The Toyota TF103 was the car with which the Toyota F1 team competed in the 2003 Formula One season. The chassis was designed by Gustav Brunner and René Hilhorst with Luca Marmorini designing the engine. Unveiled on January 8, 2003, at the Paul Ricard circuit, its drivers were the Frenchman Olivier Panis and Brazilian Cristiano da Matta, the reigning CART FedEx Championship Series Champion from 2002.
Development The TF103 was quite a conservative design, by the team's admission it was more of a 'logical evolution' from its predecessor the TF102. Lighter and with more downforce, the car was a joint effort between Gustav Brunner's design team and Keizo Takahashi, chief of Technical co-ordination.
The biggest improvement over the TF102 came with the engine, the RVX-03 had been tested for the first time in September 2002 and offered the team benefits twofold over the RVX-02; it was lighter, and provided more power. The engine was the brainchild of Italian designer Luca Marmorini.
Performance
The TF103 stepped up a level in terms of performance too, with the car scoring a total of sixteen points between its drivers, da Matta outscoring Panis 10–6. Perhaps the most notable race involving the TF103 was at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix when both cars ran 1-2 for a time amidst the confusion brought about by a track invader on the 11th lap.
In the constructors' standings, Toyota finished in eighth.
Complete Formula One results (key) Year Chassis Engine Tyres Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Points WCC 2003 TF103 Toyota RVX-03 V10 AUS MAL BRA SMR ESP AUT MON CAN EUR FRA GBR GER HUN ITA USA JPN 16 8th Olivier Panis Ret Ret Ret 9 Ret Ret 13 8 Ret 8 11 5 Ret Ret Ret 10 Cristiano da Matta Ret 11 10 12 6 10 9 11 Ret 11 7 6 11 Ret 9 7
References
External links TF103 Evolution at Toyota F1 official site TF103 Facts at f1db.com