Toyota to Withdraw from F1

4 November 2009

Toyota Motor (TMC) plans to withdraw from the FIA Formula One World Championship (F1) at the end of the 2009 season. Toyota has engaged in F1 racing for eight seasons, competing in 140 races during that time.

I have been calling for product-focused management since I became president at Toyota this June. I have called for Toyota to concentrate on serving customers one at a time with flavorful vehicles that make them happy. That priority mandates a fundamental shift in resource allocation. A sad result of that shift is that we have insufficient resources to maintain a viable commitment to F1 racing.

Economic and market conditions remain extremely trying. But adversity only heightens the importance of rethinking our proper legacy for the next generation...We will rethink our motor-sports activities with an eye to maximizing those benefits while addressing economic realities. And we will take what we learn on the racetrack and put it to work in ever-better vehicles that are aimed at meeting the highest of expectations.

—Akio Toyoda, President