Briscoe and Zonta Conclude Testing for Toyota

Toyota's test drivers Ryan Briscoe and Ricardo Zonta concluded today the team's testing programme for the week on two fronts, with Briscoe in Valencia, Spain, and Zonta in Paul Ricard, France.

Briscoe at Valencia ran a total of 337 laps in four days, setting the ninth best time of the week. The Australian concentrated on testing Michelin tyres - including wet weather tyres today; 2004 electronic systems; and aerodynamic data.

"I am very happy with how the team has worked and with the progress we have made this week, especially considering how busy the track was at times and the amount of disruptions due to red lights," Briscoe commented today.

"We managed to complete our test programme for the week, which consisted mainly of wet and dry weather Michelin tyre tests. To complete so much work and so many laps is always a good feeling at the end of a session.

"I found myself having to adapt to manual shifting again as we began our preparations for the 2004 season and the new regulations that will be introduced. The wet tyre testing today has shown that there have been noticeable steps in tyre development and performance and I am now looking forward to continuing our winter testing programme next week alongside Ricardo Zonta in Barcelona."

Zonta, at the same time, was running alone at the French track with the team's interim car, the TF103B. He covered a total of 237 laps, but the team did not release laptimes for the four-day private session.

"The test this week was essentially an installation run of our new TF103B car, which has a completely new rear end," said Zonta today. "We used the four days to get a feel for the new engine, gearbox and rear suspension and I was quite impressed with the new components, because we had no real problems all week. This is definitely a positive sign for the future.

"Having said that, it is difficult to draw any real conclusions of this first test with the new car, because there was some inconsistency with the weather conditions, which made it hard to do any back-to-back comparisons. I am certainly pleased to be driving again after a small vacation in Brazil and I am looking forward to next week's Barcelona test."

Zonta and Briscoe resume testing for Toyota next week, for a four-day session at Barcelona, Spain, which begins on Tuesday.