TOKYO — Leading with the ice cool FT-86 G Sports Concept, Toyota has put a massive effort into the 2010 Tokyo Auto Salon, Japan's top custom and tuner show, which opened its doors today.
Toyota's stunning array of new performance-based concepts put everyone else in the shade. Toyota President Akio Toyoda, a huge car enthusiast, also turned up and took part in a talk show, something else that has never happened before. The message: Toyota really wants to connect with young Japanese and hammer home the fun of sports-car driving.
The FT-86 G Sports Concept, a fresh look at the compact Toyota-Subaru rear-wheel-drive sport coupe, looked fantastic in the metal and much sharper than when it first appeared at the 2009 Tokyo Auto Show in October. Toyota has totally redesigned the front end, bolted on a sexy carbon-fiber rear wing and diffuser and significantly upped the performance ante with a turbocharged version of Subaru's legendary 2.0-liter boxer-4.
No word on power, but this "Toyobaru" that is due on sale in 2011 is clearly getting better by the minute.
Toyota is also showing a GRMN Sports Hybrid concept: a remarkable open MR2 with the 3.3-liter V6 hybrid all-wheel-drive system from the first Highlander Hybrid. The GR stands for Gazoo Racing, and MN means it's a limited-edition car developed with Toyota's master test driver, Hiromu Naruse. This GRMN is part of a new family of G sports conversion models that Toyota has launched in Japan to add some fizz to the market.
This particular MR2 hybrid has reputedly been in development some while and, we hear, is "just a concept." It also weighs in at 2,866 pounds, so it's far from light. Toyota has played around with hybrid-class MR2s before, but nothing has come of it. Maybe what this 2010 concept really says is that the idea is on the front burner again.
Another GRMN concept, the FR, is a funky rear-wheel-drive hot hatch, a version of Toyota's two-box Aygo sedan from Europe. It has a 1.5-liter engine and normally has front-wheel drive. But wouldn't rear-wheel drive be so much more fun — and possibly work as a Scion?
Toyota also pulled the covers off a bewitching 1.3-liter supercharged version of its groundbreaking iQ supermini and revealed two custom versions of the Prius hybrid. The Prius G Sports concept has wheel spats to boost the aerodynamics, and the Prius Custom Plus Concept is far wilder and clearly not for the faint of heart.
Inside Line says: North America doesn't get these, most likely....but Tokyo auto salon viewers lapped them up. — Peter Nunn, Correspondent
Add A Comment »
objectiveview says:
12:49 PM, 01/15/2010
How in the year 2010 is 2866lbs "Far from light"? In a hyrbid at that? (Yes, I know the MR2-Spyder barely wieghed 2200lbs)
The MkII MR2 weighed 2750lbs for pete's sake. Porsche's Boxter Spyder weights 29xxlbs.
Bias much?
firstclass says:
10:33 AM, 01/15/2010
The FT-86 concept looks a bit like a cross between a Nissan GT-R and Acura's HSV-10 GT. And the Toyota Prius Custom Plus Concept is the ugliest and funniest thing I've seen this year. I can only blame anime as it will be japans downfall if Godzilla doesn't get there first. Japan never ceases to amaze me and confuse me.