Next Toyota GR86 to be developed without Subaru but with turbo power – report

A new unverified report from Japan has added weight to rumours the next-generation Toyota GR86 sports car is already in the works – even though the current model has been in Australian showrooms for less than 12 months.

The new report alleges the popular sports-car will be developed in-house by Toyota for the first time, without a Subaru BRZ twin.

However, Subaru may still be contracted to build the car for Toyota in its factory.

Reputable Japanese magazine Mag-X claims the new GR86 is in the planning stages for a launch in 2028 with three-cylinder turbocharged hybrid power.

Toyota Japan, as with other car-makers, does not comment on media speculation.

The new top-secret plans were reportedly “declared” to engineers by Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda – who as president from 2009 to 2022 led Toyota’s return to the performance-car market – amid questions about the financial viability of the GR86 beyond the current model.

According to Mag-X, Toyota had been “debating whether to rush the [next] model change in anticipation of the age of electrification, or to postpone the conclusion by prolonging the life of the current model.”

“Tetsuya Tada – who took the lead in the [86] project from its inception – retired in 2021, and there was no one left who could be in direct contact with Subaru to develop products closer to Toyota’s ideals,” the magazine says.

The 2028 timeline published by Mag-X contradicts another reputable Japanese magazine, Best Car, which has previously reported a 2025 launch date.

A new report by Mag-X claims the new Toyota GR86 is due to adopt a 1.4-litre version of the 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine used to power the Toyota GR Yaris and GR Corolla hot hatchbacks – “most likely” assisted by hybrid technology.

Mag-X also speculates the electric motor could be placed between the engine and transmission, a configuration reportedly planned for future hybrid versions of the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series and Lexus LX four-wheel-drives.

Mag-X claims scrapping today’s ‘horizontally-opposed’ four-cylinder Subaru engine would require a new platform, as the current decade-old chassis is said to be unable to support the new three-cylinder engine in a production car without costly modifications to the crash structure in the engine bay.

This again contradicts Best Car, which made the claim the next GR86 could use a modified, shortened version of the architecture beneath the Lexus IS sedan – which is also now a decade old, launched in 2013.

Despite Toyota reportedly developing the new GR86 on its own – and the move to a Toyota-designed engine and architecture – Mag-X claims Subaru may still be contracted to build the car to keep its factories running at optimum capacity.

This would be despite the need to ship the engine from where it is built by Toyota in Aichi Prefecture, nearly 400km north-east to the Subaru factory in Gunma Prefecture.

According to the magazine, a “source close to the matter” said “Subaru, which does not want to reduce the plant’s utilisation rate, may … continue to be entrusted with the assembly work.

“This is a matter that could result in the loss of a great deal of work for Subaru. It will be interesting to see what kind of discussions and negotiations will take place in the future,” the Mag-X source is quoted as saying.

The Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ have been manufactured by Subaru at its Gunma factory in Japan since the original versions went on sale in 2012.

Mag-X reports the engine transport costs from one factory to another “will also be reflected in the price of the vehicle.”

Toyota is already testing a GR86 with the 1.4-litre turbocharged engine in Super Taikyu endurance races in Japan, powered by synthetic “carbon-neutral” fuel claimed to emit only the CO2 that was captured from the environment during the fuel’s production.

MORE: Toyota GR86 ready for more power, could get turbo GR Yaris engine

The 2028 launch timing reported by Mag-X means the GR86 will be unavailable in Europe for nearly four years, as it is due to disappear from showrooms in July 2024 as its windscreen is said to be too low to mount then-mandatory traffic-sign recognition and lane-keep assist technology.

The publication claims that after a so-called “run-up” – developing the first two 86/GR86 generations with Subaru, and the GR Supra with BMW – Toyota is preparing to go it alone for the development of its sports cars.

Mag-X reports the next Supra is due in 2027, with the aim of offering it as an electric car only – though early prototypes have reportedly shown “performance … far short of the target”, and “the development team is struggling to achieve the target performance.”

The post Next Toyota GR86 to be developed without Subaru but with turbo power – report appeared first on Drive.