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58-530: Following the end of the Group C era around 1994, Toyota decided to alter its plans in sports car racing by moving to the production-based grand touring (GT) classes for 1995. Toyota decided to use a two-pronged approach with two different competition car models. The first was a heavily modified Toyota Supra , referred to as the Supra LM, which would use a turbocharged Toyota 503E inline-4. The second entry

116-540: A Lola B2K/10 , so the Gunnar G-99 was temporarily abandoned. The car would resurface in the Rolex Sports Car Series in 2002, yet would not be allowed to race until it had a roof again. Therefore, Gunnar Racing rebuilt the car with a near-identical GT1 roof, and briefly competed in 2003. The car would take a best finish of second in class twice before being retired due to lack of funding and due to

174-596: A GT1 car, but it proved to be uncompetitive against the other cars its class. Despite using the 911 moniker, the car barely had anything in common with the existing 911 at the time, only sharing the front and rear headlamps with the production sports car. However, its frontal chassis is based on the 993-generation 911, while the rear subframe was derived from the 962C Group C prototype along with its water-cooled , twin-turbocharged and intercooled , 4 valves per cylinder 3,164 cc (3.2 L) flat-six engine fuel fed by Bosch Motronic 5.2 fuel injection , which

232-678: A GTP class prototype. Although the CLK-LM required extensive modifications to become the CLR, the GT-One was already close enough to a prototype that an extensive redesign was not needed. Toyota began an extensive testing program, including a long distance test at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium soon after a snowfall. In the official testing session at Le Mans, the GT-Ones were again fast, taking

290-744: A different story. The BMW V12 LM retired with wheel bearing trouble, and the Mercedes CLK-LM cars had oil pump troubles in the new V8 engines that replaced the former V12. The Toyota GT-One , which was considered to be the fastest car, also suffered gearbox reliability problems. The 911 GT1-98, despite being slower than the Toyota or the Mercedes, fulfilled Porsche's slim hopes, taking both first and second place overall thanks to reliability, giving Porsche its record-breaking 16th overall win at Le Mans , more than any other manufacturer in history. At

348-590: A heavily upgraded version of the engine they originally used on their Group C cars, the twin-turbocharged 3.6 L (220 cu in) R36V V8. TTE also developed the only two GT-One road cars built, required in order for the race car to qualify as a road car-based grand tourer. They were painted red and fitted with a basic interior. One was put into a museum in Japan, and the other is displayed at Toyota Motorsport GmbH headquarters in Cologne. Introduced in time for

406-432: A loophole which Mercedes-Benz had exploited. All GT-class cars were required to have storage space capable of holding a standard-size suitcase in order for the car to be considered not only production-based, but usable by the public. Mercedes exploited this by putting a small cubby hole into an unused area underneath the rear bodywork, although it was not as easy to access as a normal trunk. Toyota, in their interpretation of

464-596: A new GT car for 1998. (A MC8-R was entered for the 1997 race, but failed to qualify.) Turning to Toyota's European arm based in Cologne, Germany , Toyota Team Europe (TTE) and Dallara were tasked with development of the new GT car. With the one-year hiatus, TTE was able to observe what the competition was developing for the GT class, and exploit it to their benefit. In 1997, both the Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR and

522-556: A recognized manufacturer which had cars homologated in Group A or Group B. Although it was originally expected that C Junior cars would use two-litre normally aspirated engines, in practice most cars used either the 3.5l BMW M1 engine or the new 3.3l Cosworth DFL , but, like in the main class, a variety of solutions was employed by each individual manufacturer. Alba with a small, lightweight turbo, Tiga , Spice and Ecurie Ecosse with Austin-Rover and later Cosworth-powered cars were among

580-625: A recognized manufacturer which had cars homologated in the FIA's Group A Touring Car or Group B GT Car categories. While the consumption requirement meant that cars needed to conserve fuel early in the race, manufacturer support for the new regulations grew steadily with each make adding to the diversity of the series. With the new rules, it was theoretically possible for large naturally aspirated engines to compete with small forced induction engines. In addition, all races were to be contested over at least 1000 km — usually lasting more than six hours — so it

638-577: A result of an LMP class restructuring in 2006. Marlboro was the Toyota GT-One sponsor in 1999 (hence the white chevron with red body livery), though an anti-tobacco law in France meant that no Marlboro logos appeared anywhere on the car. In pictures of practice sessions, Marlboro barcodes across the front of the car (which also appeared on Ferrari Formula One cars during tobacco legislated races) were seen, although these barcodes did not appear on

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696-453: Is a car designed and developed by German automobile manufacturer Porsche AG to compete in the GT1 class of sportscar racing, which also required a street-legal version for homologation purposes. The limited-production street-legal version developed as a result was named the 911 GT1 Straßenversion ( Street version ). With the revival of international sportscar racing in the mid-1990s through

754-552: Is in the hands of a Bahrain-based private car collector Khalid Abdul Rahim . These two cars feature 993 style front headlights . The production car - dubbed "911 GT1 Straßenversion " - was a run of approximately 20 units which were built in 1997 and featured 996 style front headlights. The majority of the production model was finished in Arctic Silver or Fern White, but three cars were finished in unique colours: Polar Silver, Indian Red, and Pastel Yellow. A single car -

812-585: The BPR Global GT Series (the FIA championship's predecessor) at the Brands Hatch 4 hours, where Hans-Joachim Stuck and Thierry Boutsen won comfortably, although they were racing as an invitational entry and were thus ineligible for points. They followed up by winning at Spa, and Ralf Kelleners and Emmanuel Collard triumphed for the factory team at Zhuhai. The 1996 911 GT1 clocked at a top speed of exactly 330 km/h (205 mph) on

870-547: The IMSA championship, as its GTP class had similar regulations. With costs increasing, the FIA introduced a new Group C Junior class for 1983. This was intended for privateer teams and small manufacturers and it limited cars to a minimum weight of 700 kg and a maximum fuel capacity of 55 liters. With competitors limited to five refueling stops within a 1000 kilometer distance, the cars were effectively allowed 330 liters per 1000 kilometers. As in Group C, engines had to be from

928-669: The Petit Le Mans race in Road Atlanta , the 911 GT1-98 of Yannick Dalmas made a spectacular backward flip and landed rear first before hitting the side barriers, similar to what would later happen to a BMW V12 LMR at the same race in 2000, and, most infamously, the Mercedes-Benz CLR at Le Mans in 1999. The GT1 '98 was set up with higher downforce in the race than the previous two years, which reduced its maximum speed to 310 km/h (193 mph). However, in

986-510: The Porsche 911 GT1 were dominant cars in their class that exploited loopholes in the rules. Each car was a custom-built supercar, and only a handful of production cars were built to homologate them. TTE realized that they would actually only need to build a single production car in order to meet homologation requirements; since the resulting car would never be sold to a customer, typical driver luxuries could be left out. Toyota also learned about

1044-579: The WM - Peugeot recorded the highest 405 km/h (252 mph) during the 1988 event — the FIA revolutionized the class by attempting to turn it into a formula series to replace the C2 category (after they proved to be unreliable at endurance races) . The new formula restricted the performance of cars built to the original rules (such as the Porsche 962 used by many privateers) and benefited teams using F1-sourced 3.5 L engines — these latter teams being effectively

1102-723: The 1982 season until 1985, when the series was reformed as the ADAC Supercup . Under the new Supercup series, only Group C cars would be allowed to compete. This series lasted until 1989. In Great Britain, the Thundersports championship combined a variety of cars with the C Junior (later C2) class of cars. This too was later replaced with a C2 only series known as the BRDC C2 Championship, and lasted until 1990. The European Interserie championship also allowed Group C cars to compete, although they did not use

1160-544: The 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans, the GT-One first appeared during the official testing period for the race held in May. Three GT-Ones appeared, setting the 2nd, 5th, and 10th best times and easily beating out dedicated Le Mans Prototypes (LMPs), which were meant to be the superior class. For the race week itself, all three cars performed admirably in qualifying by continuing their quick pace, qualifying 2nd, 7th, and 8th, and being beaten only by GT class competitor Mercedes-Benz . During

1218-614: The 1998 Le Mans 24 Hours test days, the car hit 330 km/h (205 mph) on the Mulsanne Straight on a lower downforce setup. With Mercedes dominating FIA GT1 in 1998, all other entries including Porsche withdrew for the 1999 season. The GT1 class was cancelled, and the FIA GT Championship was contested with GT2 cars. Having won the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans, Porsche could have entered at Le Mans , but they opted not to try to defend their 1998 victory against

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1276-458: The 1st, 3rd, and 5th fastest lap times. This pace continued in qualifying for the race, as the three GT-Ones took 1st, 2nd, and 8th positions. Throughout the race, the GT-Ones battled for the lead with BMW and Mercedes. Unfortunately, the GT-One was hampered by higher fuel consumption (1 or 2 laps less per stint than BMW) and by failures of its Michelin tires throughout the race, mostly caused by sharp gravel which had been accidentally brought onto

1334-415: The 911 GT1-98 Straßenversion - was built in 1998 to homologate the all-new racing version under the new FIA regulations. The engine had to be slightly de-tuned to meet European emissions laws , although its 400 kW (544 PS; 536 hp) at 7,000 rpm and 600 N⋅m (443 lb⋅ft) of torque at 4,250 rpm proved to be more than adequate; the car could accelerate to 100 km/h (62 mph) from

1392-679: The BPR Global GT Series (which then morphed into the FIA GT Championship ) Porsche expressed interest in returning to top-level sportscar racing and went about developing its competitor for the GT1 category. Cars in this category were previously heavily modified versions of road cars, such as the McLaren F1 and the Ferrari F40 . Porsche originally modified the 993 GT2 into an EVO version and homologated it as

1450-618: The GT1 category, the Dauer 962 Le Mans , and won the race after transmission problems by a leading Toyota 94C-V . The 962 was subsequently banned; the Toyota was later given a special dispensation to race in the Suzuka 1000km , and a few C1 racers were allowed to compete in the newly formed Japanese GT Championship — this would be its final year of competition. Many of the modified open top Group C cars continued to compete until they wrecked, broke, or retired out of competitiveness; notable among these

1508-411: The Gunnar G-99, was a custom-built 911 GT1 with an open cockpit. The chassis was made from scratch yet remained nearly identical to the 911 GT1 mechanically, even using the bulk of the body parts. A large rollbar was put over the open cockpit to help protect the driver. A 3.6-litre flat-6, from a Porsche 911 GT3 , was used in place of the standard 911 GT1 unit. However, Champion would instead turn to buy

1566-503: The ban on SRP cars in favour of Daytona Prototypes . Regulations for the GT1 category stipulated that to be eligible, a total of 25 cars must be built for road use. Porsche developed two prototype cars, both fully road-legal versions . The first was delivered in early 1996 to the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building, and Urban Development for compliance testing, which it passed. The second prototype vehicle

1624-441: The cars were effectively allowed 600 litres per 1000 kilometers. The FIA hoped this would prevent manufacturers from concentrating solely on engine development; in the late 1970s, a few manufacturers (especially Porsche and Lancia ) had dominated sports car racing by simply increasing turbocharger boost pressure, especially in qualifying trim — the 3.2 L Porsche 935 was capable of more than 800 hp. Engines had to be from

1682-560: The class. Mercedes-Benz opted to evolve their CLK LM into the CLR in the closed cockpit LMGTP prototype class, while Nissan and Panoz opted for open-cockpit LMPs. Porsche dropped out of competition altogether. Newcomer Audi decided to build cars for both the GTP and LMP classes, while BMW continued in the LMP class as before. Toyota decided to follow the route of Mercedes and evolve the GT-One into

1740-610: The end of Toyota's attempts at Le Mans, which had started in 1985, until its return in 2012 with the TS030 Hybrid closed-cockpit LMP1 prototype in the FIA World Endurance Championship . With Mercedes-Benz pulling out and Audi discontinuing their LMGTP competitor, the Audi R8C , no LMGTP entrants appeared in the next year's race; only Bentley continued to compete in the class until it was abolished as

1798-528: The end, the GT-One would fall short once again, finishing 2nd and only one lap behind the winning R391. However, Toyota won the LMGTP class (the R391 being an LMP), which would have granted them automatic entry to 2000 24 Hours of Le Mans had they continued the GT-One program. The GT-One program would not be continued into 2000, Toyota instead turning TTE into the leaders of the new Toyota F1 team. This would mark

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1856-452: The final race car. The logos were also absent during the Fuji 1000 km race, which was held in Japan, a country with no tobacco sponsorship restrictions at the time. Other sponsors included Zent (#1), Venture Safenet (#2) and Esso (#3 and Fuji 1000 km). A total of seven GT-Ones were built over the two years of the program. The first six were built in 1998, while the final chassis

1914-537: The large manufacturers alone, as the new formula cars were more expensive than the C1 cars. What followed was the quick downfall of Group C, as the new engines were unaffordable for privateer teams like Spice and ADA . A lack of entries meant the 1993 Championship was canceled before the start of the first race. However, the ACO still allowed the Group C cars to compete (albeit with restrictions) at 24 Hours of Le Mans. Nevertheless,

1972-404: The legendary Mulsanne Straight in the practice sessions of the 1996 Le Mans 24 Hours Race. Towards the end of the 1996 season, Porsche made revisions to the 911 GT1 in preparation for the 1997 season. The front end of the car was revised including new bodywork which featured headlamps that previewed the all-new generation of the ( 996 ) Porsche 911 which would be unveiled in 1997. The revised car

2030-421: The mid-1970s. GTP was a class for roofed prototypes with certain dimensional restrictions, but instead of the more usual limits on engine capacity, it placed limits on fuel consumption. The FIA applied the same concept in its Group C rules. It limited cars to a minimum weight of 800 kg and a maximum fuel capacity of 100 litres. With competitors restricted to five refueling stops within a 1000 kilometer distance,

2088-431: The most competitive in this class. The low cost of these cars even led to the notion of their use in national championships, such as the short-lived British BRDC C2 Championship . Group C Junior was formally renamed Group C2 for 1984. By 1989, the Group C series popularity was nearly as great as Formula One . When C1 cars were found to be breaking over the 400 kilometres per hour mark at Le Mans ' Mulsanne Straight —

2146-589: The new entrants from other manufacturers. Champion Racing brought a 911 GT1 Evo to America to race in the American Le Mans Series , but was only allowed to do so as an LMP (Le Mans Prototype) class entry, where it proved uncompetitive against actual prototypes such as the BMW V12 LMR . Following Champion's purchase of a 911 GT1 Evo for 1999, Gunnar Racing offered a custom race car to the team with intentions to race in 2000. The car, known as

2204-454: The race 25 laps behind the winning Porsche 911 GT1 . Following the success of the GT1 class as a whole over the LMP class, the ACO and FIA moved to change the regulations for the GT classes, requiring a large amount of production vehicles for the GT classes and eliminating the original loopholes in the system. Toyota were thus forced to make changes to the GT-One, as were all their competitors in

2262-512: The race but did not last the full distance; a privately entered 1996 specification GT1 managed 5th overall and third in the GT1 class. For the 1998 season, Porsche developed an all-new car, the 911 GT1-98. Designed to match the also new Toyota GT-One and the Mercedes-Benz CLK LM , the 911 GT1-98 featured bodywork that bore more of a resemblance to traditional sports-prototypes than the previous two models. A new sequential gearbox

2320-401: The race itself, the #28 GT-One suffered from a high-speed accident halfway through the race, taking it out of competition. The two other entrants continued to race, both remaining in the top 10. However, within the closing hours, the higher-ranked #29 GT-One suffered a gearbox failure in competition for the win, leaving Toyota to take 9th place in the race with the remaining #27 entry, which ended

2378-403: The race still witnessed protests against the new state of affairs, as spectators placed cloth banners in fences expressing their feelings . The 1994 24 Hours of Le Mans was the last one in which Group C cars were permitted. A new category formed especially by race organizers also saw modified Group C cars without roofs. In fact, a former C1 car disguised as a road-legal GT car which was entered in

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2436-486: The racing surface by other cars. The design of the GT-One's wheel wells allowed for a blown tire to cause extensive damage to the mechanical linkages inside; after only 90 laps, the #1 GT-One driven by Martin Brundle was lost when it suffered an explosive tire puncture and was damaged beyond repair, unable to return to the pits and being abandoned on the track. Halfway into the event, the #2 GT-One driven by Thierry Boutsen

2494-530: The rear uses a custom racing structure). While the Supra performed admirably in 1995, the MC8-R would appear superior in 1996. With its development of high-powered GT race cars, Toyota decided that a car similar to the MC8-R, designed as a race car first and foremost, would be better suited to continue Toyota's GT racing efforts. Thus, Toyota announced they would skip the 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans to be able to develop

2552-429: The rules, were able to convince Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) officials that the car's fuel tank, normally empty when the car is scrutineered before the race, qualified as trunk space since it could theoretically hold a suitcase. With these loopholes in place, TTE was able to set out in developing the GT-One. TTE designed and manufactured the car's carbon fibre chassis and bodywork in-house, while Toyota supplied

2610-699: The same class structure. In Japan, the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship was created in 1983, while the Fuji Long Distance Series also began allowing Group C cars for the first time. It was not until 1989 however that the series concentrated solely on the Group C formula. Both championships lasted until 1992, when they were cancelled along with the World Sportscar Championship. Porsche 911 GT1 The Porsche 911 GT1

2668-462: The team was still active. BMW and Panoz were the only teams continuing without major problems. During the final hour of the race, the lone GT-One driven by Ukyo Katayama was chasing the remaining BMW for the lead, but suffered a tire failure while lapping traffic. Having lost the chance to challenge for the lead, it was forced to slowly continue along the track to return to the pits for a new set. The lone GT-One would finish 2nd overall, one lap behind

2726-438: The winning BMW. As a consolation prize, the GT-One would win the GTP class, although it was the only car in the class to actually finish. The GT-One would race once more, a single entrant appearing in the 1999 Le Mans Fuji 1000 km . Although the race mostly consisted of Japanese teams, thus leaving out most of the manufacturers that had competed at Le Mans, Toyota still had to compete against rival Nissan, who entered an R391. In

2784-459: Was longitudinally-mounted in a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout , compared to the rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout of a conventional 911. The engine generated a power output of about 600 PS (441 kW; 592 hp). In comparison, the 993 generation 911 GT2 , which was otherwise the company's highest-performance vehicle at the time, used an air-cooled engine with only two valves per cylinder. The 911 GT1 made its debut in

2842-567: Was a purpose-built racing car, with a small number of production cars built to meet homologation regulations. Powered by a turbocharged Toyota 1UZ V8, this car was modified heavily from the Toyota MR2 , and became known as the SARD MC8-R . The overall design of the Porsche 911 GT1 was also imitated by the MC8R (wherein the front chassis parts are modified from the original road car, and

2900-518: Was also used for other sports car racing series around the globe ( All Japan Sports Prototype Championship , Supercup, Interserie). The final year for the class came in 1993. Broadly similar rules were used in the North American IMSA Grand Touring Prototype series ( GTP ). The roots of the Group C category lie in both FIA Group 6 and particularly in the GTP category introduced by the ACO at Le Mans in

2958-540: Was built in 1999. LM804 was the only car to race in both 24 Hours of Le Mans. LM804 and LM805 were the only cars to finish the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the former as car #3 in 1999 and the latter as car #27 in 1998. Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap. Group C Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with Group A for touring cars and Group B for GTs . It

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3016-510: Was designed to replace both Group 5 special production cars (closed top touring prototypes like Porsche 935 ) and Group 6 two-seat racing cars (open-top sportscar prototypes like Porsche 936 ). Group C was used in the FIA's World Endurance Championship (1982–1985), World Sports-Prototype Championship (1986–1990), World Sportscar Championship (1991–1992) and in the European Endurance Championship (1983 only). It

3074-514: Was improved, with the main reason being down to the air-restrictor rules which were regarded as unfavourable to the turbocharged engine (the Mercedes had a naturally aspirated V8 engine). The Michelin tyres of the factory team and especially the Pirelli of the private Zakspeed team were also considered inferior to the Bridgestone tyres of the Mercedes. At the 1998 Le Mans, however, it was

3132-407: Was installed to reduce shift time. Engine control also moved to a TAG Electronic Systems TAG 3.8 ECU. As per the regulations, a street-legal version of the 911 GT1-98 was made but it is believed that only one variant was produced which was still sufficient to satisfy the new regulations. During the 1998 FIA International GT season, the 911 GT1-98 struggled to match the pace of the Mercedes, which also

3190-535: Was known as the 911 GT1 Evo (or Evolution). The car had the same engine as the 1996 version, but its new aerodynamic elements allowed the 1997 version to be considerably faster than the 1996 version with improved acceleration, the top speed was still around 330 km/h (205 mph) on the La Sarthe Circuit (in the race, the GT1 Evo attained a top speed of 326 km/h). At Le Mans the works cars led

3248-504: Was lost in another tire puncture that led to a high-speed accident, destroying the car and ending Boutsen's racing career. This left the team with only car #3, which was still running at the top of the field. At this point, a large amount of the competition had been eliminated, with all Mercedes cars out of the race due to their famous accident and withdrawal. Audi had also lost two of their four cars, and Nissan had lost their factory-backed R391 , although an older Courage C52 campaigned by

3306-512: Was possible to emphasize the "endurance" aspect of the competition as well. Ford (with the C100 ) and Porsche (with the 956 ) were the first constructors to join the series. The traditional turbocharged boxer engine in the 956 was already tested in the 1981 version of the Group 6 936. Eventually, several other makes joined the series, including Lancia, Jaguar , Mercedes , Nissan , Toyota , Mazda and Aston Martin . Many of these also took part in

3364-695: Was the Porsche WSC-95 which won the 1996 and 1997 Le Mans races, using the monocoque of the Jaguar XJR-14 and Porsche 962 mechanicals (engine, transmission, etc.). The FIA's Group C formula was designed primarily for the World Endurance Championship which included the 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, several smaller series also adapted the Group C regulations. The Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft allowed Group C cars to compete alongside various other types of cars from

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