Toyota: Aurion won't enter V8 Supercar

[SlickHolden]

http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...25711F00045DF9

Breathe easy Ford and Holden: Toyota says it won't go V8 Supercar racing with Aurion

24 February 2006


TOYOTA Australia chief John Conomos said the company had no plans to enter a Camry or Aurion model in V8 Supercar racing Down Under, despite the Japanese constructor fielding a Camry in the NASCAR Nextel Cup in the United States next year.

Mr Conomos conceded there was considerable marketing exposure to be gained from V8 touring car racing in Australia, but said the lack of a suitable donor car would make the exercise both expensive and irrelevant.

"Even with our high-performance Aurion, I don’t think its specification is appropriate to match the V8 Supercars," he said.

The NASCAR formula is not dissimilar from Australia’s. Currently contested only by Ford, Chevrolet and Dodge, the category calls for 355-cubic-inch carburettor-fed, pushrod V8s sending 550kW to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual gearbox.

Quite a contrast to the front-drive, four-cylinder/V6 format of the road-going Camry/Aurion.

Pussy's
If they really want to challenge Holden and Ford, they could start by beating them in there own game. In V8 supercars.
We can't make a V8 supercar with all our F1 technology, But we can go Nascar racing.
I'm a little pissed off really, I would have loved a third since Mitsub might struggle to come into the Sport.

[nota]

Mr Conomos conceded .. "Even with our high-performance Aurion, I don’t think its specification is appropriate to match the V8 Supercars," he said.

Good old Con-a-moose, he summed it up rather well didn't he?

In other words "Our high-performance Aurion isn't that fast"

[d-quik]

is the aurion rwd?

[clutch-monkey]

is the aurion rwd?

base model is FWD, but the sport model has to be AWD - considering it produces 220kw..

[d-quik]

oh that sucks then

[thatdbeme]

base model is FWD, but the sport model has to be AWD - considering it produces 220kw..

AWD is banned in V8 racing, unless im mistaken, it was banned because noone wanted nissan to win races?
Im sure if toyota started dominating they would make up a reason to ban their car, so whats the point them trying really.
their investment in F1 seems to be starting to gain momentum

[d-quik]

ever heard of the

world
rally
championships?

[Mr. Jinx]

um, the aurion is a tad big to go racing through forests and snow

[Mr. Jinx]

base model is FWD, but the sport model has to be AWD - considering it produces 220kw..

theres no guarantee that the Sports model will be AWD

[clutch-monkey]

theres no guarantee that the Sports model will be AWD

no...but you'd hope it would be.

[Mr. Jinx]

haha, bloody oath!

[fpv_gtho]

um, the aurion is a tad big to go racing through forests and snow

He might be talking about Toyota getting banned from WRC when they were found to have illegal turbos...

Good old Con-a-moose, he summed it up rather well didn't he?

In other words "Our high-performance Aurion isn't that fast"

Thats surely one way to look at it

Toyota should have realised though that with Project A51 and Mitsubishi's prior interest in joining, VESA will sidestep a few regulations to get them in with modified NASCAR gear.

[charged]

Ford and Holden will never let another player into V8 Supertaxi's, as to the best of my knowledge they are stakeholders in IVESCO and something like that has to be voted on by the stakeholders,. Toyota already has a v8 based on the Hemi from the US, except its only 3.9 litres

[nota]

Toyota already has a v8 based on the Hemi from the US, except its only 3.9 litres

That's an old Toyota President engine is it? Reputedly based on Mopar's Early-Hemi but done in alloy. 25 years ago the jap importers were bringing in 3.0 litre versions of those for use in local hotrods etc. They were pretty cheap to buy, priced at around $450 with auto IIRC

[SlickHolden]

AWD is banned in V8 racing, unless im mistaken, it was banned because noone wanted nissan to win races?
Im sure if toyota started dominating they would make up a reason to ban their car, so whats the point them trying really.
their investment in F1 seems to be starting to gain momentum

There going to enter into Nascars and they don't have a RWD car.