Team Taisan (チーム・タイサン, stylized as Team TAISAN ) is a Japanese auto racing team founded in 1983 by Yasutsune "Ricky" Chiba and owned by the Taisan Industrial Company . Most active in the Super GT Series , formerly known as the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC), Taisan has been involved in all but one season from 1994 to 2018, taking a sabbatical in 2015. During that time they have won eight team championships and four drivers championships, representing manufacturers Ferrari , Porsche , Dodge , Toyota , Nissan , and Audi . Team Taisan has also participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans , winning their class on their debut in 2000 . For nearly their entire career, Taisan has been sponsored by tire manufacturer Yokohama Rubber Company , often carrying the name of Yokohama's Advan brand.
20-555: The team was initially formed through Nova Engineering [ ja ] and their efforts in the All Japan Endurance Championship and Fuji Long Distance Series . Taisan operated one of the teams' Porsche 962C with drivers Kunimitsu Takahashi and Kenji Takahashi . Kunimitsu went on to win the Endurance Championship three times from 1985 to 1987, while Nova Engineering won the team championships in
40-610: A Ferrari F40 . Masahiko Kondo and Anthony Reid won one race for the Porsche while Tetsuya Ota and Oscar Larrauri earned one victory in the Ferrari. A switch to a pair of Porsche 911 GT2s earned three GT1 victories in 1995 and the teams championship for the GT1 category, while the team also added a GT2 class campaign under the Team Taisan Jr. moniker for a Porsche 964 . Taisan Jr. became
60-523: A dominant team in the rechristened GT300 class, winning the drivers and teams championships in 1996 , followed by second place in 1997 and another championship in 1998 while campaigning a new Toyota MR2 in cooperation with Tsuchiya Engineering . Taisan's success led to the team being invited to participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2000 for the LMGT category. Their Porsche 911 GT3-R , driven by Hideo Fukuyama , Atsushi Yogo , and Bruno Lambert won
80-469: A joint program that earned them another drivers and teams championships in 2012 . The team expanded once again in 2013, retaining the Porsche in Super GT while joining the new Asian Le Mans Series with a Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 , winning the series championship and earning the team an automatic invitation to Le Mans, their first since 2006 . A difficult 2014 season with a new Nissan GT-R led Taisan to take
100-504: A sabbatical year from Super GT, returning in 2016 with an Audi R8 LMS in cooperation with SARD . Team Taisan also began to embrace electric motorsport by participating in the All Japan EV-GP Series in 2011 with Tesla Roadsters as well as a modified Porsche 914 , winning the 2011 championship. The team also began developing electric karts . In 2018 Chiba announced an auction of many former Taisan racing cars dating back to
120-500: The FIA ( Group A and Group B ) and the lead category, Class C would be for cars that are similar to IMSA's Camel Lights and the WEC's C2, whereas Class D was for C1/GTP cars. The series began in 1983 as All Japan Endurance Championship , an endurance championship with an intention to replace its domestic touring car championship and started out as a three-round event, including one which as it
140-587: The Dunlop Chicane into a larger set of turns. As part of the development, a new extended pit lane exit was created for motorcycles running the Bugatti Circuit . This second pit exit re-enters the track just beyond the Dunlop Chicane and before the Dunlop Bridge . Before the official test days, the FIA requested that the sportscars should also use this new pit lane, and mandated a 60 km/h speed limit for
160-545: The Fuji Long Distance Series those same years. Taisan expanded their program to include the Japanese Touring Car Championship in 1989 with BMW M3s , adding Briton Will Hoy to the team in 1990. A Group A category Nissan Skyline GT-R was added to the team in 1991 for Kenji Takahashi and Keiichi Tsuchiya while their BMWs continued in the lower JTC-2 category. Kunimitsu replaced Kenji in
180-557: The Skyline for 1992 and 1993 before Kunimitsu and Tsuchiya left to form their own racing team and the JTCC eliminated the Group A cars from the series, leaving the team with a single Super Touring BMW for Kazuo Mogi in 1994 . Taisan returned to sports car racing in 1994 in the new All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship, the team participating with one of their former 962Cs and teamed alongside
200-487: The category by a six-lap margin. Upon returning to Japan, Taisan began a streak of four consecutive GT300 team championships from 2000 – 2003 , including a drivers championship with Fukuyama in 2000. Another Le Mans also earned the team a podium finish in their class for 2002 . Taisan downsized to a single Porsche team from 2004 onward as the JGTC transitioned to the new Super GT Series; Taisan eventually joined with Endless for
220-574: The championship. All-Japan Sports Prototype Championship The All Japan Sports Prototype Championship ( 全日本スポーツプロトタイプ選手権 ) , abbreviated as JSPC, formed by the Japan Automobile Federation , was a domestic championship which took place in Japan for Group C and IMSA GTP prototype cars and also featured cars that were eligible for touring car racing in its earlier years. Class A and Class B for production cars which were defined by
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#1733085167892240-509: The early 1990s, including several JGTC and Super GT machines. Chiba also announced at the conclusion of the 2018 Super GT season that the team would cease participation in Super GT, instead concentrating solely on electric motorsports. ( key ) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) ( key ) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Note: Non-championship races (NC1,NC2) are major races that did not count towards
260-536: The end of the session, injuring his ankle and badly damaging the chassis of the car. In a unique move, the ACO went against its own rules and granted permission for the team to replace the chassis with a brand new car. The car was still forced to start at the back of the grid. The Scuderia Ecosse Ferrari 430 thus started at the front for the GT2 class. Class leaders and the fastest lap time on each day are in bold . This race marked
280-554: The entire 450m length, instead of using the normal pit exit in the Dunlop Curve as planned. This was originally used for the Le Mans test days, but due to complaints from the teams, the ACO decided to return to the old pit lane exit for the race. In the LMP1 category, during Wednesday's wet-weather qualifying Pescarolo C60 took the top two spots. Then, a day later, during dry weather conditions
300-619: The first Le Mans win for a diesel engined sports car, the Audi R10 TDI , and the second time that a diesel-powered sports car won a major international motorsports event, following the Audi R10 TDI's win at the 2006 12 Hours of Sebring . BMW was however the first brand to successfully enter a diesel-powered racing car in an international event when they won the Nürburgring 24 Hours , already back in 1998, with their 320d. This race also marked
320-448: The grand tourers (similar to IMSA's lower GTS and GTU classes). This was not to be the end for Group C cars as they would be allowed to compete in the newly formed series for two more years before being banished altogether. Major sportscar racing in Japan would return again in 2006 with the short-lived Japan Le Mans Challenge . 2006 24 Hours of Le Mans The 2006 24 Hours of Le Mans
340-673: The new Audi R10 TDIs overtook the Pescarolos to claim the top two positions. In LMP2, the Ray Mallock Ltd. Lola ran two seconds quicker than the new Intersport Lola. In LMGT1, the Aston Martin factory squad swept the front row, with the #64 Corvette right behind them. In GT2, the French IMSA Performance Matmut Porsche took the quickest time; however, Luca Riccitelli took the car off at Nord du Karting at
360-674: Was noted throughout its ten-year run for battles between the various Porsche 956 / 962C and Japanese manufacturers presented by works teams of Toyota, Nissan and Mazda. Due to waning popularity and seeking to prevent the spiraling budgets and the disappearance of Gr. C and IMSA GTP, the JAF would dissolve the series at the end of 1992 and for the following year replace the series with the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship , using GT cars such as those in secondary classes as major international sportscar series worldwide favoured
380-664: Was part of the WEC round which meant drivers competing in the national series was counted into the world championship. In 1987, the championship would be broken up into two as production cars from the lower categories would be moved into the All Japan Touring Car Championship (now Super GT ) formed two years earlier to become a dedicated championship and was renamed the All Japan Sports Prototype Car Endurance Championship . The series
400-494: Was the 74th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place over 17–18 June 2006. The winners of the race were Frank Biela , Marco Werner , and Emanuele Pirro , driving the Audi R10 TDI . For the first time in the history of the race, the winner was a diesel -powered car. Prior to this race the ACO redeveloped the area around the Dunlop Curve and Dunlop Chicane, moving the Dunlop Curve in tighter to create more run-off area, while also turning
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