Toyota 86 2016 News

The bottom line is the icing on a car cake that is tastier than anything from Japan since the original Mazda MX-5 in 1989, and a rare reflection of the strength of the Australian dollar. Instead of banking big profits on a car that has already created a huge waiting list in Australia, Toyota has passed on the dollar value in a car that was widely predicted to have a starting sticker of around $35,000. Nothing has been cut from the package to achieve the sub-$30,000 bottom line for the 86 GT manual, and even the upscale GTS - which picks up a bunch of stuff including bigger wheel and brakes, better aircon and satnav - is still cheaper than expected from $35,490. "Sometimes in this job you get lucky," says Toyota's marketing boss, Matt Callachor, announcing the price today in Canberra. He says pricing negotiations with Japan ran right to the local deadline and the successful outcome was even kept from Toyota's dealers until the official announcement at 10am. The good news puts pressure on every company in the sports car class, but particularly Hyundai with its impressive new Veloster coupe and Subaru, which begins sales of its BRZ - a near-identical shared product - in July. The 86 project leader, Tetsuya Tada, is happy about the Australian pricing, but still focussed on his work to create a car that was tasted from the top of Toyota - by new company boss Akio Toyoda, grandson of the founder - to go all-out to put driving enjoyment back into the T brand. "This car is not about numbers. It's a car that really gets your engine pumping. It was built by passion, not by committee," says Tada.  

The company has announced that two 86 sports cars will compete in next month's 24 Hours Nurburgring endurance race. The race cars are being prepared by Toyota's partner GAZOO Racing to reach and support a new generation of car lovers around the world. By competing in such events, Toyota aims to make better cars that satisfy enthusiasts and promote the "joy of driving." A feature of the GAZOO Racing team is that it will include Toyota's in-house employees as drivers and mechanics for the race. The 40th running of the 24 Hours Nurburgring will be held from May 17 to 20. The 86 is a rear-wheel-drive car. It features the world's first horizontally opposed D-4S engine, combining "boxer" engine technology with Toyota's  D-4S direct injection technology. The engine is installed front mid-ship to create an ultra-low centre of gravity and low inertia. It is the world's only horizontally opposed engine and rear-wheel-drive package. The D-4S, with separate twin injectors for both direct injection and port injection, boasts a high compression ratio of 12.5:1. The engine's redline is 7500rpm with maximum output of 147kW. Customer cars will have the choice of a six-speed manual transmission or a special sports-driving six-speed automatic transmission.  

Japan’s Gazoo Racing website has published a cut-and-glue Toyota GT-86 in pdf form.Okay, it’s not exactly 3D printing, and it’s certainly nowhere near having the real thing. But it might keep you happy while you’re waiting for the cars to arrive in Australia.And judging by Toyota president Akio Toyoda’s laps in the car Fuji race track in Japan, the Toyota 86 could be worth waiting for. The 86 features the world's first horizontally opposed D-4S engine, combining "boxer" engine technology with Toyota's cutting-edge D-4S direct injection technology.The engine is installed front mid-ship to create an ultra-low centre of gravity and low inertia. It is the world's only horizontally opposed engine and rear-wheel-drive package.Paul Gover gave it four stars in his first test drive of the Toyota 86, which has been built as a joint project with Subaru to produce the Subaru BRZ.However, there has now been some argument about who was the main source of the car, and who contributed the most DNA – Toyota or Subaru. Perhaps you can print two copies of the PDF of the paper Toyota GT 86 and paint one in Subaru colours. 

Toyota has made an early commitment to a range of TRD tweaks - performance and cosmetic - for the new coupe that should arrive from the USA in time for Christmas. Local deliveries of the 86 will not begin until June but hot-up work is already well underway in both Japan and America as TRD, the official tuning division for Toyota. TRD has even test run a tweak 86 in Japan as part of its work for the country's biggest annual tuner show, the Tokyo Auto Salon. Toyota had 15 display vehicles at the event with a range of tuner connections, including TRD, G Sports and Gazoo Racing, the company directed by Toyota's chairman Akio Toyoda. The 86 dominated the display area and among the cars was a prototype that race in last year's Nurburgring 24-hour race in Germany. The 86 hits the road in Australia in June and TRD parts will be available this year through dealerships, although the exact timing is not set. "We will have a range of TRD stuff, but it won't be available for about nine months," says Toyota spokesman, Mike Breen. "It's a very similar range to what TRD has shown in Japan. We're looking at dampers, strut braces, exhaust systems, those sorts of things." Breen says the decision to source parts from the USA was made for economic reasons, which should mean a better deal for owners. "The full range hasn't been decided yet, but we're hoping to take just about everything. TRD in the USA received their development cars a little late. So we're still waiting to hear. But the TRD parts will all be sold directly through Toyota Australia dealerships."

In fact, if the car doesn't recognise your bum, you won't be able to drive it at all - let alone steal it. New anti-theft technology developed in Japan relies on biometric recognition of your derriere.The driver's seat squab is embedded with sensors that measure pressure and distribution, creating a 3D plot of your rear end. If the driver's seat doesn't recognise that part of your anatomy, the car won't start.The system has been developed by Engineers from the Advanced Institute of Industrial Technology in Tokyo.Reports say it was able to recognise and give the 'permission to drive' nod 98 per cent of the time to six different drivers' arses, but didn't say if the seat could tell them from elbows.

At Fuji race track in Japan.in Japan, the Toyota 86 was driven by Toyota president Akio Toyoda  who said the new rear-wheel-drive "86" sports car was all about "waku doki"  a car that creates excitement and gets your heart racing. The 86 features the world's first horizontally opposed D-4S engine, combining "boxer" engine technology with Toyota's cutting-edge D-4S direct injection technology. The engine is installed front mid-ship to create an ultra-low centre of gravity and low inertia. It is the world's only horizontally opposed engine and rear-wheel-drive package. Toyota says the 86 carries on the spirit of the AE86 Corolla in its aim to be a car that evolves with its owner. The lightweight and compact rear-wheel-drive platform was designed to achieve superior handling and create the world's smallest mass-production four-passenger sports car. The vehicle's newly developed engine delivers exceptional output and torque as well as superior response at low and medium speeds. The 2.0-litre ,D-4S, with separate twin injectors for both direct injection and port injection, boasts a high compression ratio of 12.5:1. This provides high output and high torque over a wide range of engine speeds and contributes to improve environmental performance. The engine's redline is 7500rpm with a output of 147kW/205Nm. There's a choice of six-speed manual transmission or a special sports-driving six-speed automatic transmission. The rear seatbacks fold down to the front to create a luggage space that can accommodate four sports wheels or two golf bags. The steering wheel is the smallest in a Toyota-brand vehicle. The wheel's surface was optimised to enhance steering performance and grip. A three-cluster meter built around the tachometer has been designed with particular attention to enhanced visibility and readability during sports driving. It rolls on 18s and has a 50 litre tank.

Despite a reputation for blandoid family cars, Toyota actually ran its first true two-seater sporty back in 1965. The car was called the Sports 800 and, thanks to sharing parts with the more mundane Publica, the baby coupe looked the goods and had a top speed of close to 160km/h. As Toyota is now keen to highlight, partly in an attempt to divert all the engine attention from its 86 partner Subaru, the S800 had a 790cc horizontally-opposed, two-cylinder, air-cooled engine. "So far, Toyota has delivered a variety of sports cars. In developing the new 86 we had in mind three models in particular," says Tetsyua Tada, chief engineer on the 86. He goes on to highlight the S 800, then the brilliant 2000 GT, and finally the Corolla AE86 which has become a Japanese cult car and the building block for a huge number of weekend warriors and motorsport champions, including the latest drift machines. A classic 2000 GT was even parked in the styling studio as Toyota's designers worked on the shape for the 86, so they could tap it for inspiration. "This is a masterpiece that pushed Toyota's sports cars to a world level," says Tada. The 2000 GT was the high point of Toyota's rapid rise through the 1960s, despite the arrival of the Corolla, and was even used by Sean Connery when he starred as James Bond in the 1967 film, You Only Live Twice. In an interesting twist, Toyota built a pair of convertible cars for the film, even though the 2000 GT was only ever sold as a coupe. The AE86 - also known as the Sprinter - gives its name to the all-new Toyota two-seater and is the car that Tada clearly believes is the closest relative to his new baby. "We had a passion to create a car like the AE86. Rear-wheel drive and nimble footwork are the basics of this vehicle," Tada says.

Toyota has done its own stuff, displaying a tweaked 86 with extra body bits and a sports cabin with race seats at the global preview of the new coupe, but expects 21st century hotrodders to zero-in on the engine. Chief engineer Tetsuya Tada says he has visited hundreds of aftermarket companies in Japan and many told him not to bother with a factory turbocharged model. There is clearly room in the engine bay, and Subaru has vast experience thanks to its WRX and STI models, but anything Toyota did to the 86 was going to be overtaken by tuners. So Tada, without admitting anything publicly, has obviously chosen to let them have their way and kept the price down on the basic car to encourage sales and leave room for aftermarket spending on extra power. "We rejected turbo, rejected all-wheel drive, rejected high weight. We listened a lot to car enthusiasts," Tada says. "Customers can enjoy their own tuning and customise it. It's a car that can evolve with customers. It's not bound by the conventional stereotype."

The leaked images show what is said to be the production version of the new car, based on the FT-85 II concept. We’ll find out for sure when the car is revealed at Tokyo motor show in a few weeks time – along with the sports car being developed by Subaru on the same platform. The red body of the car is very close to the FT-85 II concept, but has lost the aggressive headlights and spoiler of the show car. However images of a white dressed-up version have also been leaked, reportedly from a Toyota ‘Modellista’ parts catalogue, show a range of extras. One of the close-ups confirms that for Toyota, a sequential automatic transmission will be joining the flat-four engine, six-speed manual gearbox and rear-drive mechanical package supplied by Subaru for the car.

The born-again Sprinter is definitely a coupe and now there will be a four-door sedan for Toyota showrooms.  Even though sedans are not popular in Japan - with the exception of the car sold as the Lexus IS200 and Toyota Altezza - Toyota can see serious potential in a global car from the FT-86. The loyal Altezza customers are one reason why, according to a source close to Toyota, the sedan has been given the go-ahead. It also helps that the basics are available and easy to tweak for four-door work. In truth, using the FT-86’s platform for a sports sedan is a kind of insurance policy to cover any potential shortfall FT-86 sales.  At the same time, it makes the most of the rare rear-drive platform. One Japanese commentator even goes so far as to say that the sports sedan project is a safety net, just in case the FT-86 fails, so that Toyota does not have to cancel the project altogether. The Carsguide source tells us that the sedan will not only incorporate the FT-86’s Subaru Liberty-based mechanical package, but get the same 150-kiloWatt boxer engine and six-speed manual transmission (or CVT) from the Impreza as well. Expected to fall into a segment rivalling something between the BMW 1- Series and 3-Series, and including the Audi A3 and the Golf GTI, the Japanese domestic sticker price should land near $30,000. Given that more power might be required down the line, Toyota will have the ability to bring the Subaru Outback’s 3.6 litre H6 engine into the equation.  But by the time the new sports sedan - not to mention the FT-86 coupe- finally makes it to showrooms in 2013, Subaru will have its own in- house hybrid boxer engine. This will create yet another powertrain opportunity for Toyota and a package that will, according to our source, be more exciting to drive than Toyota’s current crop of hybrids.