The Toyota Supra HV-R hybrid race car which made history by being the first hybrid race car ever to win a competition (the Tokachi 24-Hour Race, 14/15 July), has gained further honours winning the award for Race Engine of The Year 2007.

The nominations were selected by the editors of Race Engine Technology magazine and the awards were determined through votes cast by practising race engine professionals across all forms of global motor sport. The four categories include: Grand Prix; Global Motorsport; North American Race Engine and Alternative Power Race Engine, with one winner for the overall title of Race Engine of the Year.

By entering hybrid systems into racing events, Toyota engineers anticipate discovering ways to make hybrid systems (more famously fitted to the Toyota Prius production car), more efficient and lighter.  This year’s race car was based on the iconic Supra GT used in Super GT races in Japan, modified and equipped with a special racing hybrid system. In order to improve the system’s regeneration and operating efficiency during the race, the following two distinctive technologies have been incorporated into it:

Three Electric Motors
A four-wheel energy regeneration and drive system has been adopted which includes in-wheel motors in the front wheels in addition to one 150 kW rear-axle mounted electric motor. Thanks to this energy regeneration system with three motor/generators, the vehicle can more efficiently recover a greater amount of energy during rapid decleration and braking from high speeds.  

Specially Designed Capacitor
In light of the fact that racing involves a repeated acceleration and deceleration under full system performance, a quick-charging capacitor system was adopted instead of the usual rechargeable batteries.