24 Hours of Le Mans 2024 – The perspectives by manufacturers: Toyota/Lexus
The first free practice sessions of the 92nd edition will start this Wednesday: an opportunity to assess, before the serious things start, what the approximately fourteen constructors engaged in Hypercar and LMGT3 can hope for. Here, Toyota (and Lexus by extension), both experiencing a challenging season.

The two manufacturers are often associated together, as Lexus is a luxury branch of Toyota. In the case of the latter, in Hypercar, the start of the season has been as complicated as it is unprecedented: only one victory in three races, achieved in Imola, thanks to the valuable experience accumulated, while the competition was preparing to come back… This is the first time since the advent of the Hypercar in 2021 that Toyota is being as challenged.
But the time of tranquility is over for the world’s top manufacturer: Porsche and Ferrari remain the main threats in the quest for the Manceland Grail.
The centenary Le Mans last year was Toyota’s only defeat of the season, against Ferrari. The worst one, indeed. And the challenge for the Japanese, who could benefit from a more favorable BoP, is to ward off the fate that strikes them at Le Mans when factory competition is present. Between 2018 and 2022, there were hardly any brave Rebellion and Alpine (LMP1) as well as Glickenhaus to contest their victory.
The pace displayed by the GR010 during the Day is behind that of Porsche, but still in the same rhythm. Nothing truly revealing, but it still has the promise of being competitive at the front. It will be important to prevent the Stuttgart cars from dominating the race!
On the Lexus side, in LMGT3, with the French team Akkodis, the start of the season is catastrophic: only one small point has been scored since the beginning of the season, at Spa last month. The No. 78 and No. 87 have consistently been at the back of the pack since the opening race at Losail. A very difficult start in the World Championship for the luxury branch of Toyota.
During the Test Day on Sunday, the first session saw both Akkodis cars take the lead in the LMGT3 ranking, before dropping back later on.
The challenge will be twofold in the Toyota group: to defeat the factory competition in the Hypercar category and finally score big points at home for Akkodis, in LMGT3. In any case, the experience of the Japanese manufacturer will be a valuable asset, facing a rivalry that is several years behind. For this to happen, all the stars will have to align, not like last year.