Three-wheel test part of Toyota Le Mans preparation

One of Toyota's 2018/19 FIA World Endurance Championship challengers was sent out of the pits with a front wheel missing during an endurance simulation at the Aragon circuit last month so that the team could learn how to deal with the situation should it arise in the race this June.

Toyota Motorsport GmbH technical director Pascal Vasselon said: "In Aragon we have done one lap on three wheels and asked the team to bring back the car. 

"We have understood the additional problems you can get with the front differential, for example."

Vasselon explained that the team had already completed the same exercise with a rear wheel removed at a previous test. 

Toyota has been simulating an array of problems during its endurance simulations in order to be as prepared as possible for the kind of exceptional circumstances that deprived it of victory at Le Mans in 2014, '16 and '17. 

"We did not need as much mileage as the year before, so we have sacrificed mileage to train the team to handle fake problems," Vasselon said. "The target was to train the team to handle the unexpected and it worked quite well.

"The exceptional now is not so exceptional, but obviously the adrenaline and stress you have during the race will trigger additional difficulties."

As many as "20 to 25" different issues have been simulated by Toyota so far this year, according to Vasselon. 

These have included surprising the driver by ceasing all radio communication on circuit and simulating driveshaft failures. 

Vasselon has also revealed that the turbo issue that cost Toyota Le Mans victory in 2016 with six minutes to go would not have been an issue one year later. 

He explained that the problem was precipitated by the late decision to develop a turbocharged engine for the 2016 WEC.

"When we came to Le Mans the engine was working very well when everything was going well, but when we lost the pipe [from the turbo to the intercooler] the systems were not able to handle that and we lost completely the power," he said.  

"Now if this happens, the system will immediately use the other bank of cylinders and we will do a lap of four minutes rather than 3m20s.

"It is a good example of a problem whose magnitude depends on how well you are prepared."