 Jarno Trulli driving the TF108 at the2008 British Grand Prix | |||||||||||
| Category | Formula One | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Toyota | ||||||||||
| Designer(s) |
| ||||||||||
| Predecessor | TF107 | ||||||||||
| Successor | TF109 | ||||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||||
| Chassis | Moulded carbon fibre and honeycomb constructionmonocoque | ||||||||||
| Suspension (front) | Carbon-fibre double wishbone arrangement, with carbon-fibre track rod and pushrod | ||||||||||
| Suspension (rear) | Carbon-fibre double wishbone arrangement, with carbon-fibre track rod and pushrod | ||||||||||
| Engine | ToyotaRVX-08 2398 ccV8 19,000 RPM Limited naturally-aspiratedmid-engine | ||||||||||
| Transmission | Toyota/WilliamsF1/Xtrac collaboration 7-speed unit plus reverse | ||||||||||
| Power | 750 hp @ 19,000 rpm[1] | ||||||||||
| Fuel | Esso | ||||||||||
| Lubricants | Esso | ||||||||||
| Brakes | Brembo callipers and master cylinders, Hitco material (carbon/carbon) | ||||||||||
| Tyres | Bridgestone Potenza BBS forged magnesium | ||||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||||
| Notable entrants | PanasonicToyota Racing | ||||||||||
| Notable drivers | 11. Jarno Trulli12.  Timo Glock | ||||||||||
| Debut | 2008 Australian Grand Prix | ||||||||||
| Last event | 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix | ||||||||||
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TheToyota TF108 was aFormula One car designed and engineered byToyota to compete in the2008 Formula One season. The chassis was designed byPascal Vasselon,John Litjens andMark Gillan with the engine being designed byLuca Marmorini andNoritoshi Arai overseeing the entire project. The car's best finish was second in theHungarian Grand Prix, driven byTimo Glock.
The 2008 Toyota challenger, the Toyota TF108, was launched on 10 January 2008, at the team's factory in Cologne, Germany.[2]
Jarno Trulli was retained as one of the team's drivers for the 2008 season and was joined by formerJordan driverTimo Glock. The Toyota test and reserve driver for the 2008 season was Japanese driverKamui Kobayashi.[3]
The Toyota team let driverRalf Schumacher go at the end of the2007 Formula One season, Schumacher then signed a contract withMercedes-Benz in theDTM for the2008 season.[4]
The TF108 had a new longer wheelbase to aid stability and a totally new aero package that was hoped to give the car great potential. It was not an evolution of the previous year'sTF107; instead it had been designed from an evolution of theTF106, used for the 2006 season. Pascal Vasselon, the team's chassis general manager noted that the "primary aerodynamic design philosophy for the TF108 is geared towards optimising the entire package".[5]
The car also had the new for 2008 higher headrests around the drivers head and also had the new standardMcLaren Electronic Systems ECU that prevented the car having driver aids.
Toyota had adopted a McLarenMP4-22-like bridge on the front wing,[6] and also moved the rear view mirrors outboard, like Ferrari and Renault.[7] The TF108 had also had a major focus on cleaning the air flow around the front suspension, maximising the zero keel concept of the front suspension.[8]
At theFrench Grand Prix, the car ran a black stripe along the nosecone to commemorate the life of former boss,Ove Andersson, who had died earlier that month.
At theBritish Grand Prix, the car ran with a special Batman livery, the logo featured on the sidepods and rear wing. The team signed a deal withWarner Brothers to promote the new film,The Dark Knight, which was released on 25 July.[9]
Timo Glock was fastest[10] in testing at Jerez on 17 January, whilst test driver Kamui Kobayashi was 7th fastest on the same day.
Toyota and Ferrari had been the only teams in 2008 to test outside the common test tracks in Spain (Valencia,Jerez and theCircuit de Catalunya), having chosen to test in sunnier conditions in Bahrain from the 4th to 6 February and 9th until 11 February 2008.[11]
Later in the month of February, Toyota, alongside Ferrari, returned to the Circuit de Catalunya to finish off their preparations for the season opener inMelbourne. Toyota rolled out a new aero package,[12] with Pascal Vasselon saying that "The new aerodynamics package we brought here is a clear step forward". The very next day, Jarno Trulli completed the day with a time of 1.20.801, fastest overall,Red Bull-Renault driverDavid Coulthard was second with a time of 01:21.258 on the same day.[13]
The TF108 marked an improvement of form for Toyota. Trulli scored points in 10 of the 18 races, with a 3rd place in France the highlight of his season. Teammate Glock finished in the points at 6 races including 2nd in Hungary. With a total of 56 points, Toyota scored more points in 2008 then the last 2 seasons combined. Both Trulli and Glock were retained for 2009.
(key) (results inbold indicate pole position)
| Year | Team | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Panasonic Toyota Racing | ToyotaV8 | B | AUS | MAL | BHR | ESP | TUR | MON | CAN | FRA | GBR | GER | HUN | EUR | BEL | ITA | SIN | JPN | CHN | BRA | 56 | 5th | |
| Trulli | Ret | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 16 | 13 | Ret | 5 | Ret | 8 | ||||||
| Glock | Ret | Ret | 9 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 4 | 11 | 12 | Ret | 2 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 4 | Ret | 7 | 6 |
