Ivan Vicario Martin
Since this month of May, Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe will allow you to visit its collection of racing cars. It is a complete museum, located in Cologne (Germany), that collects the main competition cars of the brand since 1973. We are talking about the cars with which it has taken part in the different international events, that is, there are not those that have participated in Japan national or regional competitions. There is no shortage of trophies accumulated by the brand over the years.
Until now, the Toyota museum could only be visited by invitation, so very few lucky people have been able to enjoy it. From May 11, it can be seen, although yes, it will have to be done in a group and on specific dates. A deluge of applications is expectedSo, if you want to go, you better start preparing your trip.
And it is that both the number of tickets and visiting hours are limited. The guided tour lasts 90 minutes and is reserved for groups of up to 24 people, with a total cost of 420 euros. That is, if we go 24 friends, we will go to 17,5 euros per person. At its inauguration, on the 11th, there will be three afternoon schedules available. The third visit of the day will include a special surprise, since the 8-liter V3,6 engine with two turbos of the remembered will be launched Toyota GT One.
Tickets can be obtained through Eventimwhere we can choose both the date and time of visit. The location lives up to expectations, as it is located under one of TGR-E's two wind tunnels.
WHAT CARS TO SEE AT THE TOYOTA MUSEUM
The collection of competition cars from the Japanese brand on display is of the highest level. You have to remember Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe was born on the structure created by Ove Andersson in 1973, first as Andersson Motorsport and later as Toyota Team Europe. The Swedish pilot's team served to develop the international sports activities of the Japanese firm.
Thus, the cars in the Toyota museum are those that the Cologne team has run, starting with those that competed in rallies. Here we find models like Celica Twincam Turbo, Group B that won the Safari between 1984 and 1986. There is no shortage of Celica GT-Four and 4WD with which Carlos Sainz He won his two world championships or the last Corolla.
There are also all single-seaters with which the brand participated in F1 between 2002 and 2009, before his abrupt withdrawal. Also included are the 101 TF2001 test car or those used as mules to test Pirelli tires in 2010 and 2011.
HISTORY OF LE MANS
Perhaps the most interesting part is the one that includes all the cars with which the brand has participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the last decades. The sample starts with the Group C TS010, which participated in Le Mans in 1992 and 1993. It continues with the TS020, better known as Gt-one, including the only street version made to comply with the GT1 homologation.
Exhibition continue with the LMP1, starting with the TS030Hybrid, with which the brand returned to resistance in 2012, and the subsequent TS040Hybrid. From here, the winners of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with the TS050Hybrid that expired in 2018, 2019 and 2020, the first two years with Fernando Alonso as a pilot. The auction is the current Hypercar, the GR010 Hybrid, which has won the French test in 2021 and 2022 and which dominates the world championship with an iron hand.
Of all of them, only the winner of the 2020 edition is missing, which is permanently on loan to the 24 Hours of Le Mans museum. All winning units in La Sarthe they are kept as they finished the test. By the way, after the inauguration, they will travel to France for the Le Mans Centenary celebration, so they won't be able to see each other until after the French race.
In the coming months, new proposals will be offered to value the legacy of Toyota in racing. For now, there are dates available until September 29although these are very limited.
