page_title: Toyota Racing (Formula One team)
section_title: 2002
hierarchical_section_title: Toyota Racing (Formula One team) / Racing history / 2002–2004: Early years / 2002
caption_attribution_description: Allan McNish 2002
context_page_description: Panasonic Toyota Racing was a Formula One team owned by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation and based in Cologne, Germany. Toyota announced their plans to participate in Formula One in 1999, and after extensive testing with their initial car, dubbed the TF101, the team made their debut in 2002. The new team grew from Toyota's long-standing Toyota Motorsport GmbH organisation, which had previously competed in the World Rally Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Despite a point in their first-ever race, Toyota never won a Grand Prix, their best finish being 2nd position, which they achieved five times.
  Toyota drew criticism for their lack of success, as they never managed to win with one of the sport's biggest budgets. Toyota was a well-funded team, but despite this, strong results had never been consistent.
  On 4 November 2009, Toyota announced its immediate withdrawal from Formula One, ending the team's involvement in the sport after eight consecutive seasons.
context_section_description: Toyota F1 made their Formula One debut in 2002, with McNish and Salo driving the Toyota TF102, designed by Gustav Brunner. Despite reportedly having one of the biggest budgets in Formula One, Toyota scored only two points all year. Their first point was scored in their first race, the Australian Grand Prix, when half the field was eliminated by a first corner accident caused by Ralf Schumacher colliding with Rubens Barrichello. The team could have scored another point in the next race at the Malaysian Grand Prix, but Salo suffered an electrical misfire and the team fumbled McNish's pit stop. The Scot thus lost ground, and finished seventh, just out of the points, behind Sauber's Felipe Massa. The Brazilian Grand Prix, third race of the season, yielded Toyota's second and final point, once again scored by Salo. McNish endured a huge crash during practice for the end-of-season Japanese Grand Prix and missed the race on medical advice. Neither McNish nor Salo were offered a race seat for 2003.
caption: Allan McNish at the 2002 French Grand Prix. The Scot qualified in seventeenth place, but retired from the race with an engine problem although he did complete enough laps to be classified eleventh.
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