Toyota Motorsport Gmb H - Current Business

Current Business

The company is currently headed by president Yoshiaki Kinoshita, the man formerly in charge of Toyota's global motorsports programme and previously its Champ Car engine development. Former F1 technical director Pascal Vasselon is General Manager Chassis Engineering while Jens Marquardt, the former F1 team manager, has become the head of business development, although he will join BMW Motorsport in 2011.

Toyota Motorsport is working with "a few dozen" customers on various projects, not all of which are from the motorsport world. Several major projects, including an iQ sports conversion, are being carried out for parent company Toyota Motor Corporation. According to the company's 2010 annual review, Toyota Motorsport has hit its financial targets for the year.

Toyota Motorsport is providing a TF109 F1 car to Pirelli for tyre testing at various circuits for the Italian company, F1's sole tyre supplier. Very few details are available regarding the identity of other customers, although media speculation says several leading F1 teams are using Toyota Motorsport's two modern wind tunnels and other testing rigs.

Currently Toyota Motorsport supplies and supports Toyota 3.4L V8s for Rebellion Racing as a partnership with Lola Cars. TMG also runs the Toyota TS030 Hybrid in the FIA World Endurance Championship in conjunction with Oreca.

In October 2010, rumours appeared in the media that Toyota Motorsport had been sold to the HRT F1 team. These were denied by Toyota Motorsport. Their machinery was eventually acquired by Stefan Grand Prix, with TMG support. After a failed bid for the 2010 season, Toyota and Stefan Grand Prix parted ways, closing out any possible chance to see Toyota Racing return in any form to Formula 1.