Toyota is one of the few manufacturers that can boast official involvement in local motorsport. The Japanese firm has been a stalwart of the national racing scene for the better part of the three decades. Via its Toyota Motorsport arm, the company has announced its intentions regarding the national off-road racing and rally championships.
Dakar-spec Hiluxes
Reigning off-road champion Duncan Vos – who competed in the 2013 Dakar Rally – and championship runner-up Anthony Taylor will drive the two class SP Castrol Toyota Hilux double cabs that helped Toyota win the 2012 manufacturers’ championship. Vos will again be paired with co-driver Rob Howie while Taylor will be partnered by new co-driver Dennis Murphy in the #3 Hilux. Both teams will be driving vehicles that are similar to the Dakar Hilux that Vos/Howie drove earlier this year.
The opening round of the Donaldson Cross Country Championship (previously known as the Off Road Championship) is the RFS Magalies 400, which takes place around Krugersdorp this Friday and Saturday (March 1 and 2).
New rally cars
The Castrol Toyota rally team has a new look about it and that goes beyond the livery! While the driver/co-driver combinations remain unchanged – 2012 championship runners-up Johnny Gemmell and Carolyn Swan in car #2 and Leeroy Poulter and Elvene Coetzee in car #23 – the big news is that they will be competing in a brand new car. The S2000 class Toyota Auris makes way for the S2000 Yaris. The new car will debut at the Total Rally in KwaZulu-Natal on March 8 and 9.
This is the first time that the little hatch will contest a national rally championship anywhere in the world. The cars were designed and built in Toyota Motorsport’s Kyalami workshops.
“Currently, the Auris is 60 kg over the minimum weight and this has been a major challenge for us,” said team principal Glyn Hall. “The international launch of the Yaris has changed all that. We’re in motorsport to win and this new car will give us a much better platform to work from, allowing us more scope within the rally regulations.”
“It’s been a major challenge building this new rally car in light of our Dakar Rally and local motor sport commitments. The lads in the workshop have been extremely busy. We took everything we know from the Auris and designed and used all of this knowledge together with some innovative thinking to produce what I believe is a potential championship winner. It’s more nimble and has a much better weight distribution. We’ve gone the two-door route because of the rear design of the car, which is aesthetically more pleasing, and for practical reasons like accessibility.
“I believe this new car is exactly where Toyota wants to be,” said Hall. “It explores the limits of technology and it looks sensational. I am very excited about it and feel the same way as I did when I first saw the evolution 2013 Dakar Hilux. The whole project has been inspirational for the team.”
Follow the progress of the Toyota’s race efforts on Twitter, www.twitter.com/toyotalive