Toyota - Better or worse than last season?

[Yoong Montoya]

We haven't really seen much of them this year. But do you think their performance is better or worse than last year?

[MichaelH]

I'd say about the same. Sporadically sparkling, sporadically horrendous, mostly 2/3 of the way down the grid. Bizarre.

[Mr V]

Worse imo. Just goes to show that changing the drivers wasn't really necessary.

[Logrence]

I think they've done better - they have the sparkle of doing better than they are, rather than just being terrible.

[neilap]

Well last year they seemed to be quicker than many teams including BAR and Jordan. Both teams now completely outrank them. IMO they look worse. Even on circuits that are supposed to suit the "2nd most powerful motor in F1" (ask David Hobbs)they still have been very much off the pace. I have never seen someone get lapped 4 times. OP made history in my book last weekend.

[Lee Janotta]

Worse, because they don't have an excuse anymore. They're not even that fast in a straight line this year!

[Armco Bender]

Have I ever suggested they should get Scott Dixon over to drive?,then we'd see the red and white snails at the front end of the grid.

[bcobbus]

I think they are a little better but for the most part still on the same learning curve. Last year witt them being a new team there was lots of hype and hoopla, this year they habe been more reserved it seams because of less media coverage. Either way, they are still learning and none of the great teams had instant glory, they had to work it and go through down times...

[climb]

Considering what kind of company is there behind this team, even being the same as last year must be seen as a backward step.
They should have improved strongly compared to last year poor performances, and this, with one more year experience, is to be evaluated negatively.

[steve nielsen]

worse, for a team with the same budget and amount of staff that Ferrari have they really should be doing better.

[f1manoz]

About the same as last year. Reliability problems, a few good races, a few shockers. Generally mid-field.

[shiny side up!]

I voted 'worse'. Surely this year's car is quicker than last year's, so I guess their performance increased from that point of view, but relative to the rest of the grid they haven't been so impressive this year...

[BootsOntheSide]

Toyota's corporate top brass are starting to learn some hard lessons. F1 is expensive, but above all it requires a structured team of talented individuals, gelling as a team, and not looking over their shoulder for a P45. Like Jaguar, they have got all of this wrong.

A company with three times the turnover of Honda, God knows how many times that of Fiat, let alone Jordan, should not be losing out to those companies for long. Effectively, this is their third year of F1, remember, so they can't talk about inexperience.

Da Matta looks quite useful, but the testing rules have hurt him. The big concern must be the excessive reliability issues, mainly on Panis' car, and Olivier's lacklustre results. Both Olivier and Cristiano are, on paper, better choices than Mika and Allan respectively, so they should've moved up.

On the other hand, BAR and Jaguar's improvement, coupled with Brazil's fluke Jordan win, have made things look worse than they are.

[JonesF1]

Anderson said at Monaco that they dont know whats wrong with the team. Theyre not any better then last year, the drivers are just better. When has Toyota ever done well in motorsports? LM when TWR built the cars, JGTC when TOMs won the championship. They cant do anything on their own.

Salo said team analyzers were telling him what his braking points should be! Japanese business culture and racing just dont mix.

[Super Tourer]

I think we will see Toyota suits on the prowl, around the paddock looking to strengthen the engineering side.

Mike Gascoyne the main target, who can sit back and wait for the right cheque, with the appropriate number of noughts on it - to appear.

[Yoong Montoya]

I think many people underestimate how hard it can be to get an F1 team together. Look at Ferrari, from nowhere in 1980 to the most dominant team since Mercedes in 2002. I don't know if it'll take Toyota that long to win a WDC, but they must be patient, otherwise they'll become another Jaguar.

[Yoong Montoya]

Originally posted by Armco Bender
Have I ever suggested they should get Scott Dixon over to drive?,then we'd see the red and white snails at the front end of the grid.

Nah, you'd need to resurect Senna to do that!

[Jay]

They have better drivers this year, but worse cars...

[John Turner]

Actually, given the effort they put in developing the cars, I think Salo and McNish, who I reckon are better drivers than they are given credit for, should have been kept on for a second racing season. We might have seen a more consistent development and improvement programme as well. As it is, relative to the other teams, Toyota have not impressed as they did last year.

[pole2pole]

I was at monaco and that toyota is so so loud. Toyota made a big mistake when they let McNish go.

[x_dt]

Toyota have the resources to get it right eventually. Bear in mind how long it took them to get to the top in CART (entered in 1996; didn't win a race until 2000).

[Mania]

Their engine is better for sure...though Brunner's chassis isent special once again..maybe if they beef up their aero and chassis department..they`d be much closer to the front. In Da Matta..they have a great driver and Panis..while being very unlucky..is still a pretty handy old hand...a much better driver line up than last year.