Newly Developed 8-speed GAZOO Racing Direct Automatic Transmission Joins Lineup to Expand Motorsports Base
Toyota City, Japan, Jan 12, 2024 – (JCN Newswire) – TOYOTA GAZOO Racing (TGR) held the world premiere today of its evolved GR Yaris at Tokyo Auto Salon 2024*1. Sales in Japan of the new GR Yaris are scheduled to start this spring through Toyota vehicle dealers nationwide.
The evolved GR Yaris (Japanese market specifications, prototype)
Main pointsEver-better motorsports-bred cars
TGR has continued to compete in various motorsports following the debut of the GR Yaris. It has been implementing “driver-first car-making” through repeated “breaking and fixing” in extreme environments and reflecting feedback from professional race drivers and evaluation drivers, as well as from Toyota Motor Corporation Chairman and Master Driver Akio Toyoda, a.k.a. Morizo. This time, under the slogan of “Thanks for breaking it” directed at the drivers who pushed the vehicle to its limits, TGR reflected drivers’ opinions not only in the vehicle’s power unit but also in its body, interior, exterior, and elsewhere to comprehensively enhance vehicle performance.
Newly developed 8-speed GAZOO Racing Direct Automatic Transmission joins lineup
Based on Morizo’s desire to provide the fun of driving to as many people as possible and expand the base of motorsports, the 8-speed GAZOO Racing Direct Automatic Transmission has joined the GR Yaris lineup. The new transmission was developed to enable a wide range of drivers to enjoy sporty driving and compete in races using an automatic transmission that would equal manual transmissions.
GR-unique cockpit with visibility and operability refined together with professional drivers
Recognizing that the cockpit plays a key role in delivering high-level driving performance, efforts were made with the help of professional race drivers to achieve an ideal sports car cockpit. In addition to reviewing the driving position, the control panel and display have been tilted 15 degrees toward the driver, with Super Taikyu Series and Japanese Rally Championship race cars serving as a motif, and visibility and operability have been refined, such as by positioning switches for ease of use even when the driver is harnessed to the seat.
As a symbol of TGR car-making, the GR Yaris was born through making ever-better motorsports-bred cars. TGR has continued to compete in various motorsports*2 using the GR Yaris since the model’s launch in September 2020. That is because problems that occur in the extreme environments of rallies and other races provide opportunities to evolve the GR Yaris into an ever-better car. Under the slogan of “Thanks for breaking it” directed at the drivers who pushed the vehicle to its limits, TGR honed the GR Yaris through constant enhancements, thoroughly pursuing the cause of problems by analyzing driving data, reviewing steering feel, and examining what kind of scratches and dirt were on broken parts.
Also, based on Morizo’s desire to provide the fun of driving to as many people as possible and to expand the scope of motorsports, TGR has developed the 8-speed GAZOO Racing Direct Automatic Transmission to enable the utmost enjoyment of a 1.6-liter inline 3-cylinder turbo engine mated to a 4WD drivetrain, which forms the essence of the GR Yaris. The result is a car that is designed so that a wide range of drivers can enjoy sporty driving and competing in motorsports to the fullest.
TGR’s journey of making ever-better motorsports-bred cars is without end. TGR intends to continue competing in races using the GR Yaris and evolving it with input from various drivers.
For more information, visit https://global.toyota/en/newsroom/toyota/40287969.html.
