01/01/2008
NEWS STORY
Toyota team boss, Tadashi Yamashina, has revealed that he has two years in which to turn the Japanese outfit's fortunes around, or else.
In an end-of-year statement, Yamashina, who took over as Team Principal from Tsutomu Tomita at the end of June, admits that his main task is to make the team stronger and to improve the level of organization. "My job is to mobilize the resources to achieve that," he says. "I have been given two more years."
Yamashina fails to say whether it is he or indeed the Toyota F1 project that has been given the deadline, however, the fact is that although there was an improvement in 2007, certainly compared to 2006, the Cologne-based outfit continues to flounder in the lower reaches of the midfield, out-performed by teams that can only dream of a similar budget.
While the team led home bitter rivals Honda in the 2007 Constructors' Championship, this has more to do with the 'Myearthdream' outfit's abysmal failure than Toyota's progress. With Ross Brawn now at the helm, Honda's 2008 challenge should be an altogether different matter, certainly as far as Toyota is concerned.
"Since I joined the team I have been working at building up an organization that can function well even without the presence of a Technical Director," said Yamashina. "In the past we had functioned according to the European-style Formula 1 team structure where everything is controlled by one strong character. And it was undeniable that this system helped us grow faster at the beginning of our Formula 1 participation.
"However as the team grew and Formula 1 technology became ever more highly advanced, for example, with the more frequent use of CFD (computational fluid dynamics), it became apparent we needed to review our system to make a step forward to become one of the top teams. We had already experienced a similar situation in the development of mass production cars at Toyota Motor Corporation, where one strong Chief Engineer led the production of road cars. However, as the cars became more technologically complex we found this style to be limiting.
"When we initially implemented the new Toyota way into Panasonic Toyota Racing, which involved free access to all the information within the team and decision-making processes which could be made without a Technical Director, some of the personnel accustomed to the old European system had difficulty making the adjustment. We fully understood this because they were so accustomed to the traditional system used in most race teams. It took about six months for the new Toyota way to be accepted and it was finally established as the 2007 season began.
"We have placed two key figures at the centre of car development," he continues, "Senior General Manager Chassis, Pascal Vasselon, and Senior General Manager Engine, Luca Marmorini. We deliberately use the word 'centre' because instead of being restricted to the expertise of a single leader these two managers are in the position to use the collective talents and skills of all the team members. Since the beginning of this year our policy of no longer having a system controlled by a single person has been introduced by many other Formula 1 teams. And we believe this will become a major trend in Formula 1 where increasingly advanced technologies are being introduced at a rapid rate."
"This development project at TMG is supported by Noritoshi Arai, Director Technical Co-ordination. Arai's role as a liaison between Higashi-Fuji Technical Center in Japan and the TMG factory is extremely important, as many aspects of an auto manufacturer's leading technology are now used in the development of Formula 1 cars.
For example, as of this year one of the people from the aero department always accompanies the race team and test team because the practical application of new parts is not always easy to visualize in the factory. The new system of having a closer relationship between the wind tunnel personnel and the test and race teams helps avoid costly mistakes and time-wasting situations when developing new parts.
Reflecting on the 2007 season, he says: "This season was dominated by two top teams and there were close battles among those who followed. We were able to close the gap between the top two teams to almost 0.7 second from over 1 second in mid-season. We made a special effort to move forward with development for the Japanese Grand Prix, which was taking place at Fuji Speedway for the first time in three decades.
"Actually, from the results of wind tunnel testing, we were expecting the special specification for Fuji to close the gap with the top teams to 0.5 seconds," he admits. "We were certainly close to a podium finish, although in the end the difference widened because of the many varied factors we encountered, and by the end of the season the gap between us and the top teams was again almost 1 second."
With regards specifics, he says: "I think the biggest factor was aerodynamics, as it can be developed even further. Although we were able to achieve more than we targeted at the beginning of the year, 2008 will be the year to capitalize on what we have achieved this year for more improvement.
"Another important factor this year was that we failed to adapt to the change of tyres efficiently. Looking back over the season, we can see that our car was not hard enough on the tyres. It is better to be tough on the tyres and be faster. We can think of some reasons for this situation. Perhaps our car was too unstable because of the big change in downforce under braking, or we were too focused on aerodynamics and suspension design was compromised, and so on. By using tyres with very different characteristics this year, our sixth in Formula 1, we were able to learn a great deal to help make a step forward toward the future."
And as for the drivers, both of whom appeared to be 'going through the motions' for much of the year, he says: "We are not in the position to question our drivers' performances, because we couldn't provide them with the best cars. During the first half of the season we couldn't set up Ralf's car to suit him and from mid season, we couldn't prepare the brakes to suit Jarno. Obviously it is true that the drivers made some mistakes, but we had a great deal of work to do before we could question their performances."
The fact remains that despite its vast resources the team continues to fail to make its mark, seemingly destined to fight it out in the lower reaches of the midfield rather than making BMW-style improvements and thereby closing in on the big guns.
Furthermore, the team's methodical approach to Formula One, not to mention its failure to take a risk, certainly when it comes to drivers, leaves it looking highly corporate and lacking in passion, especially when compared to the likes of Super Aguri.
While Yamashina looks ahead to the next two years, many are wondering why Toyota hasn't simply formed a more meaningful, lasting, relationship with Williams, a relationship that both parties would ultimately benefit from.