[WEC] Toyota LMP1 Discussion

[tyronnezx]

Originally Posted by Simmi

The rumour seems to be picking up some momentum on social media - for what it's worth.

Pretty convinced he may replace Lappiere or Sarrazan

[tyronnezx]

Originally Posted by J Jay

And I said as much later on in my post.



But that won't be enough to hold people's interest. Once he's out for a year or two he'll only be mentioned in passing regardless of how well he's doing, like Webber is now (although Ricciardo has a bit to do with that). That high profile with the general population won't last long when he's outside the circus. His departure won't be remembered as Jenson choosing LMP1 over F1, it will be remembered as Jenson leaving before being sacked.

I do agree however that this is a very big and very good thing for the WEC as it seeks to establish itself (and sportscars in general) as a genuine alternative to the single seater ladder.

And this is where WEC needs to differentiate itself from taking leftovers from F1.

More reaces - bring back the old legends - Mille Miglia Montlhéry Monza Targa Florio Tour de France Carrera Panamericana Daytona Mexico City Montreal Mosport Sebring Watkins Glen etc

Promote the WEC - Have a bigger reach by doing Demo's, Advetising, Endorsements etc

I could go on for ages but WEC is still a long shot from reaching the popularity of the failing F1, and bringing a superstar like Button wont be a solution

[TF110]

Signing an f1 driver for popularity isn't the smartest thing to do. Sportscars arent going to be near f1 in terms of popularity for a while if ever. Theres no reason they need to focus on that when picking a driver anyway. Button is consistent and fast. Those qualities are what matter, not his following.

[chernaudi]

Toyota IMO need to reshuffle the driving line up and maybe freshen it up a bit. Audi and Porsche have relatively balanced driver line ups in terms of performance, where one team doesn't have a huge advantage over the other.

Toyota have the #8 with Ant and Seb especially cleaning the #7 team's clock all year aside from maybe Silverstone.

I'd rather have two really fast teams than one dominant team and one that just seems to be slightly outpacing Audi and Porsche due to the Toyota being a better package in terms of top speed (Audi) and consistency (Porsche).

[Simmi]

@specutainment
Given the excitement I asked & there's no announcement this weekend & no "major surprises" in @fiawec driver line up for @Toyota_Hybrid

After some investigation Hindy now seems to think nothing is happening.

[GT6]

Originally Posted by Simmi

After some investigation Hindy now seems to think nothing is happening.

That is why the rumours keep coming, if no real news about then we all start to read the rumours and they gather pace

[TF110]

Either way, theyre not going to spill the beans, regardless who it is. As for their current lineup, I think Conway takes Sarrazin's spot in the #7. And a new incoming driver takes Lapierre's spot in the #8.

This is an analysis done by Paul Truswel about the average stints from the drivers in Fuji and Shanghai. As I noted before, Nakajima is the difference maker. He carries the #7, and is just as quick if not quicker than the #8's drivers.

[TRuss]

Originally Posted by tyronnezx

And this is where WEC needs to differentiate itself from taking leftovers from F1.

More reaces - bring back the old legends - Mille Miglia Montlhéry Monza Targa Florio Tour de France Carrera Panamericana Daytona Mexico City Montreal Mosport Sebring Watkins Glen etc

This has nothing to do with the topic but, I have to ask. Do you really expect them to race these things on the old Mille Miglia, Targa Florio courses? The Carrera Panamericana!?

[tyronnezx]

Originally Posted by TRuss

This has nothing to do with the topic but, I have to ask. Do you really expect them to race these things on the old Mille Miglia, Targa Florio courses? The Carrera Panamericana!?

Could have dedicated road races in the regions using these names? also wouldnt hurt to have a road/street course im thinking Potrero de los Funes Circuit thats unique and would be a great addition

[MoMedic9019]

Originally Posted by tyronnezx

Potrero de los Funes Circuit

Better than Sao Paulo....

[TRuss]

That makes sense and is what I figured you meant, but I had to make sure.

[Alex Langheck]

Originally Posted by TRuss

That makes sense and is what I figured you meant, but I had to make sure.

Yes, same here, I thought that's what he meant. And, to be fair, I can see his point. We all understand while they go to the Grade1 tracks, but I'd like them to go to tracks were the WEC is the biggest race of their season, not as an addition to the F1 race.

[TRuss]

I completely agree. I'd love to see them race at some of the classic venues, but I'm afraid the infrastructures such as pit areas are just far too classic for the FIA to even consider them for more than a split second.

What thread is this?

[tyronnezx]

Originally Posted by TRuss

I completely agree. I'd love to see them race at some of the classic venues, but I'm afraid the infrastructures such as pit areas are just far too classic for the FIA to even consider them for more than a split second.

What thread is this?

I know, but i got the feel some were getting excited about the whole Button to WEC news and had to point out the obvious.

[TF110]

Back on topic, here's Toyota's PR for Bahrain with driver and management quotes.

[MyNameIsNigel]

The latest and clearest indication that there won't be a third Toyota at LM next year has been given by Vasselon in Laurent Mercier's latest interview:

L’arrivée d’une troisième Toyota pour les 24 Heures du Mans 2015 est �* oublier, la situation n’ayant pas évolué ces derniers mois : « Comme je l’ai déj�* spécifié, nous ne souhaitons pas aligner une troisième auto sans avoir la certitude de le faire correctement. Notre budget est quasiment bouclé et il n’y aura pas de troisième auto. Ce n’est clairement plus l’option �* moins d’un cadeau du Père Noël (rire). »

(source: endurance-info.com)

Only remaining "hope" would be a last-minute Christmas gift.

[TF110]

He says "our budget is almost finished (finalized)" and "there will be no third car" (with that amount) unless they get a christmas gift! Maybe, just maybe that double championship will loosen some walets. Im not holding my breath. No denial on Jenson Button either, just "he may be on the market". Vasselon plays his cards close to chest.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Paradoxically, if Toyota clinch both titles (which is more likely than not), this will most probably be used by Toyota's beancounters as a further motivation not to increase the budget for a third car at LM.

2015 will tell if this (likely) strategy will be the right one. Toyota have to win LM next year.

[Deleted]

I would rather even put my money on Santa delivering fourth R18 for Audi again, than Ebenezer Toyota seeing visions of the three spirits on Christmas Eve and gifting the extra TS040 to Tiny TMG.

[J Jay]

Originally Posted by MyNameIsNigel

Paradoxically, if Toyota clinch both titles (which is more likely than not), this will most probably be used by Toyota's beancounters as a further motivation not to increase the budget for a third car at LM.

2015 will tell if this (likely) strategy will be the right one. Toyota have to win LM next year.

This is the impression I've been getting to be honest - that there are high-ups in TMC that want TMG to win Le Mans with two cars so they can play on the relative lack of resources compared to the other factory teams.

That's fine in itself, but certain events from this years' race may be a sign of the frustration within the team. Whether Toyota must win next year depends on how much the VAG bros do or don't catch up, but what I'm interested in is if this win "smart" attitude will hold if/when Nissan become serious contenders.

[TF110]

Theyre not under any illusion that three cars dont increase your chances. They actually did increase the budget. But that wasnt enough for everything needed to have a third car. Toyota has a new way of going about these things. Most of the board are probably profit driven, not passion. Oh well, better 2 cars than 1 or 0.

[chernaudi]

Toyota has confirmed that some parts (namely a type of semiconductor it seems) for the next generation Prius will be influenced by experience gained with the TS030/TS040 program.

[MyNameIsNigel]

Interesting statement from John Dagys:

Toyota’s 2015-spec TS040 Hybrid will begin testing in January, with Vasselon confirming the possibility of moving towards a battery-based energy storage system instead of its current supercapacitor units. A decision has yet to be made. “We have targets to improve, but based on this year, it would not be a sound decision to change everything and start from [scratch],” he said.

(source: sportscar365.com)

[MagVanisher]

Why do they have to change their energy storage system into batteries? Are supercapacitors have some disadvantages?

[MyNameIsNigel]

Originally Posted by MagVanisher

Why do they have to change their energy storage system into batteries? Are supercapacitors have some disadvantages?

Supercapacitors do also suffer from a limited storage capacity, which implies that the total amount of energy releasable by the ERS must be released is several charge-discharge cycles. Storage capacity is not as such an issue with batteries, which most certainly allows greater freedom in the energy release strategy and less dependence on the actual track characteristics.

With their battery-based solution, Porsche can pretty much decide where on the track they want to release energy. With their current hybrid architecture, Toyota - like Audi - have less freedom in that respect and have to release energy before the next braking point in order to free storage capacity.