Toyota in Formula One
Toyota's F1 team never won a Grand Prix in eight seasons.
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Panasonic Toyota Racing was a Formula One works team owned by Toyota Motor Corporation and based in Cologne, Germany. The team debuted in 2002 after extensive testing with its initial car, the TF101, and competed for eight consecutive seasons. Despite scoring a point in its first race and achieving five second-place finishes, Toyota never won a Grand Prix, drawing criticism for its lack of success given one of the sport's largest budgets.
Racing history
Toyota's motorsport involvement began in 1957 when a Toyopet Crown entered the Round Australia Trial. The Formula One team's roots trace to 1972, when Ove Andersson's Andersson Motorsport used a Toyota Celica 1600GT in the RAC Rally. The team became Toyota Team Europe and, after Toyota's 1993 purchase, Toyota Motorsport GmbH. The rally team won four World Rally Championship drivers' titles and three constructors' titles.
In 1995, the FIA banned the team for 12 months for running illegal parts, making it ineligible for manufacturer's points the next season. Toyota continued winning rallies after returning in 1997 but did not regain its earlier dominance. In 1997, the team moved to track racing with a sports car project, twice failing to win the Le Mans 24 Hours. On 21 January 1999, Toyota announced its move into Formula One, ending its rallying and Le Mans programs.
The team secured its place as the 12th entry for the 2001 season on 30 June 2000 but forfeited an $11 million deposit by delaying its entry to 2002. Toyota opted to start its own works team rather than partner with a specialist race team, and set up away from the UK's Motorsport Valley. During 2001, Toyota tested the TF101 car at 11 F1 circuits to gather telemetry data for aerodynamic changes to the TF102. Mika Salo and Allan McNish were appointed test drivers.
Haas F1 Team partnership
On 11 October 2024, Haas F1 Team announced a technical partnership with Toyota, receiving design, technical and manufacturing services from Toyota Gazoo Racing while Ferrari continued supplying power units until 2028. Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda emphasised the deal did not signify a full-fledged return to Formula One. In December 2025, Haas was rebranded as TGR Haas F1 Team under a title sponsorship.
Notable drivers
Olivier Panis, Toyota's first driver with a Grand Prix win, joined in 2003 after a season with BAR that yielded four points. His win had occurred in unusual wet conditions when many front-runners dropped out. Ralf Schumacher joined Toyota in 2005 from Williams with six Grand Prix wins.
Toyota had not yet scored a podium finish. Schumacher appeared slower than teammate Jarno Trulli early in the season, but ended 2005 with two podiums, including chasing his brother Michael for second in Hungary. In 2006, after saying he expected Toyota's first win, Schumacher's best result was third.
He split with manager Willi Weber and partnered with Hans Mahr, who tried to move him to a winning team. Schumacher later stated he was content at Toyota and believed he could still win the title with the team. On 1 October 2007, he announced he would leave Toyota at the end of the season for a new challenge.
Did You Know?
- Denso and Esso were also sponsors from the first year.
- Toyota's rally team won four World Rally Championship drivers' titles, most notably with Carlos Sainz.
More in Toyota in Motorsport
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Toyota in Formula One (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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