<< Prev Page 3 of 3 During the official test, the three cars placed 2nd, 5th and 10th. The quickest of the trio also qualified second behind the quickest of the Mercedes-Benz CLK-LMs. Among the other rivals were Porsche with a GT1 car and BMW with an open LMP machine. During the race, an accident ended race of the quickest GT-One early. One of the remaining cars ran second when in the final hour a transmission failure prompted a painful retirement. The surviving GT-One eventually crossed the finish line in ninth.
Toyota returned to Le Mans the following year when GT1 was replaced by the similar LMGTP class. The three cars were further refined and proved even quicker. They qualified first, second and eighth. In the race one car was eliminated due to an accident, while one of the other two looked set to clinch the long desired victory until a puncture in the dying seconds robbed the Japanese company once again of the win. The sole survivor, finished second behind a BMW and also placed first in the LMGTP class.
After another fruitless campaign, Toyota once again withdrew from sports car racing for an adventure in Formula 1. In more recent years, the Japanese company returned to the sport for an exciting fight for Le Mans honours with Audi and now also Porsche. At the time of writing, Toyota repeated the GT-One's pole position with the latest TS040, which may finally bring the much desired victory. Despite missing out on the Le Mans win, the GT-One is still considered one of the great sports racers of its era. << Prev Page 3 of 3
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During the official test, the three cars placed 2nd, 5th and 10th. The quickest of the trio also qualified second behind the quickest of the Mercedes-Benz CLK-LMs. Among the other rivals were Porsche with a GT1 car and BMW with an open LMP machine. During the race, an accident ended race of the quickest GT-One early. One of the remaining cars ran second when in the final hour a transmission failure prompted a painful retirement. The surviving GT-One eventually crossed the finish line in ninth.