APRIL 26, 2001

Toyota hampered by high winds

TOYOTA were troubled in testing by high Mistral winds gusting up to 104 kph, which hampered development in preparation for their Grand Prix debut in 2002.

The team is spending a full year testing an interim car to gain data for the design of next year's challenger and concluded their second test on Tuesday.

Scot Allan McNish ran around 1000 kilometers during the one-week test, and despite the winds the car did not leave the track once.

"With such windy conditions it made any performance development difficult," said McNish. "We concentrated on the long runs which worked well and were consistent."