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Toyota completes first test with updated TS050 HYBRID WEC LMP1 car

Toyota has completed a successful first test with the latest version of the TS050 HYBRID with which it will contest the 2018/19 World Endurance Championship superseason.

The updated Toyota LMP1 car was given a shakedown over three days at the Aragon circuit in Spain last week with Sebastien Buemi and Mike Conway driving.

A Toyota Motorsport GmbH spokesman told Autosport: "It was a good start: we did a lot of mileage and there were no items for concern."

The third iteration of the TS050 is largely unchanged from its predecessor, after Toyota put its development programme on hold in the wake of Porsche's withdrawal from LMP1.

The spokesman described it as a "carry-over car" with only minor updates based on its experiences from 2017.

Testing with the latest TS050 will resume next month.

Toyota is scheduled to announce its driver line-up for the superseason in early February, ahead of the unveiling of the entry list for the WEC and the Le Mans 24 Hours in Paris on February 9.

The Japanese manufacturer has stated that it will go into the season with an unchanged line-up.

How two-time Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonso, who tested a TS050 HYBRID in Bahrain last November, might be accommodated should he agree a deal with Toyota for Le Mans remains unclear.

Zdroj: autosport.com