 Olivier Panis driving the TF103 at the2003 British Grand Prix | |||||||||
| Category | Formula One | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Toyota | ||||||||
| Designer(s) | Keizo Takahashi(Technical Director) Gustav Brunner(Chief Designer) René Hilhorst [ja](Head of Aerodynamics) | ||||||||
| Predecessor | TF102 | ||||||||
| Successor | TF104 | ||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||
| Chassis | carbon-fibre and honeycomb compositemonocoque | ||||||||
| Suspension (front) | Pushrod with Torsion bar | ||||||||
| Suspension (rear) | Pushrod with Torsion bar | ||||||||
| Engine | Toyota RVX-03 3.0-litre 72-degreeV10 naturally-aspiratedmid-engined | ||||||||
| Transmission | Toyota 7-speed, semi-automatic | ||||||||
| Power | 845 hp @ 18,400 rpm[1] | ||||||||
| Fuel | Esso | ||||||||
| Tyres | Michelin | ||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||
| Notable entrants | PanasonicToyota Racing | ||||||||
| Notable drivers | 20. Olivier Panis21.  Cristiano da Matta | ||||||||
| Debut | 2003 Australian Grand Prix | ||||||||
| Last event | 2003 Japanese Grand Prix | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Constructors' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
| Drivers' Championships | 0 | ||||||||
TheToyota TF103 was the car with which theToyota F1 team competed in the2003 Formula One season. The chassis was designed byGustav Brunner andRené Hilhorst withLuca Marmorini designing the engine. Unveiled on January 8, 2003 at thePaul Ricard circuit, its drivers were the FrenchmanOlivier Panis and BrazilianCristiano da Matta, the reigningCART FedEx Championship Series Champion from 2002.[2][3]
The TF103 was quite a conservative design, by the team's admission it was more of a 'logical evolution' from its predecessor theTF102. Lighter and with more downforce, the car was a joint effort between Gustav Brunner's design team andKeizo Takahashi, chief of Technical co-ordination.
The biggest improvement over the TF102 came with the engine, the RVX-03 had been tested for the first time in September 2002 and offered the team benefits twofold over the RVX-02; it was lighter, and provided more power. The engine was the brainchild of Italian designerLuca Marmorini.[4]
The TF103 stepped up a level in terms of performance too, with the car scoring a total of sixteen points between its drivers, da Matta outscoring Panis 10-6. Perhaps the most notable race involving the TF103 was atSilverstone for theBritish Grand Prix when both cars ran 1-2 for a time amidst the confusion brought about by atrack invader on the 11th lap.[5]
In the constructors standings, Toyota finished in eighth, still some way off the performance their massive budget should have allowed, but equally too, it was a notable improvement on their 2002 finish.[6]
(key)
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | TF103 | Toyota RVX-03V10 | M | AUS | MAL | BRA | SMR | ESP | AUT | MON | CAN | EUR | FRA | GBR | GER | HUN | ITA | USA | JPN | 16 | 8th | |
| Olivier Panis | Ret | Ret | Ret | 9 | Ret | Ret | 13 | 8 | Ret | 8 | 11 | 5 | Ret | Ret | Ret | 10 | ||||||
| Cristiano da Matta | Ret | 11 | 10 | 12 | 6 | 10 | 9 | 11 | Ret | 11 | 7 | 6 | 11 | Ret | 9 | 7 |
