Toyota Opens “Mini ’Ring” Test Track in Japan

Toyota Motor Corp. has opened the first section of its new Shimoyama Technical Center in Japan with a test track modeled after the famed Nurburgring-Nordschleife course in Germany.

Toyota is investing 300 billion yen ($2.7 billion) in the 1,600-acre complex, which was announced last year. The proving grounds is expected to be fully operational by 2023, with the addition of several more test tracks and a vehicle development center.

The initial 5.3-km (3.3-mile) “country road” course features dozens of sharp curves and a 250-ft change in elevation. By comparison, the grueling Nordschleife circuit has 154 turns over 12.9 miles, with a 1,000-ft change in elevation.

The new Toyota facility’s other test tracks will include a high-speed circuit and specialized courses that replicate different roads and driving conditions from around the world. Toyota says it will use the center to “thoroughly hone” all of its future vehicles with attributes that instill the “joy of driving.”

Some 3,300 people are due to work at the Japanese complex, which is about 30 minutes away from the carmaker’s headquarters in Toyota City, by 2023. About 30 test drivers and other engineers work there today.