24 Hours of Le Mans – TOYOTA GAZOO Racing unveils the GR010 Hybrid Hypercar

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing has revealed the Le Mans Hypercar set to compete in Season 9 of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans. In its design of the GR010 Hybrid, the Japanese manufacturer had to try and new approach.

The car has been highly anticipated by 24 Hours of Le Mans and endurance racing fans since 2019, and now TOYOTA GAZOO Racing has finally raised the curtain on its Le Mans Hypercar, the GR010 Hybrid. This competition Hypercar was developed over the last 18 months through a partnership between the team's engineers based in Cologne, Germany and the hybrid electric powertrain experts at the Higashi-Fuji Technical Center in Japan.

The Toyota GR010 Hybrid's powertrain is four-wheel drive with a twin-turbo 2.4-liter V6 engine producing 680 hp at the rear wheels combined with a 272 hp generator on the front axle.

The look of the car is similar in appearance to the Hypercar GR Super Sport presented at last year's 24 Hours of Le Mans, and to mark the beginning of this new era, its unique livery borrows the iconic GR lettering as a nod to the strong link between racing and road cars.

"The GR010 Hybrid's "regulation philosophy is very different. It is a completely new car.""

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing technical director Pascal Vasselon

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing is expected to participate in Season 9 of the FIA World Endurance Championship with the same driver line-ups as last year. Current world champions Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López will share the #7, while Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Brendon Hartley man the #8. Nyck de Vries is continuing his role as test and reserve driver. They have already begun an intense development programme with three three-day testing sessions at the Paul Ricard, Aragón (Spain) and Portimão (Portugal) circuits.

Technical Director Pascal Vasselon: "The new regulations are designed to present road technology in the WEC while putting on a stunning, high caliber show. We cannot wait to welcome new competitors and be a part of the exciting future of endurance races with our GR010 Hybrid. The regulation philosophy is very different. It is a completely new car. The major difference is the architecture of the hybrid system. The hybrid system option in the regulations imposes only one KERS and one brake-by-wire braking, both at the front which means we now need a starter motor and the rear brake system is now fully hydraulic like on a traditional race car. There are many differences and challenges to manage throughout development. We are very impatient to continue testing sessions and then see our car competing. I think it'll be worth the wait."

In the meantime, feast your eyes on the Toyota GR010 Hybrid: