Williams and Toyota deal finally confirmed

After months of speculation the news finally came out this morning. WilliamsF1 and Toyota have officially announced their agreement. Toyota will supply WilliamsF1 with their engines for the upcoming three years.

Under the terms of the agreement, WilliamsF1 will use the same specification of engine as Panasonic Toyota Racing. Both Williams and Panasonic Toyota Racing see significant benefits from a relationship based on robust on-track competition and close off-track co-operation.

On the announcement of the agreement, Toyota's Executive Vice President Kazuo Okamoto said, "We are delighted to be supplying Williams with engines from 2007 and working alongside a team rich in history and Formula One spirit."

John Howett, President of Toyota Motorsport, added: "We are pleased to be selected as the engine provider to Williams and look forward to establish a strong relationship with them. We look forward to both teams using each other as a comparative benchmark from which each can improve its own performance and to competing with each other at the front of the grid."

For his part, WilliamsF1's Team Principal, Frank Williams commented, "This agreement is the cornerstone of Williams' challenge for the World Championship. Toyota is an impressive and remarkable industrial giant, with the most phenomenal reputation for achieving the goals it sets itself. We are proud to have secured their support in our efforts to return to our competitive best."

[www.f1racing.nl]

I thinks it's good for Williams to have a big manufacturer in the team instead of Cosworth. But does anyone know whether the Toyota engine is actually better than the Cosworth?

problem with cosworth is they dont have the money for development so if there is a problem it takes time to fix it.

But their v8 is a good engine. I dont think its better than the toyota but probably not much worse who knows really. Williams have car probs this year so the engine has not really been able to shine.

Problem will come if Williams out perform TF.

In which I think is highly likley.

Its like if SA were out performing Honda. Its wrong, its embarrasing... I must say, TF seem pretty confident then.

---

"Trulli was slowing down like he wanted to have a picnic" LOL

Good news, i was concerned about Williams for next year as they have lost some sponsorship and haven't had any good results lately. This should encourage them for next season.

Maybe this the kick up the rear that Toyota need. I cant imagine the head honchos at Toyota being very happy if Williams start to outperform them.

chet Wrote:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem will come if Williams out perform TF.
>
> In which I think is highly likley.
>
> Its like if SA were out performing Honda. Its wrong, its
> embarrasing... I must say, TF seem pretty confident then.
>
>
But Chet I think the Toyota executives who signed this deal won't be actually in the F1 team but on the board. I was reading last months F1 Racing and they thought that the Williams Toyota deal might be a test of the Toyota F1 team by the Toyota board to see how good their F1 team is.

If Williams end up beating Toyota F1 to say a win or several wins and can consistently finish in the points above the Toyotas then the board know that the car must be the reason for the gap. F1 Racing rumoured that if Williams does indeed beat the Toyota team then Toyota might sell up and just supply engines.

Honda and Williams did fantastically well as engine supplier and team, yet Honda hasn't done as well as a team as it did as an engine supplier. Surely just supplying engines is cheaper than running the whole team so if Toyota gets beat by Williams then wouldn't the Toyota board see an opportunity to win races in someone elses car. Still win and get the glory for the engine but save a sod load of cash at the same time?

"F1 Racing rumoured that if Williams does indeed beat the Toyota team then Toyota might sell up and just supply engines."

Similar thing happened in the '80s with Renault. I think that's a good call because spending a fortune being uncompetitive makes no sense, that Toyota engine is good imo.

MarcLister Wrote:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> chet Wrote:
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Problem will come if Williams out perform TF.
> >
> > In which I think is highly likley.
> >
> > Its like if SA were out performing Honda. Its wrong, its
> > embarrasing... I must say, TF seem pretty confident then.
> >
> >
> But Chet I think the Toyota executives who signed this deal won't be
> actually in the F1 team but on the board. I was reading last months F1
> Racing and they thought that the Williams Toyota deal might be a test
> of the Toyota F1 team by the Toyota board to see how good their F1
> team is.
>
> If Williams end up beating Toyota F1 to say a win or several wins and
> can consistently finish in the points above the Toyotas then the board
> know that the car must be the reason for the gap. F1 Racing rumoured
> that if Williams does indeed beat the Toyota team then Toyota might
> sell up and just supply engines.
>
> Honda and Williams did fantastically well as engine supplier and team,
> yet Honda hasn't done as well as a team as it did as an engine
> supplier. Surely just supplying engines is cheaper than running the
> whole team so if Toyota gets beat by Williams then wouldn't the Toyota
> board see an opportunity to win races in someone elses car. Still win
> and get the glory for the engine but save a sod load of cash at the
> same time?
>
>

Ahhh thanks for that It seems like a logical thing to do

---

"Trulli was slowing down like he wanted to have a picnic" LOL

Very, very interesting.

Especially this

"Toyota will supply WilliamsF1 with their engines for the upcoming three years."

---

Now Williams have the Toyota engines, Midland will have to look for new ones:

Midland on the look out for engines
27 July 2006

The MF1 Racing team currently is running with Toyota's customer engines. This morning Toyota announced it would supply its customer engines to Williams next season. The announcement didn't come as a big surprise but it does mean Midland needs to look out for a new engine deal.

"It's no secret that we won't run the Toyota engines next year," Kolles told F1Racing.net. And thus Kolles will have to search for an engine to power their cars with. "There are enough possibilities out there for us, I'm not worried. We hope that we can make an announcement very soon."

There are several players on the market that are willing to supply a customer engine to Midland. A possible new engine supplier for the team could be Renault or Cosworth.

[www.f1racing.nl]

I think they'll go for Cosworth next year.

Well, my doubt is: Williams is paying for Toyota engines or they will be suplied for free, like a real engine partnership?
It´s a real partneship, or a works partneship?
If Williams is paying, how much cheaper they´re paying related with Cosworth? Or they are paying more??
That was no clear to me....

My guess is that Williams pay for the engines and that they are probably paying more. But I could be terribly wrong though

They have a works deal and will have the same spec engine as Toyota - that's what I read, anyways.

Midland’s sporting relations manager Johnny Herbert is confident that the team will secure a good engine deal for 2007.

Toyota’s three-year contract with Williams, which was confirmed on Thursday morning, means that Midland will have to find a new supplier for next year.

Herbert says the decision came as no surprise, and that the Silverstone-based squad is weighing up several alternative possibilities.


“We’ve known about it for a little while and we are on to a few other options that are out there as well,” he told ITV Sport’s Ted Kravitz in the Hockenheim paddock on Thursday.

“So I think as far as those options go we are okay, and we are still very confident that we will come out with a good package for next year.”

Herbert suggested a switch of engine suppliers may actually prove beneficial to Midland because it will enable it to pursue a more cost-effective option.

“Well Toyota are expensive, yes,” he said.

“I think it’s just one of those situations that came around and obviously Toyota have made their decision to go to Williams. You can understand that to a certain point.

“The way things are going for us in 2007 and 2008, I think it just gives us a bigger opportunity to look at some other options that are out there that could be possibly better for us.”

Herbert wouldn’t specify what those options are, but said there are “some which may be obvious – I can’t say which, of course.

“But they are options that are positive for us, and if they come to fruition I think they would be a very useful thing for us to have.”

The most likely scenario is that Midland will take over Williams’ Cosworth customer deal, but Herbert stressed that no decision has been taken yet.

“Cosworth over the years have always done a good job with limited budgets compared to everyone else,” he noted.

“Yes of course they are an option because they are obviously out there and they are a business as well.

“You know, [Cosworth’s F1 director] Bernard Ferguson is always around the motorhome and of course that is one of the things that we will be discussing.

“But there are other ones that we are trying to see about.”

There has even been a rumour doing the rounds that Midland may become a Mercedes customer team with one of its seats reserved for McLaren protégé Lewis Hamilton.

“Of course you would be interested in that!” Herbert said.

“And, again, [McLaren-Mercedes] have always said that they have a game plan for Lewis to see where he is going to go.

“Now if that is one of those game plans that possibly might come forward, then yes, of course for them it would be a very positive thing and for us it would be also."




LS's Tip of the week
ESSENTIAL OILS aren't essential unless you're an engine, a gearbox or a twat

My understanding was that a Toyota (or Lexus badged) engine supply would be a 'free deal', meaning a publicity exercise for Toyota. So far it looks like Williams are about to secure Phillips as title sponsor so the bank balance will look far better than with expensive Cosworth engines.
WIlliams did a number on the Bennetton team in the '90's with renault engines. Maybe they can do the same to TF1. Of course, they have a certain Mr Newey on board in those days.

Brian

Nico bites yer tyres!

Williams had the Renault engine from 1989-97, Benneton had the Renault engine from 1995-97, Williams didnt really do a number as such.


Flav bought the Ligier team so he could liberate the Renault from it into the Benneton for the 1995 season ( which Benneton won both driver and constructors championships)



1992 Williams won both championships

1993 Williams won both championships

1994 Williams won the Constructors only

1995 Benetton won both championships

1996 Williams won both championships

1997 Williams won both Championships



So if anything it was Benetton doing a number on the Williams Renault package




LS's Tip of the week
ESSENTIAL OILS aren't essential unless you're an engine, a gearbox or a twat



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2006 11:03AM by LS..

Williams technical director Sam Michael expects the team’s switch from Cosworth to Toyota power next year to be relatively uncomplicated.

Independent teams have not always found it easy to adapt manufacturer-supplied power plants to their cars – witness the cooling problems Red Bull Racing had last winter, which set its testing programme back by six weeks.

But Michael is confident of a smooth transition, pointing out that the two parties have been discussing a tie-in for months.

“We’ve started on this. We have had quite a bit of time to think about it and we’ve done a lot of work with Toyota already,” he told ITV Sport’s Ted Kravitz at Hockenheim on Thursday.

“It’s a much earlier decision than the one we had last year when we changed to Cosworth over the last 12 months.

“Actually integrating the engine package into the car is not a big deal. It’s a mechanical packaging exercise.

“We are starting a lot earlier with Toyota this year than we did last year so it’s not really an issue for us.”

Michael described the new arrangement as “the best deal possible, and easily the best deal we could do at Williams”, and confirmed that Williams will have access to the same specification of engines as the works Toyota team.

“The engines are all the same spec, it’s a full factory deal,” he said.

“Obviously the engine homologation starting in 2008, and potentially 2007, cements that anyway.

“But even before that point they were fully prepared to give us full factory engines.”




LS's Tip of the week
ESSENTIAL OILS aren't essential unless you're an engine, a gearbox or a twat

Brianf666 Wrote:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> My understanding was that a Toyota (or Lexus badged) engine supply
> would be a 'free deal', meaning a publicity exercise for Toyota. So
> far it looks like Williams are about to secure Phillips as title
> sponsor so the bank balance will look far better than with expensive
> Cosworth engines.
> WIlliams did a number on the Bennetton team in the '90's with renault
> engines. Maybe they can do the same to TF1. Of course, they have a
> certain Mr Newey on board in those days.
>
> Brian
>
> Nico bites yer tyres!

The engine wont be re-branded Lexus but the team will be known as Williams Toyota instead.