Toyota Supra confirmed to return

As Toyota continues to rediscover its long-vanished mojo, we could see the return of another affordable sports car, the Supra. Since the Supra, Celica and MR-2 were culled, Toyota's line-up has  looked pretty drab. The everyman's sports car theme has been only recently rekindled by the Toyota 86, co-developed with Subaru.

The FT-HS -- a new, more socially acceptable hybrid sports car that goes back to a 2007 concept -- points the way forward. Stillborn thanks to the GFC, its spirit has survived in the coming Supra successor.

On-again, off-again, the Supra project is very much back on the drawing board and will inherit some of the design hints from the FT-HS, especially the edges and sharp angles  in this artist's interpretation.

The bodywork of the Supra successor will incorporate some of the FT-HS's design language but it will be dropped on to GRMN's MRS chassis, a working concept car pictured here being tested at Fuji Speedway.

GRMN stands for Gazoo Racing Meister of Nurburgring. It takes its name from Nurburgring guru Hiromu Naruse, Toyota's late godfather of sports car development. GRMN races the Lexus LFA and Scion FRS at the fabled German track.

Unlike the rear-drive 86, the new coupe will use a 4WD drivetrain and generate more than 300kW from a mid-mounted 3.5-litre V6 hybrid set-up mated to a constantly variable transmission lifted from the new Lexus RX.

Tuned for higher performance, the engine drives the rear wheels while in-wheel electric motors power the fronts. This writer tested an early prototype back in 2002.

The converted 4WD MR2 was powered by a 3.3-litre V6 from Toyota's Harrier SUV, mated to the company's well-known THS hybrid system. The coupe was exceptionally quick while its 4WD system delivered phenomenal grip in the corners.

As we have seen with projects such as the LFA, Toyota can take up to 10 years to bring sports cars to market. It is no secret that company CEO Akio Toyoda -- weekend racer, sports car addict and the driving force behind the $700,000 LFA -- is behind the Supra successor.

If Toyoda-san has his way and the economy shows signs of recovery, the new coupe will be on showroom floors by late 2015 for less than $60,000.