There is quite a volume of information on the Toyota GT One-off road car, some of which may be confusing. The bottom line, however, remains that this car is one of the greatest GTs of its era and has received as much acclaim from critics and enthusiasts.
The GT-One came around timely enough for the Le Mans 1998. All the GT-Ones presented finished 2nd, 5th, and 10th best times easily getting over all the custom-built prototypes classified for the superior class. In the entire race week, the fleet of three cars performed exemplary.
The car created by Toyota Team Europe (TTE) carried a V8 twin-turbo engine previously found in cars under Group C races. With its 60bhp and a 6-speed sequential semi-automatic gearbox, this car was a formidable competitor to most of its contemporaries.
The GT-One was discontinued in 2000 and the TTE team was charged with the formation of the Toyota F1 team. It also marked Toyota’s break from Le Mans, a journey that had been undertaken since 1985, although it was resumed in 2012 when the TS030 Hybrid came around.
The GT-One made 90 laps before it an explosive tire puncture that caused massive damage. Nonetheless, the GT-One still managed to be an instinctively good car in its era with a unique design and a powerful powertrain.
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