Rumors: Toyota Readying a Supercharged Version of the GT 86?

Toyota Readying a Supercharged Version of the GT 86?

Toyota has repeatedly stressed that the GT 86 was developed as a pure, fun and easy to drive rear-wheel drive sports car, ignoring the horsepower race and concentrating instead on honing every detail of the chassis set-up. In fact, the Japanese carmaker was so determined to stay true to its promise that it even included drift tests in its development program. The production model is said to have an estimated 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) time of 6.8 seconds and a top speed of 230 km/h (143 mph).
However, almost everyone who has driven the 86 has found it lacking in oomph and, especially, low- and mid-range torque. In other words, you need to rev it hard to get the best out of it.
About a month ago, when the car was still known as the FT-86 and the first details were starting to leak into the web, we unveiled a Toyota Racing Development version of the car with a more aggressive bodykit.
Now, Autocar is reporting that Toyota chief engineer Tetsuo Tada has confirmed that TRD is indeed working on an even more powerful version of the GT 86 and prototypes are already being evaluated.
Despite the fact that Subaru, which provided the flat-four engine, employs turbocharging in its WRX and STi models, Tada said that he prefers supercharging as a way of increasing horsepower and low-end torque. That’s because, in contrast to turbocharging, it doesn’t affect throttle response of turbo lag nor the car’s drivability.
Supercharging has also been used in performance versions of previous Toyota models, such as the IS200, and as an aftermarket, TRD-developed power-enhancing accessory.
Toyota’s chief engineer wouldn’t reveal any numbers, but a 50HP increase in power should be easy.

PHOTO GALLERY

Rumors: Toyota Readying a Supercharged Version of the GT 86?

Toyota has repeatedly stressed that the GT 86 was developed as a pure, fun and easy to drive rear-wheel drive sports car, ignoring the horsepower race and concentrating instead on honing every detail of the chassis set-up.

In fact, the Japanese carmaker was so determined to stay true to its promise that it even included drift tests in its development program. The production model is said to have an estimated 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) time of 6.8 seconds and a top speed of 230 km/h (143 mph).

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2013 Scion FR-S: This is the Final Production Version and it goes on Sale Next Spring [Updated]

The third chapter of what has turned out to be a very long saga came to an end tonight with the official presentation of the new 2013 Scion FR-S, which follows the Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ introductions at the Tokyo Motor Show earlier today.

The name Scion chose for the North American version of the Toyota 86 stands for Front-engine, Rear-wheel drive, Sport. The 2+2 coupe is the fifth model to join the Scion family and will go on sale in the United States and Canada in the spring of 2012.

“Serving as a laboratory for Toyota, Scion is always experimenting with new things,” said Jack Hollis, Scion vice president. “The brand is iconic with the xB, adrenalized by the tC, and groundbreaking with the iQ. The FR-S will no doubt serve as the halo car, expanding Scion into a new dimension of driving performance," he added.

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Subaru BRZ Joins its Toyota Sibling at the Tokyo Motor Show [Live Photos + New Videos]

Danny de Vito and body builder-turned actor-turned California governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, were probably the only twins that were completely different to one another. On the other hand, that was a comedy film in which artistic freedom allows the producers to do anything they please.

In the real world, human twins may indeed differ, mostly in character – though not as much as Arnie and Danny by any stretch of the imagination. In the automotive world, however, when two manufacturers jointly develop a vehicle, 99.9% of the times it ends up being identical to its sibling.

Even Subaru and Toyota are not pretending that their BRZ and 86/GT86 are anything but the same car. They clearly admit it in their press releases and even inscribe it on the engine cover. It’s badge engineering, pure and simple.

Therefore, all the hoopla about the extremely low center of gravity, the compact dimensions, the fun to drive RWD configuration et al is repeated in the BRZ which also made its premiere today at the 42nd edition of the Tokyo Motor Show.

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Toyota 86 in the Flesh from the Tokyo Motor Show, Plus New Promo Video

What is Toyota’s first car with a front-mounted, horizontally opposed engine and rear-wheel drive? Surprisingly, even to most motoring hacks, it’s not the 86 (or GT 86 for European buyers).

It's a car that goes back almost half a century: the two-cylinder, boxer-engined Sports 800. So there you have it: another piece of information with which you can impress your friends.

This is 2011 though, and the latest boxer-powered, rear-wheel drive Toyota is the much talked about 86. It may have been officially revealed four days ago (and unofficially even earlier), but the Tokyo Motor Show gives the public its first chance to see Toyota’s sports car in the flesh.

Even though Toyota claims a 50 year-old heritage behind the 86, as everyone knows - heck even Snooki should be aware of this by now…- the rear-wheel drive coupe has been developed in cooperation with Subaru, which in Tokyo is displaying its own version, the BRZ.

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New Subaru BRZ Sports Coupe - First Official Pictures of Production Model

New Subaru BRZ Sports Coupe - First Official Pictures of Production Model

After the unveiling of the Toyota 86 (GT 86 in Europe) on Saturday, it's time for Subaru to take center stage with the presentation of its version of the jointly developed rear-wheel drive sports coupe in production guise. The new BRZ was revealed today less than two weeks after Subaru exhibited the STI-badged concept model at the Los Angeles Auto Show, and just before the sports coupe makes its first public outing under the spotlight at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show on Wednesday, November 30.
To the surprise of no one, the production BRZ loses the concept’s neat aero-kit with the large rear wing and carbon-fiber parts, but no need to worry as it's almost certain that Subaru's STI division will offer either the same or similar components as an option in due time.
Even though we knew from day one that the Subaru BRZ, the Toyota 86 and the upcoming Scion FR-S were all jointly developed by Toyota and Subaru, we had some hope that the cars might differ in appearance and flavor. As you can see for yourself, this never happened – at least with the BRZ and the 86.
From this first set of pictures, we see that the exterior styling changes between the BRZ and 86 are limited only to the re-sculptured front bumper, the alloy wheel designs, the fender trims and the tail lamp graphics (even the shape remains the same). We don't have any photos of the interior yet, but we’re willing to bet that there won't be any noticeable differences between the two cars.
The same goes for the mechanical hardware with the BRZ and the 86 sharing Subaru's 2.0-liter flat-four engine with Toyota’s “D-4S” direct injection and port injection technology, which is rated at 200-horsepower and 205Nm (151 lb-ft) of peak torque.
Power is transferred to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox with a short stroke shift lever or an optional six-speed automatic with paddle shifts on the steering wheel, while the BRZ also gets a specially tuned electronic stability control. The basic model will ride on 17-inch wheels wrapped around 215/45R17 rubber.
We could go on with the dimensions and the suspension setup but we'd be practically repeating what we said about the 86. In fact, come to think of it, we could have just swapped the words "Toyota" with "Subaru" and "86" with "BRZ" and be done with it. Too late now…

By John Halas

NEW SUBARU BRZ

New Subaru BRZ Sports Coupe: First Official Pictures of Production Model

After the unveiling of the Toyota 86 (GT 86 in Europe) on Saturday, it's time for Subaru to take center stage with the presentation of its version of the jointly developed rear-wheel drive sports coupe in production guise.

The new BRZ was revealed today less than two weeks after Subaru exhibited the STI-badged concept model at the Los Angeles Auto Show, and just before the sports coupe makes its first public outing under the spotlight at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show on Wednesday, November 30.

To the surprise of no one, the production BRZ loses the concept’s neat aero-kit with the large rear wing and carbon-fiber parts, but no need to worry as it's almost certain that Subaru's STI division will offer either the same or similar components as an option in due time.

Even though we knew from day one that the Subaru BRZ, the Toyota 86 and the upcoming Scion FR-S were all jointly developed by Toyota and Subaru, we had some hope that the cars might differ in appearance and flavor. As you can see for yourself, this never happened – at least with the BRZ and the 86.

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Toyota 86 Video Bonanza: Track and Road Driving, Presentation, and Promo Films

So you want to see more of the new Toyota 86 sports coupe, do you? Well, we have you covered with more than a dozen fresh videos including promotional films, driving footage on the track and the road as well as clips from the media presentation at the Fuji Speedway in Japan.

For some reason Toyota has decided to name the car simply 86 in Japan and GT 86 in Europe, while the same or possibly slightly different variant with the Scion badge will be marketed as the FR-S in North America.

The key facts about the 86 include a front-mounted Subaru-sourced 2.0-liter boxer engine pushing 200-horses towards the rear axle through a short-shift six-speed manual gearbox (or a 6-speed automatic) and an available limited slip differential.

Toyota has not yet released full specifications, but a leaked brochure revealed that the JDM version tips the scales at 1,210kg (2,668 pounds) in basic trim and at 1,230kg (2,711 pounds) in the second trim level.

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Sights and Sounds of the New Toyota 86 from First JDM Test Drive [Video]

Our coverage on the production version of what we came to know as the FT-86 in concept form but which Toyota decided to name GT 86 for the European region and simply '86' in its home market of Japan, continues with two fresh videos that depict the rear-wheel drive sports car in action.

The first clip is from a quick spin around the Fuji Speedway racetrack, while the second video includes a more comprehensive test drive from a Japanese car magazine that provides us with a more in-depth look at the sights and sounds of the 86 as well as in a wider palette of colors.

Toyota is highly optimistic about the '86', which it describes as an "entirely driver-focused sports car, designed to recapture the fundamental joys of motoring".

The Japanese firm's recipe includes a 200HP naturally-aspirated engine mounted up front matched to a six-speed manual (or 6sp automatic) and a limited slip differential driving the rear wheels, and a near-perfect 53:47 front-to-rear weight distribution.

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New Toyota GT 86 Sports Coupe with 2.0-liter Engine Officially Revealed in Production Guise [Updated]

The wait for the most hotly anticipated (and teased, may we add..) sports cars of the year, the production version of the Toyota FT-86 2+2 coupe, is finally over as the Japanese automaker came out with all the juicy details ahead of the car's world premiere at the at the Tokyo motor show on November 30.

In Europe, the new Toyota will be called the GT 86 in tribute to the Japanese firm's GT car heritage and especially the Corolla GT (or Levin) AE86, which inspired its creation. The Japanese domestic market version will be aptly called 86.

The GT 86 is the result of a joint Toyota and Subaru development programme that will spawn two more models, the global Subaru BRZ that will also make its debut in Tokyo next week in production trim, and the North American market Scion FR-S.

All three cars will share the same platform and mechanical hardware including the Subaru-sourced flat-four, with only minor styling differences between them.

The story of the GT 86 began in October 2009 with the unveiling of the first FT-86 Concept in Tokyo and was followed by the almost production ready FT-86 II concept at the 2011 Geneva motor show this past March.

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Just Another Tease: New Toyota FT-86 Promo Film

So we have some good news and some bad news to report on for all of you readers interested in the Toyota FT-86.

We're going to give you the good news first: the Japanese company has just published a new promotional video on its upcoming rear-wheel drive coupe model. The bad news is that it doesn’t really show anything that we don't already know about the FT-86…

Aside from some kids playing around with first generation RWD Celica and 2000GT toy cars, the clip includes scenes shot from the development phase of the FT-86 as well as quick glimpses of the production model, which we've already seen through a series of leaked brochure shots.

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