Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG) has confirmed the final details of its rear-wheel-drive GT86 CS-R3 rally car, which will make its competitive debut this year.
The CS-R3 prototype was launched last August and since then has completed an extensive test programme to help finalize the specification of the kit which will be delivered to private competitors and teams.
TMG states that a detailed development program has generated improved performance on both gravel and tarmac, while reliability and durability have been prioritised too.
The first cars will be delivered to customers in May, later than originally forecast to allow improvements highlighted during testing to be implemented. As a consequence, TMG has extended its introductory discount. The CS-R3 kit, in either tarmac or gravel specification, costs €79,000 ex. VAT (US$89,000) for orders made before 24 April 2015.
Homologation to FIA R3 regulations will be certified at the beginning of July, after which all CS-R3 cars will be eligible for national and international rallies, up to and including the World Rally Championship.
Fans will be able to see up to 10 CS-R3 cars in competition for the first time at the Rally Niedersachsen near Hanover on 4 July, the first round of the new HJS TMG CS-R3 Trophy.
The first competitors have already signed up to the Trophy, which offers over €5,000 (US$5,600) of prize money for each of the seven rounds plus other benefits, and will run for at least the next three seasons.
“This is a significant milestone in the GT86 CS-R3 story which brings us one step closer to the car’s competitive debut. We have put a huge amount of effort into our testing and development programme in order to deliver a fast, reliable and spectacular car for drivers and fans alike,” explained Nico Ehlert, TMG principal engineer customer motorsport. “As always, there are a number of challenges with a new-car development; in this case we had quite some work to adjust our rear-wheel-drive car to regulations which were written with front-wheel cars in mind. It is extremely important to TMG that our cars live up to our customers’ high expectation so we have taken a little more time than originally predicted to complete the homologation process. This means we now have a car which, I believe, will exceed the expectations of our customers and keep the fans entertained.”
A full gallery of GT86 CS-R3 images can be found here.
