Toyota's Worst NASCAR Cup Series Season 

"some of you weren't even old enough to remember this" yea that makes me feel old. i remember watching nascar a lot that year, granted i was 5 but it's a time that i remember very clearly. nostalgia!!!

2007 was the first time as a kid that I really comprehended the business part of NASCAR. I knew how big a deal it was to have a 4th unique manufacturer entering, and I wanted to see Toyota do well. I don’t know if it was the knowledge that the Gen 4 was going away and thusly a lack of development, or a choice to focus on the COT, but that was an awful year no matter how you slice it.

Video suggestions: Championship hangovers: Jimmie Johnson 2017 Jimmie Johnson 2014 Matt Kenseth 2004 Bad Seasons: Juan Pablo Montoya 2008 Ryan Newman 2006-2008 Tony Stewart 2014-2015 Kurt Busch 2003 Kevin Harvick 2009 Greg Biffle 2006 Good seasons: Tony Stewart 2009 Jeff Gordon 2003 Greg Biffle 2012 Jimmie Johnson 2002 Matt Kenseth 2006 Tony Stewart 2000

A driver finishing 43rd in points after starting half the races, multiple drivers DNQing every week, one of the worst teams in the sport having three fully (consumer-facing) sponsored cars. Really is a shame how so much of that has changed. The Cup series gets maybe 2 or 3 races a year with a full field of 40 (which is already reduced from 43 obviously).

I remember watching this season and thinking "On the plus side: Toyota's operation can only go up from here?"

Toyota was the best thing to ever happen to NASCAR and JGR. Chevy only really cared for HMS and RCR, so it was a bold risk for JGR to move to Toyota but it paid off. What I love about Toyota is that are they willing to support other teams like Legacy. They seem to be more involved in the sport than the other two combined (Ford is almost non-existent), both on and off the track. Also, they are more “American” than they other two, since their cars are built in middle America.

I Like Buick And Chevrolet From The 80s And Early 90s NASCAR Winston Cup Series Thanks For Uploading

4:14 I guess 35/36 races counts as part time too?

Here's a fun fact: The only Toyota not featured in EA Sports NASCAR 08 is the #36 car.

That Fontana wreck for David.... jesus still hurts everytime I see the violence of it. And the incar of him struggling.

Reutimann only DNQ’d eight times, the #00 was driven by PJ Jones (son of Indy 500 winner Parnelli) at Sonoma (finished 12th) and Watkins Glen (finished 25th) As for the #55 2-time cup champion Terry Labonte drove the car at Sonoma (finished 35th), Indianapolis (DNF - classified 30th) and Watkins Glen (finished 30th)

Scott speed was the original driver of the red Bull car with Brian Vickers Scott speed didn't make it through a full season though

And look where they are now

Lol. I just realized. We all had more points than MWR at the start of 2007. 😂

As a Dale Jarrett fan I forget 2007 happened, Dale retired after his 2005 Dega win and you can’t tell me otherwise 🤣

God... You make me feel old saying that some might not remember when they first entered. I was impressed by the design of tbe Red Bull cars. Doing the two different colored rims. I do remember the first season they showed up. Was unaware that they were in the truck series. Man.... 2007... Year of Bayformers ...

Just when Red Bull racing was getting competitive they left Nascar, still baffling to me

I just keep hoping that Toyota will bring the Supra to the Cup Series and finally ditch the frumpy Camry.

You just had to feel bad for Dale Jarrett throughout 2007.

07 was the worst year for them to come in They had to develop 2 cars the generation 4 and the car of tomorrow

Man the sound of those cars and hearing the old fox and ESPN broadcasts brings me right back.

Obviously in the first year Toyota struggles, this year run 2 cars at same time and difficult it. But all change when JGR switch to them in 2008 and bring it into a competition with Kyle Busch get the first win. JGR saved Toyota from collapse.

Vickers had the car to beat at Charlotte until his power steering went out

Man the good old days 🥲

I was too young and only payed attention to my favorite driver and colorful cars but some in particular are the would red bull cars and the bk cars. Was there any chance that red bull continued?

I miss Dave Despain!! He rocks!!!

2007 was heavily a disappointment season for Toyota.

... Oi. Listen, i'm just here because i'm a Toyota Fan from WEC. Wow, i didn't know they had this bad of a start in stock car racing. They're at least better the whatever Vanwall is..

Killer video as always bro!

The Camry looks so weird on the gen 4 cup car.

As an F1 fan in addition to NASCAR, Toyota's 2007 season in the Cup Series is nothing compared to their entire run in F1 from 2002-2009 in terms of awfulness. Unlike their current run in NASCAR, Toyota failed to win a single race in F1 even though they had some experienced drivers during their run in Ralf Schumacher (Michael's younger brother) Allan McNish (who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans multiple times in his racing career but with Audi), Cristano da Matta (the 2002 CART champion) & Jarno Trulli. In addition they were DQ'd from the 2004 Canadian GP for using illegal parts & accused of spying on Ferrari that same year because their car that year looked very similar to Ferrari's. Unlike their rival Honda, it is very unlikely that Toyota will ever return to F1 as they would likely join Formula E or reunite with Indycar if they decide go back open wheel racing (though I think they are fine with racing in NASCAR & sports cars).

Worst season- kyle petty. I remember a season he failed to qualify for half the races, got 1 top ten but was so bad . Bad season- hut stricklin in that 90 car. It was terrible

Man I was team Red Bull all the way when they came In and adopted BK after but I was Red Bull super fan

"Weren't old enough to see it". I turned 13 that year, I feel old thanks to that comment lol.

Oh what a feeling...

I think during those early years a few under funded teams ran Toyota

at the same time Toyota was blowing half a billion per year in F1 and won nothing haha

Future uploads: Why Shane Van Gisbergen’s Win Wasn’t A Surprise, The Worst Loop 121 and The Worst Grant Park 220.

You know what they say: First is worst. Second is best!

2014 was very bad for them too

I remember when Joe Gibbs Racing announced they were switching to Toyota and EVERYONE said they would struggle due to how badly the Camrys were in 2007. I was in my teens then and had a feeling that these people might eat their words especially after Jason Leffler scored the first Toyota win in the NASCAR Busch Series[now NASCAR Xfinity Series]. Of course JGR dominated the Nationwide race at Daytona and almost won the 500 in Cup, then when Kyle Busch won at Atlanta in 2008, history was made for Toyota in Cup and it was just beginning.

Saw this one coming. I will say that I liked Reutimann’s Dominos scheme, and Jarrett’s UPS scheme. Outside of that, 2007 was going to be a struggle regardless, as this was their first season. I saw in first grade at the time, and I REALLY didn’t like seeing drivers crash at the time, so Mikey’s wreck in qualifying was devastating for me to see, but seeing Toyota struggle as a whole made me feel bad for the drivers out there very quickly, especially elder drivers like Jarrett.

I kinda miss the Go or Go Home qualifying that all those teams seemed to have to do. I think they should have waited till the COT was there full time.

It’s funny how their worst season was when it was expected that they would struggle big time. It’s racing, not rocket science. Although, Michael Waltrip might disagree.

Gawd….I miss the Speed Channel and Dave Despin’s and Jimmy Spencer’s shows.

*SHOT UP THE TRACK* Say what now, Rusty? 😳

For whatever reason, i always think of the 00 rutiman car, or one of michaels napa cars, but with those chrome wheels. Man that looked so good

9:04 “Oh for Pete’s sake, brother!” 😂😂😂

it was such an odd year to join the sport too with the old gen and COT coexisting

At least Toyota's NASCAR project is far more successful than their F1 team which ran from 2002* to 2009. They had all the money in the world, seemingly, but not only did they fail to win any titles in that time, they failed to even win a race. Their best F1 season was 2005, when they secured 2 pole positions, 5 podiums, scoring 88 points and 4th in the Constructors Championship. Any momentum they did have was squandered by corporate decisions by the board in Japan. In 2006, against the wishes of the Technical Team, they were forced to switch from Michelin tyres, with whom they'd had their best season the previous year, to Bridgestone. The result was that in 2006, Toyota reverted to type in F1 by slumping back to 6th in the Constructors Championship in 2006, with only 1 podium all year, scoring a whoping 53 fewer points than they did in 2005. Their best chances for wins came in their final year, 2009. In Bahrain, their two drivers, Jarno Trulli and Timo "is that?" Glock, locked out the front row in qualifying, but over caution in the race left them plummeting down the order with Trulli third and Glock 7th. In Belgium, while best remembered for Giancarlo Fisichella's heroics for the back marker Force India team, Trulli was fastest fuel corrected, but a collision on lap 1 left him with front wing damage and brake problems left him as a DNF. As for Glock, he had been running well inside the points when he had a fuel rig malfunction at his pit stop, dropping him out of the points. At the end of 2009, with the Recession deeply affecting the car industry and no major return on their immense investment, Toyota pulled the plug on its F1 program, never to be seen again. *: it tested a car in 2001, but made its race debut in 2002

Toyota's humble beginning

Just a tiny correction - the Bill Davis #36 did last the full season and they are listed as part-time, because they skipped Sonoma.

Fun fact: Dave Blaney's 3rd place finish at Talladega in the Chase was Toyota's first top 5 in Cup

The 36 is listed as part time because they skipped Sonoma

1:23 woah, you made me feel old when you said “some of you are to young to remember”. This was my golden era of nascar . Jimmie was the only champion crowned during my high school years and I watched nothing but Motorsports on tv in my free time back then

MWR had ONE job.... And they blew it. Twice. JGR saved Toyota and proved they are here to stay as a competitor for the long haul. Also, 2007 marked the beginning of the end for Dodge, but that's for another time

I Remember This Season 2007 very well Dave Blany had the best season but 31st in points yeah not to good

I had a really big obsession with the Gen 4 Toyota Camry for some reason

It was their first year in cup so I won't say much about it

Bill Davis, MWR and Red Bull walked so Gibbs could run

The fact that Toyota has poured more money into the sport than chevy and ford combined you see how they advertise there toyota Racing commercial when Nascar comes on you see guys like toni, bell, etc and yet people still discredit Toyota

here's a wild fact. after 2011 season Red Bull when they ceased operations in NASCAR, it wasnt because the team was struggling or they were losing money. no it was because their main F1 sponsor Infiniti threatened to back out in 2012 and leave Red Bull Racing with no sponsor if they didnt leave NASCAR because apparently Infiniti and Toyota are 2 rival teams in other motorsports i think

If they got Gibbs an year sooner then they most likely would had got an win in 2007. But yeah first time possibly ever (definitely in the midern era) that a manufacturer entering the sport failed to win in their first season.

I was around for this season and boy it was a crazy thing to see, I was like 5 or 6 and watching qualifying and seeing those Toyota's fail to start was mindblowing but at least the paint schemes were awesome. I always loved the #00 cars, the #22 and that #36 car and the Red Bull cars, those schemes like the Midnight BK car was just a awesome scheme. But around that time, I was a Dodge person because the 06-07 Charger looked so awesome. Now at 20, yeah without a doubt, this was the worst season for Toyota ever and I don't think it will ever be topped.

i always bullied the 83 and 84 in nascar 08

The quality of the camera footage from 2006-2008 looks like it was either filmed in 1978, or yesterday. no in-between lol

Toyota unfortunately had a GP2 engine in 2007.

toyota was very poopoo in 07 but tbf it was their first year in the cup series

With Red Bull dominating F1 right now, I want them to give NASCAR another shot

Yeah but those gen 4 Toyota non COT cars were so 🔥🔥

I'd forgotten about so much of this, except that was part of my NASCAR...and I was pissed a foreign brand was in our sport. I've since changed my view, but remember that early-college stance well.

I remember the backlash from people when they announced they was going to cup lol

I still believe Toyota has 0 business in the cup series. They haven't made a family sedan with a V8 since the 90s. Lexus? Maybe, if they had a V8 car to enter. But Toyota had no reason to be here, and they still don't, even after all these years. This would have been a strong argument to put another big manufacturer into the ring besides Toyota. So many great brands that had V8 cars at the time they entered, including Pontiac. There was no reason to let them move into the cup series without a V8 car.

Boomers are creaming right now while watching this

I remember they were lucky to even have a car in the field most weeks that season. Couldn't make the show to save their life. Had to use DJ's champ provisional just to make the first 8 races or whatever

I would've like to see Red Bull stick around to see if they would become a team competing for wins week in and week out.

Im surprised none of the 2007 Teams bought the owner points of the Ginn Racing 13 and put one of their cars in the top 35

Only thing that saved Toyota in Cup was JGR going to them in 2008

2007 Infineon still Dodge Sponsored albeit far less than 06, as they won for the 1st time.

I wish red Bull had stayed, I loved their schemes as a kid along with being a most of my life TRD fan

If Toyota without joe Gibbs racing their career will end right now

“I’m only 16 years old and I think I understand something better than Brian France does.” So does every other 16 year old. That doesn’t make you special.

I remember that season and I think of it wasn’t for JGR becoming a Toyota team Toyota would not be in NASCAR today

2007 was simply a learning year for Toyota. Not was easy anyways. Oh. And was my first NASCAR all season long that I seen thanks for the JPMs rookie season

10:16 That is such a perfect cut, genius

93 DNQ’s in 252 attempts between 7 cars across 3 teams.

the only motorsport Toyota was actually good at in the 2000s was JGTC. (their F1 program was just as bad as this or even worse)

Yeah I think there needed to be a video for Toyota and 2007.

I remember Toyota debuting and absolutely sucked until they got Joe Gibbs racing to flip from Chevy.

Toyota: Oh what a feeling.

As a Ford fan, it seems every other season is our worst season. This year included. Wouldnt mind seeing Toyota struggle again

2007 was the first ever cup season I watched at the age of 5 I wouldn't watch close to a full season until 2009, but I did see enough to remember Toyota's struggles

I still love Reutimann's Domino's and BK schemes, though. 😅❤

When JGR switched to Toyota the next year the rest was history including the Daytona 500 and championships. Red Bull and MWR won races but eventually went out of cup racing altogether. Xfinity Toyota team Brawn Racing won races that year. Toyota's first year in Cup, no wins.

I remember them being abysmal when I was a kid

Dem Cheat'n Toyoters

My favorite races to watch were the ones where Darrell directly acknowledged his brother racing on the broadcast. It's a shame that arguably the biggest racing day in both of their lives' would be shrouded by the death of such an influential and generational racing icon.

I was only 5 in 2007 but I can remember how big of a deal this was

I don't think that MWR gets enough credit for how good they eventually got before spin-gate.

You should have NASCAR bust for Joe Nemechek… cause 2011 35 DNFs 😭😭😭