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Thursday, 26th January 2012
In Japan Sports News,

Toyota plots Le Mans victory in hybrid race car

Toyota has announced its intention to become the first team to win the Le Mans endurance race with a hybrid car.

The Japanese manufacturer revealed yesterday (January 25th) that it has started testing its TS030 race car ahead of the famous 24-hour competition.

It would be quite a feat for the world's biggest car maker, having been an early pioneer of the environmentally friendly hybrid vehicles with its Prius model.

Toyota team leader Yoshiaki Kinoshita declared: "We want to win at Le Mans … Hybrid engines are a core Toyota technology, so it's very important to showcase that technology on the motor sports stage," the news provider quoted.

Based in Germany, the Toyota Team plans to enter two of its TS030 race cars in the second race of the series at the coveted French racetrack in June.

The vehicles run a powerful 3.4-litre V8 engine that is twinned with an electrical capacitor.

Written by Mark Smith