Toyota Avensis confirmed as NGTC prototype

British Touring Car Championship organisers TOCA have confirmed that the Toyota Avensis will be the NGTC prototype.
“We would like to thank Toyota for its generous and highly valued contribution to this project,” said series organiser Alan Gow.

“The Avensis is an ideal platform for the new car; it’s fully suited to the NGTC ethos and, just like our new BTCC regulations, is proudly built in Britain.”

The designing and building of the prototype is currently ongoing and the completed car will undergo a test program with James Thompson behind the wheel. Behind the construction of the car is motorsport engineering company GPR Motorsport.

Toyota UK has supplied the donor car and a new body shell for the prototype and Scott Brownlee, PR director at Toyota UK, is delighted to be a part of the program.

“To be able to support the premier British motor sport series with the Avensis was a great opportunity for Toyota to help an ‘old friend’. The BTCC is a series we greatly respect and have enjoyed a long and successful involvement with in the past. Whilst we’ve made no commitment to re-enter the championship with a works team at this time, we will be following the prototype build with great interest and look forward to seeing the car perform on its debut at Brands Hatch in October,” said Brownlee.

After the completed test program the car will make its public debut during the final BTCC race of 2010 at Brands Hatch. That race will mark the first time that a Toyota takes part in the championship since 1996 when Lee Brookes won the independents’ category in a Toyota Carina E.