Toyota commit to F1 with new car

Share

Toyota reiterated their commitment to Formula One as their 2009 car made its debut in an online launch ceremony.

In keeping with Ferrari's model, the first to be unveiled earlier this week, the Toyota TF109 incorporates a host of modifications to meet new rules.

"We have to win a race, that's clear," said team president John Howett. "This organisation only exists to win."

Driver Jarno Trulli said Toyota were "better prepared than ever" and "ready to face the fight for 2009".

The Toyota Motor Corporation, which backs the team, forecast an annual loss of £1.1bn in December, prompting speculation that the Japanese manufacturer could follow the lead of compatriots Honda and quit the sport.

But the team once again underlined their determination to remain in F1 as the TF109 was presented to the public.

"We know what's going on with the economy, especially the automotive section, and Formula One is part of that even if it's a high-profile sport," Trulli told BBC Sport.

"F1 has been increasing development and cost for many years, and now it's time to step back. I agree with what they're doing.

"For the first time I can see all the teams working together with common sense to survive. The teams more than anyone else understand what's going on in F1, and today the message we are giving is that we are committed to Formula One."

Trulli said Toyota would remain in the sport "if there is a reason to stay, which means being one of the top teams" and added that he expected 2009 to be a "key season for everybody".

Trulli finished ninth in the 2008 drivers' championship, with team-mate Timo Glock 10th, leaving Toyota fifth in the race for the constructors' title - a position on which the team will want to improve this year
New 2009 regulations have forced modifications which lower and widen the front wing, with a tall, narrow rear wing.

Slick, untreaded tyres will also be reintroduced after 11 years on grooved tyres, and teams have the option of employing a kinetic energy recovery system (Kers).

The Kers system stores energy that would otherwise be wasted as heat during braking, then reapplies it during acceleration to provide a boost in power, controlled from the cockpit by the driver.

"We've got Kers developed and in the car," said Trulli. "Soon we'll run it but we don't know if we will start the season with it or not.

"Kers is very complicated and has no application at all with road cars, it's not like the one Toyota use on road cars.

"It might cause a lot of trouble in an F1 car in terms of reliability, and that might cause a question mark. But that's a problem for everyone."