TOKYO, Nov. 4, 2009 (Kyodo News International) --
(Editors: ADDING DETAILS)
Toyota Motor Corp. will withdraw from Formula One at the end of the current season, joining a number of other Japanese automakers leaving major motor racing events due to the tough business environment, sources close to the matter said Wednesday.
The move to pull out of F1 comes as Japan's top automaker decided that it would be difficult to continue bearing the costs of joining the racing event, as it anticipates remaining in the red for the second consecutive year in fiscal 2009 through next March, the sources said.
With Japan's second-largest automaker, Honda Motor Co. (NYSE:HMC) , having also exited F1 at the end of the 2008 season, Toyota's decision erases the presence of Japanese teams in the F1 race circuit.
Toyota aims to cut its F1-related spending as its annual cost amounts to several tens of billions of yen, the sources said, adding that the company is expected to look for a buyer in Europe for its F1 team.
The Aichi Prefecture-based automaker is expected to make a formal announcement later Wednesday.
For fiscal 2008, Toyota reported a consolidated operating loss of 461.01 billion yen, the first operating loss since fiscal 1937. It aims to cut 900 billion yen in costs as it anticipates an operating loss of 750 billion yen --its worst-ever on record -- for the current business year.
In withdrawing from F1, Toyota will focus its resources on developing fuel-efficient cars, which is a potential source of growth for the company. Toyota has been enjoying robust sales of its Prius hybrid.
Toyota joined F1 in 2002 to enhance its technological capacity and boost its image in Europe, and said it would join until 2012. Toyota ranked fifth out of 10 teams in the F1 constructor standing for the 2009 season.
In July, Toyota's subsidiary Fuji International Speedway Co. said it will stop hosting Formula One Japanese Grand Prix races at its circuit in Shizuoka Prefecture from 2010, citing sour business conditions.
On Monday, Bridgestone Corp., the solo tire supplier to F1, said it will stop supplying the top auto racing series at the close of the 2010 season in the fall, citing the need to save costs and redistribute resources to environmental areas.
Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., the maker of the Subaru brand, also withdrew from the FIA World Rally Championship last year, while Mitsubishi Motors Corp. announced in February its withdrawal from the Dakar Rally.
