexa. Dum ponto de vista técnico, o carro é muito impressionante ainda que tenhamos de progredir nalgumas áreas, o que é normal neste ponto de testes", referiu o ex-piloto de Fórmula 1."Fiz alguns turnos longos e aprendi muitos aspetos novos acerca das competições de resistência, como pilotar à noite, gerir os consumos de combustível e adaptar o meu estilo de condução. Vejo que todos os detalhes são importantes de forma a ser rápido nesta disciplina", acrescentou.

[martins]

Uma das fotos tiradas durante o teste de 30h !!

[Martins_Viseu]

Estou a gostar de ver este tópico e parece-me que este ano vou acompanhar de perto as 24 h de Le Mans :)

[artomitive]

ja agora em que canais costumam passar os campeonatos de 24h? tambem fiquei curioso para ver este toyota a correr.

[Rui Monteiro]

a Eurosport transmite as 24 horas de lemans na integra.
o campeonato mundial de endurance deve ser no motors tv ou speed tv...
ao longo dos tempo os calendários das provas vao sair e a gente que gosta de corridas ha seria mantém isto actualizado ;)

[artomitive]

obrigado rui.
chatice ja nao ter meo por causa da motorstv. era o canal que mais gostava de ver.

[martins]

A Eurosport france vai transmitir as 24h non stop (como referiu o Rui),depois tambem podem ver na Audi Tv (online) ou possivelmente que a toyota vai criar tal como a Audi um canal para poder seguir as 24h e as corridas do WEC !!!

Eu queria ir ver as 24h live,ando a ver se arranjo companhia mas não esta facil :lol os bilhetes nâo são propriamente baratos e nunca estive em lemans,por isso estava a pensar ir ver o dia de testes a 3 de junho (domingo) onde existe menos confusão e assim poder descobrir os parques/restaurantes/melhor local para seguir a corrida etc etc etc com calma e sem multidões.

---------- Mensagem adicionada em 12:08 PM ---------- Mensagem anterior em 12:05 PM ----------

Entrevista a Anthony Davidson o piloto do carro numero 8 !

Anthony Davidson: “I just can’t wait to get started”

As a winner of some of endurance racing’s classic events, Anthony Davidson was a popular choice as driver of TOYOTA Racing’s car #8 at Le Mans. In part one of this interview, the British driver tells us his first impressions of the team and the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID …

What are your thoughts on joining TOYOTA Racing?
It’s really exciting to sign with TOYOTA. It feels like a new chapter in my career and I just can’t wait to get started. TOYOTA is such a huge manufacturer and to be involved in their World Endurance Championship project in LMP1 is fantastic.

How much have you been able to learn about the programme since you signed the contract?
I have already been to the factory in Cologne to see the car and meet the team. I had a session on the simulator as well so I got a first taste of the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID. I’m still yet to meet up with the other drivers but apart from Hiroaki I know them all already.

What were your impressions of TMG?
The facilities at are great; I’d always heard how comprehensive they are and every word was true. It is a really impressive facility; everything inside is state of the art. To know that such infrastructure is part of our project gives you a lot of confidence as a driver. It was nice to meet all the team at TMG and I had a really good vibe from everyone. It felt like a close-knit family affair which was a nice discovery.

How was your simulator drive?
I had a couple of hours on the simulator and got a feel for the car. It was a good session. I am very familiar with simulators, like most modern drivers, and I think it is important for top teams to have them in their armoury. It was great to get an idea of what to expect from the TOYOTA TS030 HYBRID. It did feel very familiar I must say, running on the same tyres as I am used to, and that is a good thing. I think my driving style suits LMP1 cars pretty well and it all clicked in the simulator.

What are your first impressions about the car?
It’s clear that a team with modern F1 experience has created this LMP1 car; that was my first thought. Every detail of the car has been looked into and exploited. From the first look it seems very intricate and detailed; and beautiful at the same time. LMP1 cars are quite often beautiful but this TOYOTA looks impressive. I can’t wait to actually drive it and feel the sensations from inside the car.

How do you feel about driving a hybrid at Le Mans?
It is quite interesting. I have never driven a hybrid car before; I only ever did one straight line test with KERS in F1 so it has been interesting to learn and understand more about the details. I love all the detail that goes into a modern race car and this is a whole new area to get my head around. I feel for a driver there is a lot of advantage to understanding a system inside out and that is where the simulator comes into its own. I already have some ideas about what to expect on the circuit and how to operate the system; normally you would have to wait until you got into the car at a test. That shows why it’s so important these days to have a simulator because the cars are so technical now.

Catch up with the second part of Anthony’s interview tomorrow, when he will explain his love for Japan and give his thoughts on his new TOYOTA Racing team-mates.

---------- Mensagem adicionada em 12:09 PM ---------- Mensagem anterior em 12:08 PM ----------

Parte 2 da entrevista.

Anthony Davidson: “I absolutely love Japan”

In part two of his interview, TOYOTA Racing’s new signing Anthony Davidson talks about TOYOTA’s homeland, as well as his new – and not so new – team-mates…

Tell us about Le Mans…
It’s one of those races that really grips you as a driver. Once you’ve done it you always want to come back. But it’s a real challenge and so many elements must come together to have a chance to win it. I have been close a couple of times so hopefully my big chance comes along very soon.

Obviously you already know Alex very well from your last team; what’s he like as a team-mate?
Since I signed for the team we have been in constant contact. Alex is a great guy to have in the team; I am so pleased he is here. I have been friends with him for many years, well before we were actually team-mates. I really enjoyed my time as his team-mate. He is such an experienced driver and he knows almost everything there is to know about the sport. He is a real team player and a very level-headed, technical driver; he is great on and off the circuit. He is always keen to perfect the car and the team around him. Even though we will not be driving the same car, in endurance racing you regard all of the drivers in the team as genuine team-mates so I’m looking forward to working with him again.

What about your team-mates in car #8? Let’s start with Hiroaki…
I’ve never met Hiroaki but I have been looking up his racing stats and his achievements so I know he’s a very capable driver. He has competed at the Nürburgring 24 Hours and I don’t think any endurance race comes much tougher than that! He has done some great things out in Japan in Super GT and we’ve seen in the past that guys from that series can be very, very quick. After all, two of the Le Mans winners from last year came from Super GT. I’m looking forward to meeting him and driving with him. Hopefully we will click together as team-mates and get a good result at Le Mans.

And how about Sébastien?
Due to my commentating work I have been watching a lot of Sébastien these last couple of years. Like many in the sport I was very surprised to see him become available at the end of last season. Their loss is TOYOTA’s gain. I am sure he will continue to show his speed in a closed LMP1 car as well. I am really excited to have him onboard. It was a big surprise for me when I moved from single-seaters into endurance racing – I just fell in love with it. I hope Sébastien feels the same way and I am sure he will.

TOYOTA is a Japanese company and you will be racing with a Japanese flag on the #8 car at Le Mans. How do you feel about Japan?
I absolutely love Japan. I have had quite an affiliation with Japan during my career and I’ve loved it since my first visit there. It is an amazing country with lovely people who are passionate about racing and very dedicated. I have always found it easy to work with Japanese people; it just all clicks with me and the Japanese culture. I am really pleased to be associated with Japan again so I am really excited in that respect. And don’t forget the food – it’s the best in the world!

[CrasyE12]

[martins]

Behind the Scenes at TOYOTA Racing's Pre-Season Testing - YouTube

[martins]

Mais um video dos testes no circuito Paul richard