Toyota has no F1 engine plans for the future

By formalizing a major technical partnership with Haas in Formula 1 at Fuji, Toyota took care on Friday to lock the doors that would lead to a re-engagement in the discipline. There is no question of letting the word “return” infuse, something on which the big boss Akio Toyoda was very clear from the outset.

Absent since its sudden departure from the championship at the end of 2009, the Japanese manufacturer assures that its agreement with Haas does not open up any prospects and that there are no projects in the pipeline. Not even that of a turbo hybrid engine under the aegis of the future regulations that F1 is preparing for the 2026 era.

“We do not currently intend to engage in the supply of a power unit”clarifies Masaya Kaji, general manager of sports engineering at Toyota Gazoo Racing. Asked by Motorsport.com on the future interest that the collaboration with Haas could arouse, he still decides: “We have no intention of having a team in F1. Currently we have the best choice and the best option in collaborating with Haas.”

Toyota sees the partnership with the American team as an opportunity to improve the skills of its staff, and also to bring additional technological expertise which will benefit its production cars. The approach is identical to that adopted for a long time successfully through the brand’s commitment to endurance, and which we find in its desire to develop a hydrogen prototype for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

“As you know, F1 cars are equipped with many of the most advanced technologies in the world”recalls Takahashi Tomoya, president of Toyota Gazoo Racing. “Aerodynamics, for example, are extremely important for electric vehicles. I believe that a day will come when we can bring this technology back into production cars, and I believe that people who have the experience of this high level of technology will be able to create the next production car.”

This vision is assumed by Akio Toyoda, the man who pulled the plug on the F1 program 15 years ago, without much regret, but considers himself capable of adapting to the new needs of the brand he manages.

“At the time, Toyota was more interested in growing the company rather than building better cars”he pleads. “As president, I decided at that time that the goals of the company were sales and profits, and that this type of activity [la F1] didn’t really suit him. Today we are becoming a company that builds better cars, based on motorsport. To do this, we need people who can take responsibility.”

Comments collected by Kazuki Matsumoto