Joe Gibbs Racing Will Have Same Toyota Engines As Michael Waltrip Racing In 2012

Joe Gibbs Racing is merging its engine program with Toyota Racing Development (TRD), meaning that most of its NASCAR Sprint Cup Series motors will be built in Southern California next season instead of at JGR’s headquarters in North Carolina.

It also means that JGR will be using the same engines as the ones run by fellow Toyota team Michael Waltrip Racing in 2012.

“They will be the same,” TRD president Lee White said. “For all intents and purposes, they will be identical.”

JGR has had an astounding 11 engine failures this season in practices and races, according to the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot, which has caused Chase contender Denny Hamlin to start at the back of the field four times.

Though JGR will still use its own motors for the remainder of this season in all likelihood – the TRD engines don’t fit the JGR chassis at the present time – team president J.D. Gibbs said it’s “not ruled out” that JGR teams could use a TRD motor before the end of 2011.

TRD will develop and build most of the engine parts and pieces – though the exact arrangement hasn’t been determined – and JGR will then add its own package to the motors (and perform the same duties for MWR) once the engines arrive at JGR’s shop in North Carolina.

The implementation of Electronic Fuel Injection (which debuts next season) also will be a cooperative effort between the programs.

The marriage between the two engine organizations means no one at JGR or TRD will lose their jobs, officials said. JGR will try to add Nationwide and Truck teams as customers, and TRD needed more work because of the likely departure of Red Bull Racing.

White said the TRD/JGR move is in line with engine program consolidation across the sport (such as Earnhardt Childress Racing Technologies, for example). Financially, it’s better to build motors for many cars instead of just a few.

“Frankly, it’s just a great deal for both organizations, as well as the Michael Waltrip Racing organization,” White said, “because it brings all three of the entities closer together cooperatively in terms of engines, drivability, supporting the engines at the racetrack and also extending into the chassis.”