TOYOTA LE MANS HYBRID
system and a four-wheel drive system have been developed for the TS030 and both have the capacitor storage in the passenger compartment. The rear-wheel system is mounted on the transmission casing and has been developed by Toyota group company, Denso, whilst the front motor, which seems to be the more experimental option, has been developed by Aisin AW. Both systems are being evaluated on the car and there is a complex web of trade offs as both have advantages and disadvantages. ‘Of course there is a direct
correlation between the front motor and the aero balance target,’ Vasselon points out. The front motor requires cooling and driveshafts influence the airflow on this critical part of the car. ‘We are still investigating. It’s a balance between pure performance and weight. We are not going to run at the same weight with the two systems, and it is part of the performance too, as with one of the systems you can either run over weight or with less ballast,’ he continues.
The TS030 chassis has clearly been designed to be able to accommodate the four-wheel drive system and the wheelbase and overall weight distribution has taken that into account. ‘When we use the rear system we have to put ballast in the front. The ACO does not limit the weight of the hybrid system, but it is difficult to keep to the 900kg, and the ballast is actually very small,’ explains Murata. Toyota is not totally happy
with the regulations as they stand. In early drafts the technical regulations permitted energy storage of 1MJ but, in the final regulations issued late in 2011, that figure was halved, largely thanks to Peugeot lobbying.
ENERGY RELEASE ‘The final details came late, but the framework of the rules was done a long time ago. We could prepare the car to go in that direction but it did not go exactly where we were expecting it to go,’ explains Vasselon, with an air of reluctant acceptance. ‘We were in favour of much bigger energy
release between corners, and we are a little bit disappointed that we only have 0.5MJ of storage, but we understand and accept the ACO decision. We wanted 1MJ, bigger energy release, bigger impact of the hybrid system on performance and, with our system, we are able to cover a range of energy releases.’ The system has three driver-
controlled modes, adjusted by a rotary switch on the steering wheel. Mode A sets up the hybrid system (and one assumes the engine map) for maximum performance, giving the TS030 the ability to easily drop below 3m30 around the circuit at Le Mans, whilst mode C is set for maximum fuel saving, allowing the car to run longer stints. Mode B is a halfway house between both. It is likely that there are other mapping adjustments that can be made to get the best traction from the systems also. Despite being so new, the
Toyota (and ORECA) engineers are already getting used to running the hybrid on track and Vasselon feels assured that the
monocoque itself has longevity, even though it is possible that next year another all-new car will roll out of Cologne. ‘We could do several seasons with the same monocoque,’ he says. ‘We improved our correlation in terms of mileage testing with the TF109 during the Pirelli tyre testing programme. We found out it was possible to do very long mileage with our monocoques, so it is still to be decided if we do a new design for next year or continue with this one.’ No one knows how long the TS030 will be racing. Even TMG do not know as the programme’s budget is signed off on an annual basis, but the enthusiasm for the project is clear. Toyota Europe turned one of the early TS030 test days into a PR event with a very large number of guests, showing that the car company is full engaged with the motorsport programme. The team, too, feels confident of the car’s capabilities. ‘Realistically, this year we want to be the fastest hybrid,’ smiled Vasselon, in a clear reference to Audi’s Sport’s new R18H.
“Realistically, this year we want to be the fastest hybrid”
www.racecar-engineering.com • Le Mans
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