Toyota unveils new GR86 sports car that will cost around £ 30,000

While other manufacturers are accelerating the decline of the internal combustion engine with the release of one electric car at a time, Toyota is harnessing gasoline power while it can still be by adding another performance model to its ranks that will keep enthusiasts racing when it comes in next year the trade is coming.

The coupe is called GR86 and is a replacement for the outgoing GT86. It was jointly developed with Subaru and Toyota’s competition arm Gazoo Racing.

The GR86 is expected to hit the market in early 2022. Prices start at around £ 30,000.

Toyota may not be a brand that you have traditionally associated with high performing and relatively affordable sports cars for the past several decades. The Japanese manufacturer is arguably best known for leading the fee for environmentally friendly vehicles with models like the hybrid Prius.

However, the manufacturer has improved its game in recent years while still getting the most out of the internal combustion engine before sales bans are imposed from 2030.

With new gasoline and diesel cars banned from showrooms by the end of the decade, Toyota has brought extremely exciting – driver-oriented – cars to market in recent years.

The recently released GR Yaris has received praise since the hot hatch was released.

The GR86 is the replacement for the GT86 that went on sale in 2012. It was developed and optimized by Gazoo Racing – the competitive branch of Toyota

UK performance and pricing details are yet to be confirmed. However, we expect prices to start around £ 30,000 when they go on sale in late 2021 or early 2022

The GR86 Coupé connects Toyota’s other two performance vehicles – the GR Yaris (left) and the GR Supra (right).

It was named British Car of the Year 2021 last month and also played a role in the Yaris Supermini, which won the European Car of the Year award a few weeks earlier.

Even before the rally-inspired Yaris, the company’s fleet featured the GR-tuned Supra, which was unveiled in 2019 and marked the return of one of the manufacturer’s best-known performance names.

The new car is almost exactly the same size as the GT86, but has been made structurally stiffer to improve driving performance

Toyota says it will inherit the “essential driving fun features” of the original GT86, which has amassed more than 200,000 sales worldwide

The GR86 is set to be the lightest four-seater coupe in its class thanks to weight-saving initiatives such as the use of aluminum for roof and body panels

The new GR86 will complete the trio of exciting engines that are likely to be somewhere between the two mentioned models with a price tag around the £ 30,000 mark.

Will it fit in my garage? Toyota GR86

On offer: End of 2021 / beginning of 2020

Price: approximately £ 30,000

Length: 4.265mm

Width: 1.775 mm

Height: 1,310mm inc. Antenna / 1,280 mm (without antenna)

Wheelbase: 2.575 mm

Empty weight: 1,270 kg

Engine: 2.4-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine

Powertrain: Front engine, rear wheel drive

0-62 mph: 6.3 seconds

Suspension: Front MacPherson strut, rear double wishbone

Brakes: Ventilated discs

Tires: 215 / 40R18

Toyota says it will inherit the “essential driving fun” features of the original GT86, which launched in 2012 and had more than 200,000 sales worldwide.

Thanks to weight-saving initiatives like the use of aluminum for roof and body panels, it is expected to be the lightest four-seater coupe in its class.

Like the GT86 that it has replaced, it will share its chassis with the new Subaru BRZ and the same engine: a 2.4-liter boxer with a naturally aspirated engine and four surfaces.

While pictures and performance data for the European market have not yet been released, Japanese versions will produce 232 hp and 250 Nm of torque (about 35 hp and 45 Nm more than the GT86) with the naturally aspirated engine spinning at 7,400 rpm.

It comes standard in all markets with a six-speed manual transmission – one of the standout features of the GT86 – or the option of an upgrade to an automatic transmission.

Both transmit the power to the rear wheels only via a limited slip differential.

From a standing start, it is claimed that it can reach 100 km / h in 6.3 seconds, reducing the sprint time of the replaced model by 1.1 seconds.

According to Toyota, the chassis is heavily based on that of the GT86, but has stronger reinforcement plates and stronger joining techniques to improve the rigidity of the body for better handling.

The look has been updated with a new headlight and daytime running light arrangement and a wide front bumper inlet

There is a new diffuser and two exhaust outlets on the back of the chunky rear bumper

The new GR86 uses a 2.4-liter four-cylinder boxer with a naturally aspirated engine that produces 232 hp and 250 Nm of torque (about 35 hp and 45 Nm more than the GT86). The suction motor rotates to 7,400 rpm

That is, the dimensions are almost identical to those of the predecessor, but the rigidity is improved by 50 percent. The curb weight is unchanged from the previous model at 1,270 kg.

While there are many mechanical similarities, the GR86 looks very different from its GT86 counterpart at first glance.

Gazoo Racing, which has a background from World Rally Championship to World Endurance series, has tweaked the design, including an updated headlamp and daytime running light arrangement at the front, as well as a chunkier rear bumper that also houses a diffuser and a pair of exhaust outlets .

A new 8-inch touchscreen emerges from the relatively poor infotainment system of the GT86, which complements a completely digital instrument cluster behind the steering wheel

A six-speed manual gearbox is available as standard. This was one of the GT86’s best features

Like the outgoing GT86, the Toyota GR86 will be mechanically identical to a sister model of Subaru BRZ

Like the GT86, it is a two-plus-two sports car, albeit with limited legroom in the rear, which is not suitable for adults for long journeys.

From the relatively poor infotainment system of the GT86 emerges a new 8-inch touchscreen, which complements a completely digital instrument cluster behind the steering wheel.

According to Toyota, further details for the UK market will be announced later this year.

For gasoline heads, this is one that you should definitely keep an eye on.