Alan Jones 1987 Toyota 87c Launch May 2026

Jones was "snapped up" by Toyota following the demise of the Beatrice F1 team, finding the lucrative offer to race in Japan attractive due to the lack of jet lag and favorable travel from Australia.

Despite the Fuji victory, Jones later reflected on the Toyota 87C in a July 2000 interview as the . He was critical of the car's ergonomics and technical quirks, such as windshield wipers that smeared the glass to the point of zero visibility. ALAN JONES 1987 TOYOTA 87C LAUNCH

At the end of the 1987 season, the 87C was phased out as Toyota developed the all-new V8-powered for the following year. Jones was "snapped up" by Toyota following the

: The 1987 24 Hours of Le Mans was a failure for the team. The car shared by Jones, Lees, and Eje Elgh retired after only 19 laps when Jones coasted to a halt out of fuel, just a kilometre short of the pits due to a team miscalculation. Alan Jones' Perspective At the end of the 1987 season, the

: The highlight of the season for Jones was a victory at the Fuji 1000 km in May. Alongside Lees and Masanori Sekiya, Jones won in torrential rain—a race he later recalled as "surviving the chaos" on a track that didn't drain properly.

: Built on a sheet-aluminium monocoque with a honeycomb core and carbon-fibre reinforcements. The bodywork was designed with large frontal air-intakes and ground-effect tunnels to improve performance.

: The engine produced approximately 680 bhp in qualifying trim. Despite this power, the car suffered from insufficient downforce, which made it less competitive on high-speed circuits like Le Mans. Racing Debut and 1987 Season