Toyota Team LeMans's seasons used with the Lexus SC430 was the team's season with the car from 2006 until 2013.
Overview[]
2006[]
When Juichi Wakisaka left this team to race for Team TOM'S, Team Le Mans signed Tatsuya Kataoka to drive for the team. A Swedish driver, Björn Wirdheim, entered the 1000 km Suzuka as a third driver for the team, the 6th round of 2006. After the season, Wirdheim entered in this team as the team's rookie driver.
2007[]
The drivers was Tatsuya Kataoka and Björn Wirdheim, having a good performance in the season.
2008[]
After Kataoka moved to Toyota Team KRAFT, the team signed 2007 champion Daisuke Ito to drive for the team, partnering with teammate Björn Wirdheim.
Before the fifth round held at Sportsland SUGO, Daisuke Ito had to miss four races during the season with some several reasons why. He was replaced by currently retired Super GT driver Akira Iida.
The driver's ranking was 13rd for Wirdheim, 16th for Iida, 17th for Ito and 23rd for Streit, and the team's ranking was 8th with 64 points.
2009[]
The drivers were Daisuke Ito and Björn Wirdheim. All Lexus teams had a new chassis and a new engine. They attenpted to get a first win at Round 5, but failed, defeated by #1 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R and #39 DUNLOP SARD SC430.
In the seventh round held at Fuji Speedway, at the start of the race, No.36 SC430 overtook the No.32 NSX, who had the fastest lap time during the qualifying session. But, No.6 SC430 just hit the No.32 NSX and it caused the No.12 GT-R to get an rear left tire damage! After that, the team got a penalty.
The driver's ranking was 12th with 35 points of total.
The team's ranking was 11th with 54 points of total.
2010[]
The team had an extremely good performance but was unable to secure a Top 3.
The drivers had the same combo as of 2008, having a good performance during the season. But, the team was unable to secure a win or a Top 3.
In the final round at Motegi, the team got a penalty out of nowhere, and got in last place.
The driver's ranking was 4th in the series with 51 total points. The team's ranking was 4th in the seriss with 70 total points.
2011[]
The drivers was Daisuke Ito and Kazuya Oshima, with WIrdheim moving to Kondo Racing.
The round at Fuji Speedway was stopped due to heavy rain, making the team finish 2nd.
In the eighth round held at Twin Ring Motegi, at the start of the race, No.36 SC430 hit No.6 SC430 at the 3rd corner. The team failed to restart the engine, but restarted it back. No.36 SC430 got a drive-through penalty afterwards.
The driver's ranking was 11th in this season with a total of 28 points.
The team's ranking was 10th in ths season with a total of 50 points.
2012[]
The drivers had the same combo as from last year's season, having a very well performance during the season, but also with non-points finishes.
In the 3rd round in Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, they battled with the No.12 Nissan. After crossing the finish line, they finished 3rd and got 11 points.
In the fourth round held at Sportsland SUGO, the team took a pole position during the qualifying session. The starting driver was Daisuke Ito. But at the start of the race, No.12 Nissan collided with No.23 Nissan, and both of them retired. During the race, No.6 was battling with the No.36 SC430 and No.1 GT-R. Suddenly, the No.36 SC430 overtook the No.1 GT-R at the first corner, meanwhile Ito in No.6 was entering the pits for a driver change. Duval in No.36 was back to 2nd place again, because Oshima in No.6 overtook Duval in No.36. After crossing the finish line, they won the race. They had only one win with 20 points.
In the fifth round held at Suzuka Circuit, for the 41st International Pokka 1000 km, before the crash, the team battled with No.23 Nissan. At Lap 50, the car's left right tyre has exploded at the Spoon corner. The team retired due to the damage, with the front right tyre damaged the car.
2013[]
After Daisuke Ito pulled out of the team, moving to Team TOM'S, the team signed Team KRAFT driver Yuji Kunimoto to drive for the team, with Kazuya Oshima staying in the team.
Gallery[]
