Toyota Owners Club

THE LEGEND RETURNS The fifth generation of Toyota’s legendary sports car The first global GR model from Toyota Gazoo Racing Conceived as a sports car in its purest form, with no compromise The all-new Toyota GR Supra is the fifth generation of Toyota’s legendary sports car and the first global GR model from Toyota Gazoo Racing The new Toyota GR Supra has been conceived as a sports car in its purest form, with no compromise that might diminish the pleasure of the driving experience. Chief Engineer Tetsuya Tada has adhered to the classic form of a front-mounted, straight-six engine driving the rear wheels, building on the heritage of Toyota’s past Supra generations and original 2000GT sports car. Driving enthusiasts can expect an exhilarating blend of power, agility and precision handling, delivered by the car’s combination of a short wheelbase and wide track, light weight, low centre of gravity and highly rigid body. The 3.0-litre engine is fitted with a single twin-scroll turbocharger and produces 335bhp and 500 Nm of torque. Coupled to an eight-speed automatic transmission, it is characterised by smooth and powerful acceleration, with large amounts of torque available across the full spectrum of engine speeds. Toyota Gazoo Racing was instrumental in honing the new sports car’s performance, working extensively on the famous Nürburgring Nordschleife and surrounding roads in Germany to achieve the most agile, stable and rewarding handling possible. Further extensive testing was carried out on roads around the world. To be certain that the car delivered on its promise, Toyota President Akio Toyoda put it to the test at the Nürburgring in his role as a Master Driver before giving it the final green light. New Toyota GR Supra deliveries to UK customers will start from September 2019. All cars are being manufactured in Graz, Austria. Read the full Press Release here GR Supra Release.pdf

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

The Original Recreational Activity Vehicle is back. Introducing the All-New Toyota RAV4. Find out more at https://www.toyota.com.au/rav4.

Toyota Gazoo Racing clinched the FIA World Endurance Championship teams’ title in a dramatic and weather-affected 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Fernando Alonso delivered the points needed to claim the championship by winning the penultimate round of the 2018-2019 season. The trio in the No8 Toyota TS050 Hybrid also extended their lead in the driver’s title race to 31 points. The No7 Toyota of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López controlled the race from pole position until just before half-distance, setting the fastest lap before a sensor issue dropped them back down the order, ultimately finishing in sixth place. For the first time in the history of the championship, heavy snow fell shortly after the start. In spite of the conditions, the race was able to continue behind a safety car. Another safety car period following an accident triggered drama for Buemi who was forced to make a fuel stop while the pit lane was closed; WEC regulations meant the team was only allowed to add five seconds of fuel. When he was able to make his regular, full refuelling stop, he had lost around a minute and was running in 10th place, but a battling drive saw him up to second by the two-hour mark. Further snow and a hailstorm added to the challenging conditions as the final third of the race got underway. By the last hour, López was up to sixth while Alonso had extended the No8 car’s advantage to more than a lap over the field. Again, the weather intervened, prompting further running behind the safety car before the race was brought to a halt a few minutes early because of the worsening conditions. At that point, Alonso was one lap ahead of the second-placed No3 Rebellion car. The No11 SMP Racing car was third. After the race, Alonso said: “That was definitely not an easy race, with a couple of issues in the first part in addition to the weather. So it was up and down in terms of emotions. The most important thing today was securing the teams’ World Championship. I am extremely happy that we scored enough points to become World Champion; a massive well done for everyone in the team. It has been an amazing season for us and hopefully in Le Mans we can have the final, nice touch with the drivers’ title.” The team now head for France and the Le Mans 24 Hours, the culmination of the season on 15-16 June

Rally Argentina opens a South American double-header this week (25 to 28 April), with each of Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team’s three drivers looking to repeat their past wins on the gravel event. It will be followed by the first WRC event to take place in Chile (9 to 12 May) The fifth round of the 2019 WRC, Rally Argentina is one of the calendar’s classic events, taking place on widely different gravel surfaces, from sandy valley roads to rocky mountain tracks. Watersplashes are common at river crossings, while fog can be a hazard on the higher routes. Kris Meeke, the Briton who scored his maiden WRC victory on the event in 2015, said: “I’ll be hoping to try and have a clean rally. Mexico and Corsica could have been a lot better for me, so I’m definitely looking to have a top result. I had three days of testing on gravel in Portugal last week and I think we’re in good shape for Rally Argentina. We’ve got five gravel events in a row coming up and they’re all rallies I go well on, aside from Chile which is new for everyone. As drivers, we won’t know exactly what we’re facing until we get to Chile and do the recce, but events in South America are always really well-supported with a great atmosphere, and I’m sure this one will be no different.” Meeke will be joined by his regular team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Ott Tänak. The rally follows its established format, based in the lakeside resort of Villa Carlos Paz, where the action begins on Thursday night with a Super Special stage. Most of Friday’s action is to the south in the Santa Rosa de Calamuchita Valley, while on Saturday the trio of Yaris WRC cars will move north-west to the Punilla Valley. Sunday’s route takes in three stages in the Traslasierra mountains, including two passes of the famous El Cóndor – the final one being the rally-ending Power Stage. Chile’s first WRC round will be based in the port city of Concepción and feature medium-fast stages on smooth and compact gravel roads through forests, together with some more open sections with views of the Pacific Ocean. Crews will have to make a full set of pace notes from scratch during the pre-event recce, and decide on a car setup without testing in Chile, in line with championship regulations. Rally Chile’s opening day will include two loops of three stages south of Concepción and will end with a stage through the city streets. A compact second day features three stages each run twice closer to the city. Sunday’s action comprises four stages, starting and finishing with a stage that begins by the Bio Bio river and ends at the Pacific coast. With a gap of less than two weeks between the two South American events, the team’s preparation is more complex and must take both rallies into account. They are defined as ‘linked rallies’ by the regulations, meaning that for cars classified in the final stage in Argentina, the same chassis, engine and transmissions (including spare transmissions) must also be used in Chile. Tommi Mäkinen, Team Principal, said: “We didn’t get the results that we hoped for in our last rally in Corsica, but confidence in the team is high going into the next two events in South America. Argentina is, of course, a rally that everybody knows well, including our drivers. Ott was very strong there when he won for us last year, and I think he is feeling good about his chances again. I know it’s a rally that both Jari-Matti and Kris enjoy too. Chile is a bit of question mark for all the teams, but we understand that the road conditions should be very smooth, and I believe it should suit our car.”

Huge congratulations to Blake O'Connor who has become the 40th Toyota Star Maker, joining the ranks of the Australian country music elite #TCMF2019.