WRC legend Juha Kankkunen to drive hydrogen Toyota rally car
The car has been extensively developed at the Toyota WRC team's headquarters in Jyvaskyla, Finland, and is based around its current GR Yaris Rally2 car – albeit fitted with an internal combustion engine fuelled by compressed hydrogen.
Advertisement
Toyota previously showcased the technology in the WRC at Ypres Rally Belgium in 2022, when Kankkunen and then Toyota president Akio Toyoda jumped behind the wheel. Since then, the concept has undergone further development to create the current iteration of the car, which will make its debut in Finland.
Toyota has heavily invested in developing hydrogen-powered race cars as one of the options for the future of motorsport in a carbon neutral society. The Japanese car maker has been competing with hydrogen-powered cars since 2021 when it raced a modified Corolla in the Super Taikyu series in Japan, with Toyota's WRC team principal Jari-Matti Latvala among the roster of drivers.
Last month, Toyota unveiled a hydrogen-powered prototype test car as the next step on its road to racing with the alternative fuel at the Le Mans 24 Hours.
Juha Kankkunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Juha Kankkunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
The GR LH2 has been built at Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe in the German city of Cologne around a chassis from its GR010 Hybrid Le Mans Hypercar. No details of the engine or hybrid system, which have been developed at Toyota's Higashi-Fuji Technical Centre in Japan, were revealed.
Advertisement
In addition to the debut of the GR Yaris Rally2 H2 Concept, Toyota will field a standard GR Yaris Rally2 for Latvala to contest his home event in Finland. The 18-time WRC rally winner contested the WRC2 class at the event last year, piloting a Toyota to second in class and sixth overall.
'I'm really excited to make my 20th Rally Finland start, driving the GR Yaris Rally2 together with Janni Hussi,' said Latvala.
'It's Finnish rally tradition to mark a big birthday by entering our home event, so thank you Akio Toyoda for allowing me to realise this special achievement in the year I turned 40.
'It's also a chance for me to stay sharp at the wheel of a modern rally car as I provide my feedback into the development of this and other cars for TGR-WRT.'
Read Also:
Toyota unveils hydrogen-powered test car at Le Mans 24 Hours
Toyota to race hydrogen car alongside existing hypercar in 2028 WEC
To read more Motorsport.com articles visit our website.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Why Toyota Motor Rallied This Week
Key Points The U.S. and Japan struck a trade deal, resulting in a 15% tariff. The terms were much better than expected, so much so that U.S. carmakers complained. U.S. carmakers will have to pay even higher rates on imported input costs and components. 10 stocks we like better than Toyota Motor › Shares of Toyota Motor (NYSE: TM) rallied 11.8% this week, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Toyota didn't have any major company-specific news this week, as it doesn't report Q2 earnings until Aug. 7. However, there was big news on the trade front, with the Trump administration and Japan inking a trade deal that would put milder-than-expected tariffs on Japanese imports, including Toyota cars. Will recent tariffs actually give Toyota a leg up on U.S. automakers? On Tuesday, the Trump administration struck a trade deal with Japan, which would lower the threatened "Liberation Day" tariff rate from 24% to 15%. While that might not seem like that much of a decrease, cars are high-ticket items, so the new tariff duties could make thousands of dollars' difference to the end price consumers may have to pay. Even though it appears Toyota cars made abroad will face tariffs going forward, the stock went up anyway. Not only that, but U.S. carmakers complained to the administration that the lower rates now put them at a disadvantage. This is because even American automakers import some of their steel and aluminum, which will now be tariffed at 50%, while other components, even for U.S.-manufactured cars, are imported from overseas, and will also be tariffed. And while part of the Japan deal involves removing restrictions on U.S. exports to Japan, U.S. automakers don't appear to believe the deal will result in any new market share gains there. Will U.S. automakers benefit from the trade negotiations? Toyota is the second-largest carmaker in the world, both in terms of global and U.S. market share, so the all-important final tariff figure could have significant consequences for U.S. auto markets. There are a lot of moving parts with regard to tariffs, however, as Toyota makes cars all over the world, with inputs and other sub-components also coming from various places. To further grasp the total consequences of the deal, investors in either Toyota stock or the "Big Three" U.S. carmakers should keep their ears out for more clarity when Toyota reports earnings in August. Should you invest $1,000 in Toyota Motor right now? Before you buy stock in Toyota Motor, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Toyota Motor wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,774!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,064,942!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,040% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 182% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025 Billy Duberstein and/or his clients have no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Why Toyota Motor Rallied This Week was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Prediction: 1 Stock Will Be Worth More Than Tesla 10 Years From Now
Key Points Toyota already generates three times more revenue than Tesla and produces superior cash flow from operations. At the same time, Toyota trades at just 7.2 times earnings, compared with Tesla's P/E ratio of 183. If Tesla loses its ultra-premium valuation and gets priced like other automakers, its market cap advantage would evaporate quickly. 10 stocks we like better than Toyota Motor › Switch Auto Insurance and Save Today! Affordable Auto Insurance, Customized for You The Insurance Savings You Expect Great Rates and Award-Winning Service Electric vehicle maker Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) has taken Wall Street by storm in the past six years. Starting from a stock price of $17 and a $46.2 billion market cap in July, 2019, Elon Musk's empire made electric cars cool and expanded into a broader alternative energy business with a side gig in literal rocket science. Today, Tesla has a trillion-dollar market cap and a stock price of $332 per share. Early shareholders enjoyed a 1,830% return so far. However, Tesla doesn't dominate the newfangled category of electric vehicles anymore. Other carmakers have joined the eco-friendly transportation market, and Tesla's skyrocketing sales growth has fizzled out. At the same time, classic auto giant Toyota Motor (NYSE: TM) is adapting to the revamped car market, applying its decades of engineering know-how and ultraefficient operations to new issues. Tesla's market value is about five times Toyota's right now. Believe it or not, but I think Toyota will have a larger market footprint than Tesla again -- probably before 2035. Toyota is already a giant Here's the thing. Toyota is already larger than Tesla in many ways. The Japanese company boasted $315 billion of global sales in fiscal year 2025, which ended on March 31. Tesla's sales stopped at $95.7 billion in the same period. And it's not just top-line sales. Toyota's full-year cash from operations were $24.3 billion versus Tesla's $16.8 billion, for example. It's really just the stock that looks small in the context of Tesla's intimidating presence. Now, you should know that Toyota is more than just a car maker. The company is a proper Japanese Keiretsu, with market-leading operations spanning many industries. The resulting conglomerate includes auto parts suppliers, a banking division that accounted for 8% of Toyota's total sales last year, and more. Toyota had 585 subsidiaries and 165 joint ventures at the end of fiscal 2025. It's a sophisticated business empire with global scale and innovative ambitions. These days, the company is restructuring itself into a mobility company. The idea is to help people transport themselves, their physical goods, various types of information, and energy, all under the Toyota brand. Innovative long-term plans The company is humming on every cylinder right now. Sales have grown in all four of its geographic segments for the last three years. Its vehicles may not be as flashy as a Tesla Cybertruck, but Toyota's products are renowned for their quality and reliability in a wide range of driving conditions. The company was an early player in hybrid cars, introducing the Prius way back in 1997. Toyota is now building battery and electric vehicle factories around the world, focusing on its largest markets in Japan and North America. But that's not the only alternative fuel system up Toyota's sleeve. It is also doing heavy research and market development for fuel cell vehicles, aiming to make hydrogen-powered cars a common solution with a full-fledged refueling infrastructure. At this early stage, most of Toyota's fuel cell efforts focus on heavy vehicles, such as trucks and buses. Passenger cars and SUVs should join the party over time. Toyota will climb out of Wall Street's bargain bin someday So Toyota is ready and willing to compete in the increasingly electric car industry of the 2020s and beyond. This effort will continue in the long run, cementing Toyota as a world-class designer and manufacturer of eco-friendly transportation tools -- or mobility solutions, as the company likes to think of its four new target segments. Meanwhile, Toyota's stock trades at low valuation ratios such as 7.2 times earnings and 0.7 times sales. Tesla shares, on the other hand, are still market darlings with a P/E ratio of 183 and P/S at 11.2. Again, Tesla is a much smaller business than Toyota and its formerly impressive sales growth has slowed down dramatically in recent quarters. If that trend continues, Wall Street will probably cancel Tesla's sky-high ratios and start treating the company like any other carmaker. If that level playing field ever develops, Tesla's stock will look small next to Toyota's -- just like Toyota's financial figures already outclass Tesla's today. None of this will happen overnight, of course. But unless these companies make drastic changes to their business models, I expect Toyota's stock to be worth more than Tesla's by 2035. And Toyota should be a serious supplier of gas-free vehicles by then. Should you buy stock in Toyota Motor right now? Before you buy stock in Toyota Motor, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Toyota Motor wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,774!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,064,942!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,040% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 182% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025 Anders Bylund has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Prediction: 1 Stock Will Be Worth More Than Tesla 10 Years From Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
Forbes
7 hours ago
- Forbes
Joe Gibbs Racing Re-Signs Denny Hamlin To A Multiyear Extension
Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Mavis Tire Toyota, poses with the winner sticker on his car in ... More victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400 at Dover International Speedway on April 28, 2024 in Dover, Delaware. (Photo by) Joe Gibbs Racing has inked a multiyear extension with Denny Hamlin to continue to pilot the No. 11 Toyota for the forseeable future. 'Joe and everyone at JGR are family to me and have done so much for me over the last 20 years,' Hamlin said in a press release. 'We've had a solid start to this season and we have been able to welcome some great new partners this year, so there are a lot of exciting things happening with our team not only now, but also into the future.' The three-time Daytona 500 winner is one of the most loved (and hated) drivers in Nascar. He is known for bold opinions off the track with his Actions Detrimental Podcast on Dirty Mo Radio. On the track, Hamlin is an aggressive racer with 58 career Cup Series wins. 'I really appreciate Denny and everything he has meant to our organization,' Joe Gibbs, owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, said. 'It is just really special when you think about everything we've experienced over the past 20 years, from that first moment when J.D. (Gibbs) recognized his talent at a test session, until now. It is remarkable in any sport to compete at the level Denny has for this long and we are thrilled he has been able to spend his entire career with us.' Hamlin's No. 11 team has undergone a visual change over the past few years, as FedEx slowly stepped away from its full-season sponsorship package. FedEx decreased its sponsorship to have only 13 races last year before fully backing away from its Nascar partnership this year. But Joe Gibbs Racing has completely rebranded the No. 11 car, inking major deals with new partners, including Progressive, National Debt Relief, ampm, and King's Hawaiian. At 44 years old, Hamlin is the veteran face of the Nascar Cup Series. He has been with Joe Gibbs Racing for over 20 years, signing with the team in 2003. JGR did not say how long the extension is for. Hamlin also co-owns 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan. The team is in the midst of a complicated anti-trust lawsuit against Nascar right now, and the ownership group is attempting to figure out its path forward if Nascar revokes the team's charters.
