Hydrogen-powered Toyota GR Corolla race car catches fire

A Toyota GR Corolla race car powered by hydrogen – rather than high-octane petrol – has been withdrawn from a racing event in Japan after catching fire during testing.

In April 2021, Japanese car giant Toyota previewed the alternative-fuelled Corolla race car, demonstrating how its 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbocharged engine – shared with the GR Yaris – can produce almost no emissions while running on hydrogen instead of petrol.

The hydrogen-powered Toyota GR Corolla was scheduled to take part in a round of the Japanese Super Taikyu racing series this weekend, but overnight the car-maker announced the entry had been withdrawn due to a fire while the car was undergoing testing last week.

Unlike hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles such as the Mirai and HiLux prototype – which use hydrogen to generate electricity and power an electric motor – Toyota has been developing traditional petrol engines to run on hydrogen fuel.

In a media statement, Toyota said “a vehicle fire occurred due to a hydrogen leak from a gaseous hydrogen pipe in the engine compartment”, causing damage to the GR Corolla which could not be repaired in time for this weekend’s race.

While the previous iteration of the GR Corolla’s engine had been designed to run on hydrogen gas, Toyota says the race car which caught fire was fuelled by liquid hydrogen.

Thankfully, Toyota says a “hydrogen leak sensor fail-safe functioned properly”, allowing its driver to escape without any injuries.

Despite the incident, Toyota says it will continue to develop the car with the target of becoming the world's first vehicle to race with liquid hydrogen fuel.

The hydrogen-powered Toyota GR Corolla has previously been raced by now-former Toyota President Akio Toyoda, who races under the pseudonym 'Morizo' – influencing the Morizo Edition road car.