Toy story - Tommi Mäkinen and Toyota are back in the WRC

Momentary pause and he’s in. “We talked a lot about where the team will be based and a lot of people have been talking about this as well. We have made the full investigation into the operation in terms of transport logistics and actually it was very different from what we thought; there is only a bit of extra cost in terms of time and money.”

The journey to Mäkinen’s base takes you through Jyvaskyla, hometown of Rally Finland, the 1000 Lakes – a genuine hero-maker of an event. It’s hard to argue with these roads. “We have,” says Mäkinen, “brilliant test conditions, which are right next door to the factory. We can design a part and fit it to the car and the next day we can be testing it on a fantastic road. I think this is very, very important.

The Puuppola lanes are far better for honing a WRC car than city suburbs in the middle of Germany. “We have no plans to move to Cologne,” he says. “TMG is working on the engine. We have people from TMR working with them in Cologne and everything is on target.”

That target is Monte Carlo this time next year – a daunting prospect for a team that still doesn’t have a chassis rolling or a motor running.

As well as the Cologne-sourced engine, parts for Toyota’s new car will come from all over Europe; Bos will supply the dampers, Alcon the brakes and Xtrac the transmission. And they’ll be bolted together and making a noise before the end of the first quarter. “We are like a nice big family in this team,” says Mäkinen. “We have a lot of very talented and motivated people working with us to make this car. I have full confidence in their knowledge.”

Mäkinen won his titles with a close-knit Mitsubishi squad run by the hugely respected Andrew Cowan – a former driver who knew the sport and the business of the sport as well as anyone. The Finn clearly has that kind of model in mind for Toyota’s return. The current workforce of 40 will double in the next 12 months, but it’s certainly not bound for the sort of monolithic effort that marked Toyota’s Formula 1 campaign.

“I feel very comfortable with this team and very confident in our future,” he says. “Let’s hope we can win. I certainly hope so. You never know. The WRC is a big championship and a long road and it’s never easy.”

By now, it’s dark again but the lights are on. They won’t be off much for the next 12 months, wrapping the TMR building in an almost phosphorescent glow. Toyota’s WRC return is not that hard to spot after all.

Toyota’s past WRC efforts

Celica TA22 (1972-1975) - The solid, if unspectacular, car on which Toyota’s WRC foundations were laid in 1972.

Celica Twin Cam Turbo (1983-1986) - First blown Toyota rally car, dubbed the ‘Whistling Pig’, dominated long-distance African events.