Hybrid units were introduced in 2022, but the decision has now been made to discontinue them mid-homologation cycle.
The primary reason behind the decision was financial. Moving forward, hybrid units could no longer simply be reset in case of failure—they would need to be repaired each time, which would have added millions in costs for teams.
Toyota’s Sami Pajari, who had only limited experience driving a Rally1 car equipped with a hybrid unit this season, doesn’t view the change as particularly impactful.
“Honestly, it’s not changing that much for me,” Pajari said.
“Of course, it was nice to drive those cars with the hybrid—the boost from the hybrid is quite impressive, and it feels nice,” he added.
The removal of the hybrid unit will reduce the power output of Rally1 cars.
“I wouldn’t mind having more power. For me, it doesn’t really matter, but it was nice to experience those cars,” Pajari noted.
The hybrid removal has been strongly supported by privateer team M-Sport. Operating without factory backing, the hybrid system had become a prohibitively expensive burden for the team.
“I think, in the bigger picture, there are some reasons why they’re making this change, but it’s fine for me,” Pajari concluded.
Pajari will compete in a full WRC season with Toyota’s Rally1 car next year. The Finnish driver, who won the WRC2 championship this past season, already had the chance to test the Rally1 car during the season.
