LIFESTYLE
Motorsport racing isn’t just a way to fuel a personal passion, it’s our purpose-led technique for building tomorrow’s cars. Rather than taking a production vehicle to fit the world of motorsports, we offer the world a car that was first made to win. This is exactly how we made our first-ever GR Corolla.
The extreme conditions of motorsports push cars to their limits — they are driven until they break, get fixed, and come out even stronger than before.
One of our biggest challenges is the Super TAIKYU endurance race, consisting of seven various races, with the longest being 24 hours. To win this endurance race, we needed to quickly figure out how to drive faster, further and on limited fuel. Through multiple tests, successes and some failures, the Toyota GAZOO Racing team rushed to the frontline to develop automotive technologies and an efficient combustion engine that would take our GR Corolla to the finish line.
We’re committed to pushing new boundaries. Last year we challenged the future of mobility in a symbolic initiative that puts “making ever-better motorsports-bred cars” into practice. We entered the Super TAIKYU with a GR Corolla race car powered by a surprising resource — a hydrogen powered engine.
Being a first for Toyota and the world of motorsports, former Toyota President, Akio Toyoda raced with hydrogen power and completed 478 laps – 120 more than the previous year – thanks to an enhanced power output, fuel efficiency and reduced hydrogen refueling time.
As a first step to exploring options for carbon neutrality, our hope is to carry on the legacy of the GR Corolla and the future of motorsports for years to come.
A year has passed since we first debuted the GR Corolla race car hydrogen-powered engine, but not a moment has been wasted. We’re continuing to take performance to the next level by experimenting hydrogen-powered engines on everyday roads*.
After rigorous testing, we’re happy to announce that we’ve marked a major milestone with the hydrogen-powered engine. In just a year, we’ve achieved 20% more output, 30% more torque and 20% more driving range than similar-class gasoline engines.
There is still a long journey ahead of us before this makes it into mass-production. Nevertheless, we’re excited about its prospects and look forward to one day producing a GR Corolla that we can enjoy for many more generations.
Disclaimer
*The current production of the GR Corolla will not be powered by hydrogen.
