Toyota Could Take A GT500 Car To Le Mans

Super GT is a series we’ve long had to admire from afar here in the West. The sportscar championship has never officially held an event outside of Asia (save for one cross series-race with DTM), meaning our exposure has been limited to Gran Turismo and YouTube compilations for decades. Finally, though, we may get another brief taste of it, and at the world’s most famous endurance race.

GTA, the organisers behind Super GT, has been in active discussions with ACO, which sanctions the 24 Hours of Le Mans to allow the GT500 championship-winning car to occupy the race’s ‘Garage 56’ slot one year, potentially as soon as 2026. According to Sportcar365, Toyota is now ‘very interested’ in the proposal.

To bring you up to speed, in case you’re not aware, ‘Garage 56’ was introduced in 2012 and reserved for cars that wouldn’t fit into other categories at Le Mans, allowing for some unusual and experimental ideas. That was last taken up by the NASCAR Chevrolet Camaro in 2023, and previously, the Deltawing.

That slot has been eyed up by GTA chairman Masaaki Badoh, who has now been backed by Toyota’s global motorsport director, Masaya Kaji. Speaking with Sportscar365, Kaji said: “It’s very interesting for us.”

While a championship-winning slot would in theory allow any of Honda, Nissan or Toyota to take the Garage 56 place, Toyota is currently on course to win a third title in a row with a GT500 GR Supra. There’s also a wider appeal to both Toyota and ACO, with the Japanese manufacturer currently competing in the World Endurance Championship in the Hypercar class.

Kaji added, “The potential of the cars themselves are quite similar. The current Hypercar is a bit heavy. But I think it could be interesting to really compare the performance of the two cars.”

Should an agreement come off, it’s expected that the GT500 car would require some modifications to handle a 24-hour race, as was the case with the NASCAR Camaro. Currently, the longest race on the Super GT calendar is the Suzuka 1000km, which is around a fifth of the total distance likely to be covered by the frontrunners at Le Mans.

As for pace, it wouldn’t be a shock to see a GT500 car close to the Hypercars over the course of a lap.

For a bit of context, the qualifying time of the fastest Hypercar at the WEC’s 6 Hours of Fuji round was 1:28.901 set by a Cadillac V-Series R, while the pole time for the recent Super GT Fuji 3 Hours race was actually quicker, with a 1:26.093 by a Toyota GR Supra. That said, the Circuit de la Sarthe is more likely to favour the higher top speeds of a hypercar over the downforce-heavy GT500 cars.