"It's not for one manufacturer to survive, but to protect car enthusiasts": Toyota GR boss on why collaboration between brands will be the future of sports cars

Rumours of a purely Toyota-developed, dedicated sports car model may be greatly exaggerated if word from the head of the brand’s GR performance arm are any hint.

During a recent visit to Australia, GR Company President Tomoya Takahashi spoke to a small group of journalists about the future of the GR brand, and faced numerous questions regarding future products.

Despite the tendency for Toyota executives to be fairly cautious about discussing upcoming models or plans, Takahashi was happy to give his own views on Toyota’s sports car future including how he expects to make producing fun cars viable.

Add CarsGuide as a preferred source in Google Search

Add CarsGuide as a preferred source in Google Search

When the topic of a purely Toyota-developed sports car was raised, Takahashi was hesitant to put too much weight into the possibility of it happening.

GR has gone out on its own on two models, the GR Yaris and Corolla, neither are built to be dedicated sports cars like the GR86 and Supra. The latter are collaborations with other brands: the GR86 a twin to the Subaru BRZ, and the Supra a sibling to the BMW Z4.

Toyota GR already has a broader stable of fun-focused cars than most brands, but Takahashi wants to grow the brand and said a GR SUV is something that may be needed in the future if GR is to expand.

So alongside reports and rumours from Japan that a successor to the MR2 or Celica (or both) could be on the way, plus a Toyota FT-Se concept that could absolutely be an MR2 for the modern market, when can we expect Toyota’s next sports car halo?

Takahashi, liked the idea of a Toyota-developed sports car personally, suggested the best way forward is a business model that allows cars like that to actually reach the market, rather than get stuck in the ‘bean counter’ phase.

Tomoya Takahashi

“I want to work with a smile on my face. If I’m not smiling, I can not make the customer smile,” he told journalists via a translator.

“The sports car market is shrinking in the future. We cannot maintain sports cars as one brand, Toyota.”

“Collaboration between brands will increase in the future. We don’t know with whom we’re going to collaborate.”

So is it bad news for the Toyota faithful who miss the likes of the Celica, the MR2 or the Chasers, Sprinters and Supras of old? Not exactly, as it seems like Takahashi’s point of view is that those who keep a close eye on the Toyota/GR joint bank account won’t be too chuffed with Toyota dropping millions to develop a car that might not sell in the millions.

The lower cost and shared development between brands means that sports cars will continue to exist, rather than be held back by budget disagreements in the planning phase.

GR Yaris

“It’s not for one manufacturer to survive, but to protect car enthusiasts,” Takahashi said. “Our mission is to make car guys smile, so we need to collaborate sometimes.”

Toyota and GR aren’t the only ones who’ve taken this approach, with plenty of major brands partnering with what would otherwise be rivals, or even tech companies to reach shared goals through cooperation.

Honda has a joint-venture with Sony to develop electric cars, and plenty of Chinese-based carmakers have partnered with brands from Europe or the US to share resources and expertise.

Even Toyota Australia has a Memorandum of Understanding with rival brand Hyundai Australia as well as Ampol and Pacific Energy to develop hydrogen refuelling infrastructure.

Toyota Celica

So then what can we expect from GR? Takahashi didn’t offer up any clues, adding he didn’t know (or possibly just wouldn’t say) who’s on Toyota’s dance card, but a couple of fun possibilities to consider include the fact that Mazda is expected to develop its recent Iconic SP concept into something for the road. Then there’s also the next Mazda MX-5, expected to have some kind of electrification.

The latter is particularly interesting, if Toyota is to make a compact two-door sports car in the spirit of the Celica or MR2 with electrification, a car like the MX-5 would be a good pairing. Especially given the 86/BRZ might not head that way.

After all, GR has a few fast cars under its belt, but Takahashi said ‘fast’ isn’t the goal for future cars - dismissing electric car acceleration as a threat to the GR brand.

“Our target is not to make fast cars, our target is to make fun cars.”