TOYOTA GAZOO Racing (TGR) and Lexus plan to exhibit at Tokyo Auto Salon 2024＊1 to be held at Makuhari Messe (in Chiba City, Japan) for three days from January 12 to 14, 2024. Displays are to be held under the banner of “Getting more passionate about cars with car lovers”, and Toyota Motor Corporation Chairman Akio Toyoda, a.k.a. Morizo, is to speak at a press conference scheduled to begin at 9:30 on January 12. The TGR and Lexus displays are to feature vehicles and parts under such themes as “Beloved cars”, “Customization”, and “Motorsports”. During the event, TGR and Lexus also plan to hold talk sessions featuring racing drivers and development engineers, as well as demo runs. Details of the vehicle and other displays, along with information on the talk sessions, demo runs, and others are available on the following special website.
https://toyotagazooracing.com/eventexhibition/tokyoautosalon/
■“Beloved cars” and “Customization”
Under the themes of “Beloved cars” and “Customization”, Morizo and TGR intend to uniquely express the joy of owning an automobile—the only industrial product that is prefixed (in Japanese) by “beloved” among many industrial products. Also, exhibited are to be both GR and Lexus new production models and vehicles customized under the supervision of professional drivers, as well as GR parts, including GR Heritage Parts, due for sales launch from 2024, and other items.
■“Motorsports”
In addition to vehicles that raced in the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), in which the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team won its third successive triple crown in 2023, and in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), in which TGR won its fifth consecutive double title in 2023, the “TGR TEAM au TOM’S” No. 36, which won the 2023 Super GT, and the “Kuo VANTELIN TEAM TOM’S” No. 37, which won the 2023 Japanese Super Formula Championship, are also to be on display. They are to be joined by the CP ROOKIE PRIUS CNF-HEV GR concept, which raced in the Idemitsu Super Endurance Southeast Asia Trophy 2023 (Thailand 10-hour Endurance Race) in December 2023.
■Talk sessions and outdoor events
The talk sessions are to include inside stories about the development of a new production model and are to feature drivers such as Norihiko Katsuta, who competes in the Japanese Rally Championship and Hiroaki Ishiura, who competes in the Super Taikyu Series and SUPER GT＊2.
Outdoors, a gymkhana duel between the AE86 BEV Concept, which was first unveiled at Tokyo Auto Salon 2023 as a concept car themed on making one’s personal car carbon neutral, and Keiichi Tsuchiya’s AE86 Super Mame-go is to be held on January 13 from noon, with Tsuchiya and professional driver Masahiro Sasaki behind the wheels. Also, on January 14 from noon, Norihiko Katsuta and WRC driver Takamoto Katsuta are scheduled to give demo runs of rally vehicles, including the GR YARIS Rally1 HYBRID. Details are to be released on the special site as they become available.
＊1 A customized car event; January 12: business day (industry and press), January 13 and 14: general public days)
＊2 Please note that the personalities making appearances are subject to change.
