abstract
| - Toyota's semi-works and aftermarket-tuning specialist Tom's first entered the Japan Grand Touring Championship (JGTC) in 1994. And starting with 1995, they also entered the GT500 class of the JGTC (Japan Grand Touring Championship) with a Toyota Supra, claiming the series title just two years later in 1997. The following year, Tom's changed the tires of its Supra from Bridgestone to Dunlop, and then in 1999 to Michelin, with whom they already had a relationship with in the JTCC. The combination of Tom's and Michelin that had shown overwhelming performance in the touring car championships are carried over to the JGTC, as the team immediately became a top contender for the title. To help try and gain a competitive advantage for their Supra over their rivals, Toyota introduced a fresh air system used in their high tech rally cars in the World Rally Championship (WRC), and it also developed a cooling/water injection system to the 3S-G turbocharged inline-4, increasing both its power and fuel economy. Unfortunately, in the following 2000 season, vehicle regulations for the JGTC were changed to restrict some of these performance advantages. And though the Tom's Supra had high potential, it had difficulties with aerodynamic settings and experienced unexpected problems in competition. At the end of the season, Masanori Sekiya, the team's ace driver, announced his retirement from racing, making the 2000-spec Tom's Supra the last car that the veteran driver and 24 Hours of Le Mans winner drove in his racing career.
|