Toyota TR010 Hybrid: Flat out for 2026

Toyota has laid its cards on the table. With the TR010 Hybrid, Toyota presents its thoroughly reworked Hypercar for the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship season and for Le Mans.

Not a revolution, but a strategic restart. A new name, a new appearance, revised aerodynamics, and a striking repositioning of Toyota’s entire racing identity. All with one clear goal: to return to the top at Le Mans and in the WEC standings.

After a 2025 season in which Toyota finished second in the constructors’ championship but once again missed out on the main trophies, the message is clear: consolidation is no longer enough. The TR010 Hybrid must once again make Toyota the benchmark in the Hypercar era.

From GR010 to TR010: more than a name change

The TR010 Hybrid is the third major evolution of the Hypercar that Toyota has fielded since 2021. While earlier updates in 2022 and 2023 were mostly reactive (driven by regulation changes such as tyre dimensions and drivability adjustments), this is the first truly intentional redevelopment within the LMH rule set.

Important: this is not an entirely new car. The TR010 remains based on the GR010 Hybrid platform, but everything that could be optimized within the tightly defined Hypercar rules has indeed been redesigned.

This immediately makes this update fundamentally different from its predecessors.

Why only now? An evolution delayed and strengthened

Internally, this update was actually scheduled for 2025. But external factors got in the way. Because of the mandatory switch from Sauber’s homologation wind tunnel to Windshear (USA), all 2025 cars had to be homologated early. For Toyota, that was simply impossible. In hindsight, the delay turned out to be a blessing.

After another lost 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2025, it became clear that more was needed than a minor fine‑tune. Toyota took extra time, re-evaluated the concept, and decided to go further than originally planned.

Or as vice president Kazuki Nakajima put it: “Le Mans 2025 convinced us to go further.”

Visually radical: Toyota abandons black

The most striking aspect of the TR010 Hybrid? Its appearance. Toyota says goodbye to the understated matte black and decisively opts for a red‑white‑black livery. A clear nod to the iconic 1998 GT‑One TS020, and at the same time a symbolic reconnection with Toyota’s endurance DNA.

But it doesn’t stop with colour:

• a completely redesigned nose section

• new headlights clearly inspired by Toyota road cars

• revised sidepods

• a new rear wing with more aggressive endplates

• a reworked engine cover and rear deck

This is without doubt Toyota’s most visually impactful update since the beginning of the Hypercar era.

Aerodynamics above all (but trapped within the BoP cage)

Under the skin, silence. Toyota deliberately shares no figures on downforce, drag, or mechanical changes. Not because nothing has changed (quite the opposite), but because the Balance of Performance system makes any open bragging pointless.

What is clear:

• the focus was almost exclusively on aerodynamic consistency

• fewer balance fluctuations over a stint

• more predictable behaviour across different speeds

• easier to drive under pressure, especially at night and in traffic

Top speed? Still a sensitive point at Le Mans, where Toyota has noticeably lost ground on the straights in recent years. But margins are small: the regulations enforce a narrow drag window, meaning structural solutions simply aren’t possible. In short: Toyota isn’t chasing peak performance, but control, stability, and driver confidence.

The big reset behind the scenes: Gazoo Racing disappears from WEC

Equally important as the car itself is what happens around it. With the TR010, Toyota also introduces a new team identity.

• Toyota Gazoo Racing (WEC) → Toyota Racing

• Motorsport headquarters in Cologne → Toyota Racing GmbH

Gazoo Racing does continue to exist, but will now focus on:

• WRC (GR Yaris Rally1)

• customer racing (GT3, GT4, Rally2)

• talent development

The Hypercar project is once again placed directly under Toyota itself. Less marketing label, more factory team. That says a lot about how seriously Toyota is taking this comeback.

What does this mean for 2026?

The TR010 Hybrid will make its race debut at the Qatar 1812km in March. There we’ll immediately see whether this evolution is enough to:

• challenge Ferrari again

• convert the drivability improvements into race pace

• finally bring a Le Mans win back to Toyota

Toyota has already won Le Mans twice with the GR010. But in a field that gets stronger every year, standing still is moving backwards. This TR010 isn’t a gamble, it’s a deliberate repositioning within a brutally regulated playing field.