Sink or Swim: Toyota could follow Honda out of F1 if the wins don't come

Autoblog · Jan 24, 2009

Sink or Swim: Toyota could follow Honda out of F1 if the wins don't come

Filed under: Motorsports, Toyota

Click above to view the Toyota TF109 in high resolution

Toyota has a reputation around the Formula One paddock for having the biggest budget with the least results. But that's all going to change, and change drastically, if the team doesn't start winning races, according to some new reports.

Although outgoing Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe was reported to have rubber-stamped the company's continued participation in F1 following a recent review, his successor and founding family scion, Akio Toyoda, may feel otherwise. Toyoda will be taking the reigns at the company following the first year of decline in its history, and will likely be looking to curb expenditures. In good times, some companies can justify the enormous financial cost of competing in F1 for the positive image it attaches to their company. But that's only if they're out there winning races, or at least coming close. If Toyota can't score its first race win this year, the bean counters might have no choice but to follow fellow Japanese automaker Honda and pull out of the sport altogether. Click below for an updated gallery of the Toyota TF109, and follow the jump for a video.

Gallery: Toyota TF109

[Source: F1-Live]Continue reading Sink or Swim: Toyota could follow Honda out of F1 if the wins don't come

Sink or Swim: Toyota could follow Honda out of F1 if the wins don't come originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 24 Jan 2009 19:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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